Oldest Working Loco

I've been wondering about this for a while, and I guess this is the place to ask.

Does anyone know what the oldest working engine in the history of our railways was? I'm guessing it's a class of engine that was used on the main line pre-grouping, but then ended up on a branch line in BR.

I was reading about a J21, no. 65033, that had been withdrawn by the LNER in 1939 only to be returned to service because of wartime shortages. It then amazingly continued on till 1962. It was built in 1889 so that's 73 years...

 

Prince on the Ffestiniog Railway was built in 1863 - That is 150 years!

 

Not sure what you are getting at with this question. Ignoring life in preservation, do you mean the loco that worked for the longest continuous period? In terms of main line railway, that honour probably goes to a Terrier but I'm open to correction on that. As regards 'industrial ' locos, I think several managed their centenery. Some of the Welsh narrow gauge locos didn't do too badly, either.

 

Beattie well tank 30585 was built in 1874.

 

Just the longest working loco not counting preservation. Sorry if I never made it clear.

So Prince on the Ffestiniog was built in 1863, and the railway closed for slate traffic in 1946 before the preservationists moved in I think? So that's 83 years? I could be extremely wrong here with my Ffestiniog history. I'm going off Wikipedia after all.

 

88 years! Amazing.

 

The Bluebell's Fenchurch built in 1872, and was billed as the oldest working loco on British Railways in the early 60's. Although out of service at present, has spent a lot of time in traffic since preservation.

Steve B

 

More info on Fenchurch - came to the Bluebell as a working loco in 1964 - 91 years, and carried on for another 6 years before overhaul.

 

One standard gauge loco, Ellesmere, built 1861 by Hawthorn Leslie of Leith, Scotland, for coal traffic from Atherton Colliery to Bedford Basin in Leigh, Lancs had a working life of 96 years. Link here to the loco as now displayed;-

http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/ONV3FqnST3i0BUBzgOKGwg

There were 3 locos built in total to a height of only 9' as they had to negotiate a tunnel on the route that was only 9'5". According to Dennis Sweeneys book, A Lancashire Triangle Pt 1, two replacement boilers were fitted and also a new set of cylinders during the locos working life. The frames and motion are the originals.

 

LBSCR Terrier "Fenchurch" was built in 1872 and carried on regularly working, ultimately on BR, until November 1963, aged 91, and made its last move on BR in May 1964 aged 92. At that time, it was the oldest engine still working on BR. Since when, it has done another 49 years at the Bluebell. "Poplar" was also one of the 1872 batch that lasted to November 1963; this is the loco now preserved as "Bodiam" on the KESR. Fenchurch just takes the record by virtue of being first into service in 1872. A number of other Terriers made it well into their mid-eighties in mainline service.

The three Beattie Well tanks made it to 88, 88 and 87 respectively on the mainline; two of the three are now preserved. A scan down the scrapping dates of that class is an eye-opener: they were a large class built between 1863 and 1875, and all but three had been scrapped before 1899; those final three soldiered on another 63 years after the last of their classmates had been scrapped!

Didn't Furness No. 20 have a spectacularly long life in industrial service?

Tom

 

Sorry - this flurry of posts show how my mind flits from one thing to another - Dolgoch on the Tal-llyn - Built 1865, worked through to around 1954 - I think...

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Bull_(locomotive)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LMR_57_Lion

But current operable probably goes to this one..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairy_Queen_(locomotive)

 

Just looked it up - built in 1863, retired in 1960, aged 97, though much rebuilt.

Tom

 

Another long serving loco which although not the longest deserves to be mentioned in dispatches is Didcot's Shannon, built 1857, withdrawn 1948 - 91 years. Later returned to steam for a while from 1969-75

Steve B

 

I just looked up videos of 'Fairy Queen' on Youtube. Still goes at a fair few knots despite being nearly 160 years old. Interesting history; apparently it was retired in 1909 and was on a Pedestal for nearly 40 years.

Lion lasted 90 years before preservation. It only lasted 20 years on the rails before being sold to be used as a stationary engine, where it worked till 1928. That still counts though

 

Just thought of another one - Enid, on the Snowdon Mountain railway - 1896 to the present day - 117 years - pretty good going!

Steve B

 

Don't forget LION aka The Titfield Thunderbolt which was built by Kitson in 1838 and was still happily in use for the 1980 Liverpool - Manchester 150 celebrations [ 142 years] then celebrated its own 150 years by operating trains at Southport Steamport site in 1988. It is now esconsed in Liverpool's Pier Head Museum so probably won't be working anytime soon

 

Furness 20 has just had cake for its 150th birthday.... see events at Shildon NRM recently...

 

Another long survivor was the IoWSR's Stroudley E tank - built 1877, sold to the CRC in 1927 and working until 1963 - that's 86 years. Subsequently preserved and has run intermittently since then - I wonder if she will celebrate her 140th birthday in steam?

Tom

 

The Isle of Man Railway's No.1 Sutherland is worthy of note too, built in 1873, withdrawn in 1964 giving her a service life of 91 years.