Armstrong and Gooch had ensured a Swindon New Town was built around the GWR company, but Armstrong’s pupil William Dean was no replacement for his personal drive and benevolence.

Dean had inherited the largest factory in the world.

London and North Western Railway’s Crewe railway works covered a similar sized area to Swindon. But it was not a factory in the same sense of the word, as Swindon was.

Swindon manufactured everything it needed to keep the GWR operating and it had far more manufacturing processes, as well as higher skill levels.

It was also unique as it was an employment gateway providing both technical and craft opportunities based on merit. A child born in Swindon in 1876 was to become the greatest locomotive engineer of the 20th century – Sir William (Bill) Stanier.

And a child born in Swindon in 1884, went on to become the last chief mechanical engineer of the GWR – Frederick Hawksworth.

Many other great names associated with railways got their humble start in Swindon.

There are far too many to name and to note their achievements, but the GWR was an opportunity goldmine for many prominent people in the history of the railway world.

The time that Armstrong died coincided with the recession that had started in America and its effects were still in evidence.

That did not hinder more expansion of the works at the end of the 1870s.

The northern wall of the works was pushed out a further 100ft and three extra working aisles were added. It created a working space of 350ft by 310ft, all of it under cover.

The new gasworks that had recently been completed was now operating non stop to meet the ever growing demand for gas to light and power complex machinery in the works.

The gas-operated machines remained common until the 1950s.

In the 1880s the board of the GWR must have entered some kind of malaise, as it was no longer the powerhouse it had previously been. The recession finally hit Swindon and short time working was introduced in 1880.

It was compounded by the tortured genius of Brunel’s broad gauge which had dogged the GWR since its inception.

Brunel built the railway to his unique broad gauge of 7ft between the rails as he thought this would give extra speed and comfort.

But as the railway network expanded GWR had increasing problems with shipping goods on to the standard gauge, or “narrow gauge”as they called it, of the other railways.

It was now draining scant resources as the GWR had to maintain both standard gauge and broad gauge.

Broad gauge locomotives, wagons and carriages had to be phased out completely and broad gauge was finally abandoned in 1892.