Tracking our heritage oral history collection, 2005-2019

This oral history collection comprises 15 interviews focused on the section of the railway known as 'Peak Rail' that ran between Ambergate and Buxton in Derbyshire. Interviewees include former commuters as well as volunteers who worked on, travelled on or lived close to the railway.The collection includes childhood memories of the railway, experiences of different railway jobs such as booking clerks, train cleaners, firemen and steam train drivers, trainspotting, day trips to Matlock and Bakewell, holidays and the social lives of railway staff, closure of railway depots and the eventual running down of the railway and inevitable redundancies.

The Derwent & Wye Valley Railway Trust (DWVRT) is a charitable trust limited by guarantee. The principle focus for its work is in supporting the heritage aspects of the railway known as Peak Rail. In line with its aims to exhibit and inform the public about the railway’s history, the trust was awarded a grant of £10,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund in February 2018 for a one year project. Additional funding was received from Derbyshire Dales District Council, Matlock and Darley Dale Town Councils, the Peak Railway Association and individuals.‘Tracking Our Heritage’ engaged the communities of Matlock, Darley Dale and Rowsley in uncovering local heritage based around the section of the former mainline railway between Matlock and Rowsley.

Available for general access

Full catalogue available via: https://archives.le.ac.uk//calmview/TreeBrowse.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog&field=RefNo&key=EMOHA%2f64

Born digital

Copyright: Derwent & Wye Valley Railway Trust

There is a 16 page booklet “Tracking our heritage: sharing stories about the former railway between Matlock and Rowsley” available through EMOHA, emoha@leicester.ac.uk