Near misses

Fair enough, still a shame we don't have one of either class still with us today though, should imagine they'd be a big draw.

 

If it's big draws you want you should see my missus

 

Another tragedy, in retrospect.

 

A highly authoritative source (erm, me https://www.national-preservation.c...railway-companies-are-in-preservation.887450/) stated that the least well represented companies are the Welsh lines, the GCR, Midland, LNWR and M&GN amongst the English lines, and the Scottish companies, especially the G&SW. What are the nearest misses from these companies?

 

Not much pregroup lasted until the last couple of years, change must have been really quick in the last ten years or so

 

I think I may have read somewhere that the last surviving M&GN loco ended up on the Longmoor Military Railway, only to be scrapped (according to Wikipedia in 1953 so maybe it doesn't belong on this thread. Apologies)

 

There's only two from the GC, unless you count the three ROD 2-8-0s in Australia, not much from the LNWR, in view of the size of the railway, there are a few from the Midland, none from the M & GN, and of the Scottish companies, one from the Highland, one from the GNSR, three (I think) from the NBR and Caledonian, and one from the GSWR, a small 0-6-0 tank. The last GSWR loco was an 0-6-2T which just made it to BR but went in 1948.

 

Why did the UTA ship locos to Spain for scrapping? Seems an unnecessary expense/hassle, the gauge was different in Spain, 5 foot 6, surely there were some scrap men in Northern Ireland?

 

Npresumably Spain needed steel and paid for it. No discernible scrap business in NI really, no steel works

 

I thought it was CIE locos which went to Spain for scrapping?

 

The GNR (I) was split between the UTA and CIE and the locos were divided too, some staying in Ulster and some going to the Republic.

 

Indeed. But a few posts back someone said UTA locos were sent to Spain for scrapping. I thought it was CIE locos (ex-GN and ex-GS) which went to Spain. I recall they had to go in theoretically operational condition to avoid a ban on exporting scrap. Hence they went to North Wall with coal in the tenders (not sure if that made it onto the ship!). I think the RPSI did check fairly early and they had all been cut up on arrival in Spain.

 

The last of the ex-GC J11s (both the Robinson originals and the Thompson rebuilds) went in 1962. The J10s (a Parker design of the 1890s) lasted into 1961. The N5s (first engines in Britain to be fitted with Belpaire fireboxes) went in 1960. For comparison, the D11s (Butler Henderson preserved) disappeared in 1960.

 

The BRC stock book confirms that. Originally planned to preserve L52, but rejected in favour of L44

http://www.brc-stockbook.co.uk/Met1.HTM

 

Looking at this the other way round, I cut school one afternoon in 1956 and went to Hitchin (34D) to see what was happening there. Dumped at the back of the shed and in a pretty woebegone state was an ex GER 2-4-0 of class E4, an obvious candidate for scrap. To my surprise it was afterwards transferred to Cambridge and re-activated as 62785, but later restored to GER condition and put on display at the NRM!

 

LNER O6, last one survived into the 2010's.

 

Introducing a new element, 43924 was purchased from Barry in 9 1968, at that time was there any loco that had not made it to the scrapyard and yet not subsequently saved?

 

Adams B4 No. 96 "Normandy" was withdrawn by BR in 1963, sold into industrial service, worked for another 9 years and was only eventually sold for preservation in 1972.

Wainwright P class No 178 was withdrawn by BR in 1958; sold into industrial service, worked until 1969 and then sold to the Bluebell, initially as a spares donor for 27/323, though latterly restored in its own right.

Wainwright P class No. 753 was withdrawn by BR in 1961; sold into industrial service, worked until 1970, then sold to the KESR for preservation.

I'm sure there will be lots of other examples of ex-BR locos working well beyond 1968 before preservation.

Tom