6998 Burton Agnes Hall

The locomotive was built by British Railways to GWR specifications at Swindon in January 1949, and named after the Yorkshire stately home. Initially based at Cardiff Canton, it was finally withdrawn by British Rail in 1966 from Oxford shed after being honoured as the engine chosen to work the Western Region’s last steam-hauled passenger train. In markedly better condition than the other survivors, it was selected by the Great Western Society to represent the typical two cylinder Great Western tender locomotive, no others at that time being expected to survive.

BR motive power depot allocations.

Date Arrived	Depot
July 1949	Cardiff Canton
May 1958	Shrewsbury (stored from September 1958)
May 1959	Tyseley
April 1960	Shrewsbury
November 1960	Fishguard Goodwick
January 1961	Old Oak Common
August 1963	Oxford
May 1964	Southall
September 1965	Oxford

6998 was selected by Oxford depot to work the 2:10pm service from Bournemouth to York on 3^rd January 1966 over the section from Oxford to Banbury when it was in the process of being purchased by the Great Western Society. This was the last steam hauled scheduled service on the Western Region. After the run it returned light engine to Oxford and was placed in store.

6998 was withdrawn from service in December 1965.

Delivered in steam to the Society’s Totnes depot in April 1966, it was moved to Didcot in December 1967. Here it has been in virtually continuous service, also with plenty of main line and preserved railways use. It was withdrawn from service in 1996 and is stored complete at Didcot awaiting its turn in the queue for overhaul.