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The In 1865 new 'beautiful and unique''Great Southern of India Railway''' (GSIR) was formed in 1858 for "offices were constructed at [[Trichinopoly]] and the construction and working of a railway from Negapatam to TrichinopolyChief Engineer, Chief Traffic Superintendent, with branches to Saelm and Tuticorin - totalChief Accounts Officer, about 300 miles. Capital 500Audit Officer etc moved over,000''l'thus leaving at [[Negapatam]] the Agent's office and the Locomotive Workshops. (for the works at present authorized to be proceeded with, - viz#p.8, the line from Negapatam to Trichinopoly). Rate of Interest Guaranteed - 5 per cent9." 1
== Characteristics ==The [[1870-71_Report_on_Railways#Progress_on_State_lines._Paragraphs_5-10.3B_Pages_3-4| “1870-71 Annual Report for Indian Railways for the Great Southern of India Railway “]] gives:- [[Rail_gauge#Broad_Gauge|‘Broad Gauge (BG)]] Line sanctioned 378 miles(608km), with total Line length 168 miles(270km) and 210 miles(338km) to be finished’. The Report also details the [[1870-71_Report_on_Railways#Great_Southern_of_India_Railway._Paragraphs_73-75.3B_Page_36|‘progress of the railway and the commercial summery’]] - ''see separate pages for Report details.''
The line from [[Negapatam]] to [[Trichinopoly]] was completed by March 1862 to broad gauge standards On 1st July 1874 the Great Southern of India Railway Company and opened to traffic. In 1868, the GSIR line reached [[ErodeCarnatic Railway]], connecting to were amalgamated under the title of the '''[[Madras South Indian Railway]]''' (SIR). In 1872, the GSIR merged with with the <br>These broad gauge([[Carnatic RailwayRail_gauge#Broad_Gauge|BG]], built ) lines were later(1875) converted to metre gauge, ([[Rail_gauge_#Metre_Gauge|MG]]) to form become part of the [[South India RailwayMadras-Tuticorin Mainline|'''SIR Madras-Tuticorin Mainline''' MG network - ''see separate page'']].
1 "Money Market and City Intelligence", ''The Times'', Wednesday, 15 June 1859, #23333, 7a.== References ==<references /> [[Category:Railways]][[Category:Guaranteed Railways]]
→History: 1870/71 Report and internal link added
{{Line Railways Infobox|image=|caption= |route= [[Negapatam]] to [[Erode]]|gauge1= Broad gauge|gauge1details= |gauge2= |gauge2details= |gauge3= |gauge3details= |gauge4= |gauge4details=|timeline1date= 1858|timeline1details= Formed as [[Category:Guaranteed Railways|Guaranteed railway]]|timeline2date= |timeline2details= |timeline3date=|timeline3details= |timeline4date=|timeline4details= |timeline5date= 1872|timeline5details= Merged to form [[South Indian Railway]] and later(1875) converted to metre gauge|presidency= [[Madras]]|stations= [[Trichinopoly]]|system1date= |system1details= |system2date= |system2details= |system3date= |system3details= |auxillary forces=}} The '''Great Southern of India Railway''' (GSIR) was formed in 1858 for "the construction and working of a railway from [[Negapatam]] to [[Trichinopoly]], with branches to [[Salem]] and [[Tuticorin]] - total, about 300 miles. Capital 500,000''l''. (for the works at present authorized to be proceeded with, - viz., the line from Negapatam to Trichinopoly). Rate of Interest Guaranteed - 5 per cent." <ref>"Money Market and City Intelligence", ''The Times'', Wednesday, 15 June 1859, #23333, 7a.</ref> == History ==Much of this information extracted from "Marvels of the South Indian Railway 1859-1951"<ref name=MotSIR> Southern Railway Heritage Centre "Marvels of the South Indian Railway 1859-1951". With page numbers indicated #p.</ref> , with page numbers indicated #p. The construction of the line from [[Negapatam]] via [[Tiruvallur]] to [[Tanjore]] (48 miles/77km) started in April 1859 to broad gauge([[Rail_gauge#Broad_Gauge|BG]]) standards and the was opened to traffic by December 1861 . The headquarters were at [[Negapatam]] with the Agent, Chief Engineer, Locomotive Superintendent and Traffic Superintendent and Workshops . The line reached [[Trichinopoly]]in 1862 <ref name=MotSIR/> #p.2,3,6,7.
