• Luton railwaymen - in this picture are Great Northern staff in 1912.

There was no brass band, no fanfare of trumpets to mark the departure of an important, if small, new draft of men who left Luton for the Western Front on Thursday afternoon [March 29th, 1917]. They wore no khaki and were not accompanied by any military officer.

An important phase in successful military operations these days is an efficient railway service, and these men comprised 29 skilled platelayers from the Luton area of the Midland Railway. They are part of a contingent of about 200 men who are going to repair the railways in territory in the possession of the British Army in France and Belgium.

They all volunteered for the task on an invitation being received from the Executive Committee of the Railway Companies, and they travelled to London on Thursday by the 1.30 train from the Luton M.R. Station. They were entertained later in the day by the Executive Committee of the Y.M.C.A. headquarters, where they stayed the night, and then went on to Brixton the following morning to prepare for the journey to France.

Of the 29 no less than 22 are married men, and it speaks well for their patriotism that they offered to leave home and undertake what must of necessity be an unenviable service. The men were chosen, and accompanied to the town by Mr Joseph Houghton, engineer of the Luton area, and were drawn from the following centres:

Luton - Alfred Harris, William Puddephatt, John Sharp, Bert Groom, Harry Batchelor, William Eade, William Stone, Charles Hollingsworth, Charles Hollis.

Chiltern Green - John Shepherd.

Leagrave - Charles Lathwell, John Bonner, Albert Baker.

Harlington - William Giles, Harry Weston.

Flitwick - Arthur Bird, James Bonner, George Bunker, Walter Downing, William Downing, Samuel Langley, Richard Crawley, Thomas Ashton, Sydney Short, Charles Robinson, Alfred Webb.

Ampthill - John Pedder.

Bedford - John Clifton, Albert Barker.

There were also three from Harpenden, which is in the St Albans area - William Brewer, Arthur Dawes, Richard Tuffin.

[Beds & Herts Saturday Telegraph: March 31st, 1917]