Traveller's Aid Society

The Travellers' Aid Society was initiated in 1885 by the Young Women's Christian Association to aid female passengers arriving at ports and railway stations, where they were met by accredited station workers who reported to the Travellers Aid Society Committee. The committee included representatives from the Girls' Friendly Society, Metropolitan Association for Befriending Young Servants, National Vigilance Association, and the Reformatory and Refuge Union as well as individual members. Its framework consisted of a General and an Executive Committee that would persist until dissolution. Local branches were established in Southampton (1891), Edinburgh (1895), Bristol (1895), Liverpool (1898), Hull (1903), and Birmingham (1909). However, over time, early supporters dropped out and were not replaced so that administrative as well as financial problems resulted. In 1939, the Travellers' Aid Society entered into an arrangement with the National Vigilance Association wherein the Association administered the Society from their offices as a separate body. In subsequent years, the work was maintained largely by National Vigilance Association funds. Station work continued in co-operation with the Young Women's Christian Association until 1952 when a financial crisis overcame the National Vigilance Association itself and it was decided to terminate the Travellers' Aid Society work in May of that year.