Seminar: From Waterways to Railways: A journey through Britain’s working past

The first Guild seminar of 2026 will take place on Saturday 21 February at Colonel Dane Memorial Hall, Church Street, Alwalton, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire PE7 3UU.

Come with us on a journey through Britain’s working past researching the people who kept the country moving from watermen to railwaymen.

Applications to attend are welcome from Guild members, family historians, genealogists, and members of the general public having an interest in the subject matter. 

The seminar cost including refreshments and buffet lunch is £27.50 (including VAT).

To book your place using a variety of payment methods, click BOOK MY PLACE – Bookings close on 8 February 2026.

All online bookings made by bank transfer, PayPal or credit card will receive an automatic system generated email confirmation and bookings made by cheque will be acknowledged upon receipt. All bookings will then be confirmed by email, with full joining instructions on, or soon after, the official booking closing date; if you don’t then receive any of these emails please email to check that your booking has been received.

We would like to ensure that any delegate with a disability can participate fully in this event. Anyone with any special requirements should telephone the Guild Help Desk on 0800 011 2182 or email seminar-booking@one-name.org.

An accommodation listing is available here. A number of delegates and members of the organising committee will be staying Friday night at the Peterborough Ferry Meadows  and will meet for dinner at the adjacent restaurant The Granary Beefeater Steak Restaurant in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire .

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Programme

09:30 – 10:00	Arrival: Registration and Coffee
10:00 – 10:10	Welcome to the Seminar – Alison Jones (8891)
10:10 – 11:10	Yorkshire’s Watermen: Illuminating their lives through genealogy – Mr David Scrimgeour (5991)
11:10 – 11:15	Comfort Break
11:15 – 12:15	Harwich for the Continent: The history of the railway ships – Mr Chris Turland
12:15 – 13:15	Buffet Lunch
13:15 – 14:15	Lives on the Ocean Wave: Tracing the careers of British mariners in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries – Dr Nicholas Dixon
14:15 – 14:20	Comfort Break
14:20 – 15:20	Railway History – Dr Richard Marks
15:20 – 15:45	Refreshments
15:45 – 16:45	What Life Working on the Railways was really like – Dr Mike Esbester
16:45 – 16:50	Close of Seminar

Colonel Dane Memorial Hall is in Alwalton, a village approximately 5 miles west of Peterborough city centre on the A1 and is easily accessible by train, bus and road. A local map is available here.