John Sowerby interviewed by Robert Aitchison

Oral history interview with John Sowerby conducted and recorded by Robert Aitchison on 7 April 2004, as part of the Time Tracks oral history collecting initiative. Duration: 21 minutes 30 seconds. Railway family, father's railway career, Shildon Railway Works; interviewee's own career, Shildon works from 1939, apprentice electrician, foreman, plant engineer, technical services manager; early life in Shildon, childhood, school; impact of closure of Shildon railway works; 1975 celebrations, Stockton and Darlington 150th anniversary, cavalcade; Locomotion Museum; social life in Shildon, leisure activities; impact of Shildon works on health; diet, regional dishes; fur factory in Shildon (Astraka)

Time Tracks, Shildon Railway Village Community Project was an initiative funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund that encouraged members of the public to bring photographs and documents at Locomotion to form a community archive, when Locomotion museum was opened in Shildon, 2004. Over 50 oral history interviews were also recorded with members of the community. They shared their memories of Shildon as they knew it in their childhood and throughout their lives, from as early as the 1920s, as well as their work experiences in local factories and industries, including Shildon railway works.