BACK in 1934 few Swindonians went anywhere even to the seaside without wearing a hat.

This picture, taken in July that year, shows some of the railworkers and their families who left town to spend Trip week on the south coast.

The Great Western Railway started the Trip tradition in the late 1840s by organising an annual day trip by train for its workers. Later the vacation became Trip week and eventually Trip fortnight during the first two weeks of July.

However, it was not until shortly before the 1939-45 war that the Trip break became a paid holiday. Many families went to the seaside with the help of the moneylender.

Those who could not raise money to go away stayed behind in a quiet town. On Trip Wednesday, the first Wednesday of the railway July break, the town centre shops closed because there were so few people around.

Weymouth was one of the most popular destinations. In fact so many Swindonians went there during Trip week that the resort organised races and beach entertainments for them and many of the pubs ordered extra beer.

Brian Davis of Grange Drive recalls that his granddad WJ Davis, who was foreman of the rolling mills at the railway works, was a more ambitious traveller. He used to take his family to Guernsey.

Mr Davis, who was a prominent member of the Salvation Army Davis House is named after him was a council Alderman and served as Mayor of Swindon.

Brian still has an eight-page brochure advertising special journeys scheduled during Trip week 1933

Not everyone favoured the seaside, he points out. One of them was to Leicester races.

For those who were not railway employees, a third class return ticket to Weymouth cost 8s 6d (42.5p).