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GWR Route: Banbury to Wolverhampton

Moor Street Station: gwrms2745

The Chief Clerk's Office in the Good's Office, whose windows looked out on to Moor Street

The Chief Clerk's Office in the Good's Office, whose windows looked out on to Moor Street. The official in charge of a Goods Depot was known as the Goods Agent. This official had varied duties, as they were not only the commercial representative of the company in the locality, but also responsible for the proper performance of a considerable amount of clerical work and manual labour. The Chief Clerk was the Agent's right-hand man, not only in immediate charge of the clerical (inside) work, but also nominal in charge of the outside work, in the Agent's absence. In a large goods depot like Moor Street there would be eight sections each headed by a Clerk-in-Charge who reported to the Chief Clerk:

Invoicing
Accounts
Inwards
Cartage
Claims
Rates
Correspondence
Staff

Attached to each section were a number of Clerks, Female Clerks and Lad Clerks, as well as Office-men and Lad Messengers who assisted in the more routine parts of the work, such as turning up consignments notes, invoices and other documents.

The following is an extract from Great Western Information Booklet No 4 ‘Hints on the Management of a Goods Station’ published in 1929:

The Duties of the Chief Clerk

  • Selected by his training and general ability for the position, he is the Agent's right-hand man and understudy; and has often to act for the Agent, when the latter has for any cause to be absent from the station. It is essential therefore that he should keep in very close touch with everything that is going on; and a very brief sketch is, therefore given of the duties the Chief Clerk should undertake.
  • He should be on duty early – say 8:0 a.m. He should then go through all the correspondence and put aside for the Agent's perusal all letters received from the public; from his District Manager; the Chief Officers; and all repeats. A record should be kept of important and urgent communications; and the Chief Clerk will see that replies are sent the same day whenever possible.
  • He should look through all new cases, and mark any of special or exceptional character to be attended to by the Clerks in Charge of Sections.
  • He should look through the copies of telegraph and telephone messages forwarded and received the previous day, and if not already conversant with any important matter he should acquaint himself with what has been done, and if necessary give further directions.
  • He should keep in touch with all postal telegrams and railway messages from Chief and District Offices, to ensure that complete replies are sent as quickly as possible.
  • He should see daily each Clerk in Charge of the different Sections about matters of an exceptional nature, upon which instructions or advice are needed.
  • He should periodically examine Excess items; Outstanding; Demurrage and Siding Rent Books; Delivery and Wagon Books; Sales Book; and other sources of revenue from terminal services; also check goods on hand in warehouse, prior to signing monthly certificate to the District Goods Manager.
  • He should examine and initial the clerks’ and office-porters’ time books and should supervise and control the office staff.
  • He should arrange the annual leave roster; also cover the duties of absentees both in periods of leave and illness.
  • He should examine from time to time the stocks of stationary and stores, and see that no accumulation is allowed.
  • The consumption of gas, electricity and water should be checked and watched, to ensure that no waste occurs.
  • He should check all receipt books.
  • He should arrange for all letters to be signed by the Agent to pass through his hands, and to sign important replies to correspondence not signed by the Agent or his assistant; and also sign vouchers (rebate and otherwise) for amounts within the limits authorised.
  • He should also sign local and interchange privilege ticket orders where authorised to do so.
  • He should keep a list of all the ordinary returns sent to the different offices – weekly, monthly, etc. – and see that same are sent away to time, and arrange for any special returns called for to be promptly put in hand and despatched.

Robert Ferris

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