A common sound at many industrial places of the past was the sound of a ‘hooter’, a deep sounding whistle to wake up workers for a shift or sounding the end of the shifts, from collieries, shipyards and, in this case, Swindon Works.
The works at Swindon and Sir Daniel have close connection, with Sir Daniel being involved in the selection of the site at little over 175 years ago! To mark the anniversary, a replica ‘hooter’ was manufactured by Colin Hatch (article and credit for photo). The replicas were sounded by John Walter, the man who last sounded the originals and the first for the replicas (BBC Article on the Swindon Hooters) to hear them, please click the link here: Swindon Hooters, YouTube clip.
Thanks, RH.
Sir Daniel Gooch 