Christopher was the youngest of eight sons born to James and Ann Appleby of Hurworth-up-Tees, Durham and was christened on 6th February 1825 at Hurworth (1). No information is available of his younger years. Later he moved to Darlington, Durham.
He met and married Mary Ann, daughter of John and Jane Tinkler in the Parish Church in Darlington on 7th August, 1848, the Rev. Wray officiated at the ceremony. Both Christopher and Mary Ann gave their ages as twenty-two years. They were both unable to write as they and their witnesses, Robert Tinkler and Jane Ridley signed their names with a cross. Christopher's occupation was shown as a labourer and Mary Ann's as a servant.(2)
On 21st September, 1848 Mary Ann gave birth to a daughter, Jane Ann, at Silver Street, Darlington where they were living with Mary Ann's parents.(3) Three years later their son, James, as born at the same address on 13th August, 1853.(4)
On 29th April 1855, Christopher died suddenly at Silver Street, at the age of thirty years. The cause of death was shown on the death certificate as disease of the heart and dropsy.(5) At the time of his death his occupation was shown as a Railway Labourer, so we can assume this is where he was working when he married.
I contacted the British Rail to see if I could obtain any information about Christopher's work records and those of his son, James, who later joined the railways. I received a reply from Michael Vinton who informed me that the Railway Organisation had gone through massive changes since the 1850's and personal records do not exist for that era. Michael sent me a booklet printed by the Darlington/Stockton line for 150th Anniversary celebrated in 1975. The following are some brief extractions which I hope may be of some interest as we all have some connections with the Railways in some way or another.
The name of Stockton and Darlington Railway is misleading because the line was built to take coal from pits situated to the north and west of Shildon, across country via Darlington for shipment on the Tees at Stockton. In April,1821, George Stephenson (who invented the "Puffing Billy ") was asked to survey the land and make the line of way and assist the Committee with plans and estimates and in letting to the different contractors such work as they might judge it advisable to do by contract and also to superintend the execution of work. There is no doubt that Stephenson took this opportunity of explaining the possibilities of steam locomotion, something which required careful thought because hitherto it had been intended that traffic would be drawn by horses.
With the assistance of his son, Robert, then aged eighteen, Stephenson completed his appraisal by the end of 1821 and submitted proposals for a route suited to locomotive haulage, including two inclines worked by stationary steam engines.
In January 1822, Stephenson was appointed engineer of the line and was directed to start work at once. Work proceeded steadily, not without problems, with settling the line over swampy ground, but these were overcome. Two bridges were constructed over the River Skerne and Ganless, the second being the first iron bridge ever built. The Company's first moveable engine "Locomotion" constructed to the design by George Stephenson arrived in Newcastle in the middle of September, 1825, and was unloaded at Aycliffe Lane. Unfortunately, no means of lighting the fire were at hand and Stephenson was about to send off for a candle lantern when a workman named Robert Metcalfe stepped forward with a magnifying glass which he commonly used for lighting his pipe. It must have been a bright day because with his glass and some tarred rope, Mecalfe used the sun's rays to light "Locomotion's" fire for the first journey of a steam locomotion on a public railway.
The day set aside for the opening was Tuesday, 27th September, 1825. A hundred ton train was assembled at Busselton East Bank Foot behind "Location" with George Stephenson as driver. The train consisted of six waggons loaded with coal with passengers on top, six waggons loaded with sacks of flour with passengers on top, one waggon containing surveyors and engineers, a Coach "The Experiment" occupied by Directors and shareholders, six waggons "filled with strangers", 14 waggons packed with workmen and others and six waggons loaded with coal with passengers on top.
The train moved off led by a man on horseback carrying a flag and on towards the falling gradient towards Shildon. "Locomotion" was soon bowling along at between ten and twelve miles per hour. Unfortunately, the waggon containing the engineers and surveyors proved to have a defective axle and twice came off the rails before it was abandoned and shunted off into a siding at Darlington junction. Six waggons of coal and fourteen waggons carrying the workmen were detached from the train and shunted, the coal was distributed to the poor. Many of the passengers, who had endured the eight and a half mile journey from Busselton on top of the coal yielded their places to others eager to travel on the second stage of the trip to Stockton. "Locomotion" replenished its tender, and two waggons containing the Yarm Town Band were attached, as were the fourteen which had previously conveyed workmen and with some five hundred passengers aboard the train moved off over the Skerne Bridge, and proceeded towards Stockton at four miles per hour.
Three hours and seven minutes after leaving Darlington the cavalcade of the train and accompanying horsemen arrived at Stockton to the accompaniment of cannon salutes and cheers. Preceded by the Yarm Band, the Directors and officials marched in a procession to Stockton Town Hall, where dinner was served for 102 people and an exciting day was brought to a fitting close with a toast of no less than twenty-three items!
Despite the success of the first day, the first years of the Company were fraught with difficulties and pitfalls. Several new locomotives were bought and it wasn't until 1834 that locomotives were finally used entirely for passenger and goods trains. (6)
Sometime after Christopher's death Mary Ann married William Lewins, also a railway man, and the family moved to New Shildon where Mary Ann gave birth to another son, Samuel, on 30th December 1861. Mary Ann apparently continued to live in New Shildon where William died. Mary Ann was married a third time to William Baines, a widower with six grown children. Mary Ann died on 3rd January 1898 and was buried in the St. John's Church of England cemetery at New Shildon. Although Mary Ann was a devout Primitive Methodist, the Church of England church yard was the only burial ground available.(7)
REFERENCES.
- Information from Phillip Atkinson and James Smith, England.
- Marriage certificate, General Register, London. and
- Birth certificates, General Register, London.
- Birth certificates, General Register, London.
- Death Certificate, General Register, London.
- Booklet sent by Michael Vinton, England.
- Parish Register Records, St. John's Church, New Shildon.