In 1868, the GSIR line reached [[Erode]], connecting to the [[Madras Railway]] and [[David Logan]] was reappointed as Chief Engineer. "The GSIR was at that time a 5-foot 6-inch gauge line, extending from Negapatam to Erode. Its subsequent development into the system now known as the [[South Indian Railway]], about 1,100 miles in length, was carried out under Mr. Logan's direction."<ref name=Logan>[http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/David_Logan Grace’s Guide "David Logan"]; Retrieved on 19 Jun 2016</ref>.
==Records==
Refer to FIBIS Fact File #4: “Research sources for Indian Railways, 1845-1947” - available from the [http://www.fibis.org/store/fibis-books-and-publications/bff-0004-research-sources-for-indian-railways-1845-1947/ Fibis shop]. This Fact File contains invaluable advice on 'Researching ancestors in the UK records of Indian Railways' with particular reference to the [[India Office Records]] (IOR) held at the [[British Library]]
An on-line search of the IOR records relating to this railway<ref>[http://searcharchives.bl.uk/primo_library/libweb/action/search.do?vid== Records ==IAMS_VU2 British Library “British Library Archives and Manuscripts Catalogue” - Search]; Retrieved 18 Jun 2016</ref> gives 46 references. The most important being:-*'''L /AG/46/13 ''' “Records of the Great Southern of India Railway Company; 1859-1874”
==Personnel==
Unfortunately, there are no GSIR staff records held in the [[India Office Records]] at the [[British Library]].
The only GSIR personnel that have been identified so far are as follows:-'
*[[George Barclay Bruce]] was the Consulting Engineer, from 1856, based in London, first to GSIR and then to the sucessor [[South Indian Railway]] for a period of 50 years <ref>[http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/George_Barclay_Bruce Grace's Guide "George Barclay Bruce"]; Retrieved 18 June 2016</ref>.
*[[William Smith Betts]] was the first Agent of the Great Southern of India Railway <ref name=MotSIR/> #p.210,214.
* [[Mark William Carr]] Chief Engineer, appointed in 1858 <ref>[http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Mark_William_Carr Grace's Guide "Mark William Carr"]; Retrieved 18 June 2016</ref>.
*[[David Logan]] was Resident Engineer on the construction from 1858 until 1863, when he succeeded [[Mark William Carr]] as Chief Engineer, a position he held until resigning in 1866 to superintend the reclamation work at Back Bay, Bombay <ref>[http://www.icevirtuallibrary.com/doi/abs/10.1680/imotp.1896.19540 Institute of Civil Engineers "Obituary David Logan"]; Retrieved 17 June 2016</ref>. He was re-appointed in 1868 as Chief Engineer 1868 <ref name=Logan/>.
*[[Charles Edwin Crighton]] , Resident Engineer and Locomotive Superintendent <ref>[http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Charles_Edwin_Crighton Grace's Guide "Charles Edwin Crighton"]; Retrieved 23 Jul 2016</ref> , he continued in this post with [[South Indian Railway]] (SIR) after amalgamated in 1874.
* [[Frederick Lewis Dibblee]], 1864-68, District Engineer, GSIR for a year and a half, then became Chief Engineer, a position he continued to hold until August 1868 <ref>https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Frederick_Lewis_Dibblee Grace’s Guide ‘Frederick Lewis Dibblee’]; Retrieved 22 Apr 2020</ref>.
== Notes Further Information==See '''[[South Indian Railway]]'''<br>and '''[[Madras-Tuticorin Mainline]]'''
