Railway occupations

  • Four men gathered around a desk in an office environment.

    Station clerk

    The station clerk served at the railway station and, in the hierarchy, was under the highest officer of the railway station, the station master or assistant station master.

  • Man in uniform standing at attention in front of trains in the station area.

    Station porter

    The station porter was a kind of jack-of-all-trades, employed by the traffic department. His immediate superiors were the station master and the head porter.

  • Woman wiping table in front of seated man in train compartment.

    Train maid

    The train maid was an employee of the traffic department. Her immediate superior was the station master where she was stationed.

  • Children and adults sitting on benches in a summery park. Buses in the background.

    Landscape director

    The landscape director was in charge of the planting work around the railway stations.

  • Uniformed man sitting on a trolley with a wind shelter on railway tracks.

    Line overseer

    The line overseer’s main duty was to make sure that the track enabled trains to operate without risk of accidents.

  • Woman standing on her way in front of a railway gate with a shawl around her shoulders in a winter landscape. Wooden house in the background.

    Gatekeeper

    Railway crossings, where roads crossed over the railway, used to be protected by special gates. These were tended by a gatekeeper.

  • A man by an open fire hatch is used on steam locomotives where fire is burning. He holds iron skewers into the fire.

    Locomotive fireman

    Tending the boiler, bringing in water, adding coal, cleaning, lubricating, and polishing lanterns – these were some of the duties of the fireman.

  • A man in a thick overcoat, hat and signal lamp in hand sits outdoors at the back of a wagon in a winter landscape.

    Brakesman

    In the early days, locomotives and wagons/carriages were braked by means of screw brakes. The brakes in the wagons/carriages were operated by the brakeman, who would tighten or loosen the brake at the command of the train driver.

  • Uniformed conductor hanging out through an open door and giving a signal.

    Conductor

    Does more than just check tickets. The conductor had many duties.

  • Female conductor in the driver's cab.

    Train driver

    “The train driver should fully realise the importance and moral responsibility of his position, and that the lives of many others could be endangered any acts of negligence, incompetence or inattention on his part.”

  • A man in uniform sitting at a stylish and well-arranged desk, looking into the camera.

    Station master

    The station master was the person in charge of the railway station. In simple terms, he was the station manager.

  • Family lined up in front of house by railway tracks. A man in uniform, woman sitting with fine clothes. Two boys in fine clothes, two smaller girls in nice dresses.

    Track tender

    Track tenders were responsible for ensuring that trains could safely travel along the track. When the railways came into use in Sweden, they needed to be maintained and monitored. Special staff were hired to do this, called track tenders.