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== Independence ==
In 1947, the year of Independence, there were 42 operational railway systems in what had been British India but the most immediate practical consideration of partition was the division of several systems to form what then became [[Indian Railways]] and [[Pakistan Railways]]; later still, the latter was to suffer further upheaval on the formation of [[Bangladesh Railway]].
== Records and employment ==
It is important to bear in mind that railway staff records created in India before 1947 remain in India, as do the records of railways built, owned or operated by the Indian Princely States. The records that survive today in the collections held at the British Library (and elsewhere) do so because they were originally created in the UK.
==== Railway occupations ====
Collections of railway records are generally by railway company so it is a good idea to know which railway company an ancestor worked for. In addition, very few collections of railway records are indexed so it is also a good idea to know the trade or employment followed on the railway as occupations were often grouped together when published in staff lists and registers. Even in [[Directories reading list|Thacker's]], this will be found to be the case in the individual railway company entries. More information about railway occupations can be found [[railway worker|here]].
==== Anglo-Indians ====
[[Anglo Indian|Anglo-Indians]] became closely identified with the running of the railways. By 1905, forming less than ½% of India's total population, they provided 2% of railway employees. Eventually more than 50% of all Anglo-Indian families came to be supported by railway emplyoment employment either directly or as a dependant of a railway employee.
==FIBIS resources==
== Recommended Reading ==
*Hugh Wilding, ''Research sources for Indian Railways, 1845-1947'', FIBIS Fact File No 4 (London: FIBIS, 2009). ISBN 978-0-9547-116-5-8. [This title can be ordered directly from the [http://shop.fibis.org/amazon.htm FIBIS Online Shop].]
*Laura Bear, ''Lines of the Nation'' (New York: Columbia, 2007) [essential but uncomfortable reading for Anglo-Indians with railway roots]. [http://home.alphalink.com.au/~agilbert/reviewb.html A review] by Robyn Andrews<ref>
[http://home.alphalink.com.au/~agilbert/reviewb.html A review] by Robyn Andrews ''The International Journal of Anglo-Indian Studies'' Volume 11, Number 1, 2011.</ref>
== External Links ==
*[http://dsal.uchicago.edu/reference/gazetteer/ ''The Imperial Gazetteer of India : New edition . . . in Council''] Vol 1, 1909 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1908-1931).
*Indian Railways, [http://www.indianrailways.gov.in/financecode/ADMIN_FINANCE/AdminFinanceCh1.htm "Evolution of Indian Railways - Historical Background"] ''Indian Railway Administration and Finance''.
*[http://www.irfca.org/index.html ''The Indian Railways Fan Club''] Train spotters site about Indian Railways.
*[http://pakistanrail.com/ ''PakistanRail''] Train spotters site about Pakistan Railways.
*[http://mikes.railhistory.railfan.net/r144.html "Modern transport in India"] ''Mike's Railway History''.
*[http://www.railwaysofraj.blogspot.com Railways of the Raj] A lively site featuring titbits from railway life in British India.
*[http://www.virginia.edu/history/EIH/?p=151 ""Fire-Carriages" of the Raj: The Indian Railway and its Rapid Development in British India"] by Amit K. Sharma 2010 ''Essays In History. Annual Journal of the Corcoran Department of History at the University of Virginia''
