Army Service [WO 97/3952/155]
Attestation 27 October 1877 in the rank of private, a rank he kept for the whole of his service in First Dragoon Guards, initially eight years in with the Colours and four years on the reserve. In different hand writing from the rest of the form, his place of birth is given as Hackney. I wish I knew why: he didn’t know; the recruiting sergeant couldn’t cope with north East Anglian spelling? He extended his colour service to ten years whilst serving in India. He received two Good Conduct Pay increments: 13 Nov 1881 and 13 Nov 1883. He took part in the Zulu Campaign of 1879 and was awarded the South African Medal with clasp 1879. Character assessment on completion of regular service: Good.
| Service | |||
| Country | From | To | Period |
| Home | 30 Oct 1877 | 27 Feb 1879 | 1 yr 121 days |
| South Africa | 28 Feb 1879 | 28 Sep 1880 | 1 yr 213 days |
| India | 29 Sep 1880 | 7 Dec 1887 | 7 yrs 70 days |
| Home | 8 Dec 1887 | 10 Dec 1887 | 3 days |
| 1st Class Army Reserve | 11 Dec 1887 | 29 Oct 1889 | 1 yr 323 days |
NLR Records
Porter. Age 29. Appt 3 Feb 1888. 10 years in 1st DG. Recommended by Lt Bates for Col Livesay. [RAIL 529/134/674 Folio 228.]
Head brakesman, Traffic Dept, Bow station. Born 3 Oct 1857. Appt 1888 Feb 3 [RAIL 529/131/58 Folio 17.]
Porter. Testicles sprained. Bow. 19 Oct 1888. [RAIL 529/54 5 Dec 1888, Loco Com Min 7138.]
Porter to under guard. Pay 18s to 22s 6d. 1 Jan 1890. [RAIL 529/55 5 Feb 1890, Loco Com Min 7573.]
Under brakesman. Pay 22s 6d to 25s. 1 Jan 1891. [RAIL 529/55 4 Feb 1891, Loco Com Min 7951.]
Under brakesman. Ankle sprained. Poplar. 16 May 1892. [RAIL 529/56 31 May 1892, Loco Com Min 8469.]
Brakesman, Bow. Under brakesman to brakesman. Pay 25s to 27s 6d. 30 Nov 1896. [RAIL 529/58, 3 Feb 1897, Loco Com Min 10090.]
Brakesman. Pay 27s 6d to 30s. 30 Nov 1897. [RAIL 529/59 1 Dec 1897, Loco Com Min 10352.]
Brakesman. Head cut. Poplar. 2 Jul 1898. [RAIL 529/59 3 Aug 1898, Loco Com Min 10564.]
Brakesman, Bow. At annual eyesight and hearing test it was found that hearing and colour sense good, but could not discern test dots at 15 feet. Tested with fixed signals, both by day and night, at a distance of 300 yards, the result was satisfactory. [RAIL 529/83, 12 Oct 1909 Offr’s Mtg Min 271.]
Wages increased to 31s per week 28 Oct 1907. [RAIL 529/134/674 Folio 228.]
Matters Disciplinary [RAIL 529/134/674 Folio 228.]
6 Jun 1894. Cautioned for carelessness when shunting. Wagons off road and buffer stops damaged at Poplar.
16 Nov 1896. Cautioned for having a wagon off at Lea Cut.
28 Apr 1898. Seen by Superintendent and cautioned for irregularities in making out a passenger guard’s journal for Easter Monday.
4 Dec 1902. Cautioned for causing damage to points at St Pancras through neglecting to see them properly set before making a shunt.
9 Dec 1903. Seen by Superintendent and sharply cautioned for refusing to shunt a truck of loco coal at Hampstead Road.
14 Feb 1907. Seen by Superintendent and sharply cautioned for disobeying the Yard Foreman’s orders at Poplar.
National Union of Railwaymen
Stiff, Edward. Brakesman. Age 55. Joined NUR Bow No1 branch, 5 Jun 1913. Excluded Dec 1916 in arrears. [Modern Record Centre MSS.127/NU/OR/2/28, f126.]
BMD
Birth Dec qtr 1857, Edward Stiff. [GRO. Thingoe, 4a, 394.] Birth Jun qtr 1872, Beatrice Elizabeth Ager. [GRO. Risbridge, 4a, 453.] Marriage Dec qtr 1890, Edward Thomas Stiff and Beatrice Elizabeth Ager. [GRO. Risbridge, 4a, 1115.] Death Sep qtr 1943, Edward Stiff, 85. [GRO. Essex SW, 4a, 125.] Death Jun qtr 1955, Beatrice E Stiff, 82. [GRO. Essex SW, 5a, 130.] They had eleven children.