Walter George Watts was known to family and friends as George. The son of Charles and Elizabeth Watts he was born in Horton, Wiltshire and began his working life at 14 years old as a farm labourer in Haydon Wick. Perhaps he was still employed on the land in 1910 – there is little information to be discovered about Walter’s life – only the report on his death.
In 1932 the Prevention of Accidents booklet was published with ‘posed’ photographs of potentially dangerous situations for those working on the railways. But it seems likely George wasn’t a railway employee. The railways were (and continue to be) dangerous places, even if you didn’t work on them.
A recent view of Montagu Street, Rodbourne
Fatality on the GWR near Swindon
A fatal accident occurred on the Great Western Railway between Swindon and Purton, about midnight on Wednesday. Two men were walking along the railway towards Swindon, and after they had passed two trains, which were meeting each other, one of them missed his companion, Walter George Watts, of 119 Montague Street Swindon. He made a search for him and eventually found his dead body by the side of the line. He had been struck by one of the trains and was killed instantaneously. The body was removed on a light engine to Swindon to await an inquest. The unfortunate man was 24 years of age and met his death on his birthday.
Western Daily Press, Friday August 12, 1910.
Walter George Watts was buried on August 15, 1910 in a public, unmarked grave, plot B2401. He was buried with two others; Jacob Fry who died in 1895 and was probably unrelated and Walter’s father Charles Watts who died in 1913.
With thanks to David Lewis – Between the Bridges – The Early Days of Rodbourne.
If you are researching your railway ancestor you may also like to visit the Railway Work, Life & Death website.
Radnor Street Cemetery 