7325 ex 9303

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Built at Swindon Works in February 1932 at a cost of £5,161.

BR motive power depot allocations since 1948.

Date ArrivedDepot
January 1948Reading
November 1953Tyseley
September 1956Chester (GWR)
February 1958Pontypool Road
October 1961Ebbw Junction
January 1962Stored
August 1962Severn Tunnel Junction
July 1963Pontypool Road

The locomotive ran as 9303 until June 1958 when it was overhauled and the front end lightened and was then renumbered 7325.

During its working life the locomotive was noted on services between Ruabon and Barmouth, South Wales to Shrewsbury coal trains and Birmingham Moor Street to south coast holiday reliefs where it was noted as far south as Redhill.

It was withdrawn from Pontypool Road shed in April 1964 and sold for scrap to Woodham Bros of Barry in South Wales.

7325 was purchased by the Great Western (SVR) Association for preservation in 1974 and has run on the Severn Valley Railway before requiring an overhaul. Currently stored in the Engine House at Highley on the SVR after having a period on static display at the Museum of The Great Western Railway Museum at Swindon.

It steamed again in 1992 and was certified to run on the mainline which it did during the 1990s. It was taken out of service in 2000.

9303 is one of the final batch of 342 locomotives built between 1911 and 1932. They were built with larger cabs and had a weight attached to the buffer beam to place more weight on the leading pony wheels. This was done to reduce the wear on the leading driving wheels. In 1958 the weight was removed from the buffer beam to give the locomotive more route availability. At the same time it was renumbered 7325. The plan is to replace the missing weight at the next overhaul so it can run as 9303.

In September 2018 the Severn Valley Railway announced that the locomotive would take its place in the queue awaiting overhaul ahead of 7819 Hinton Manor.

In March 2019 the locomotive was taken out of the Engine House at Highley and moved to Kidderminster carriage shed for storage.

Home BaseCurrent StatusOwner
Severn Valley RailwayAwaiting overhaulGreat Western (SVR) Association
7325 at Ludlow – August 1959
7325 on Salisbury shed – April 1963
7325 in Woodham’s scrapyard at Barry – March 1965
7325 in Woodham’s scrapyard at Barry – July 1965
7325 and 34105 Swanage in Woodhams scrapyard at Barry – August 1974 34105
7325 in Woodham’s scrapyard at Barry – March 1975
7325 at Bewdley on the Severn Valley Railway – 1975
7325 at Highley on the Severn Valley Railway – Date unknown
7325 at Bridgnorth shed on the Severn Valley Railway – September 1993
7325 in the Engine House at Highley on the Severn Valley Railway – May 2010
7325 at Steam, the museum of the GWR at Swindon – July 2006
7325 at Kidderminster on the Severn Valley Railway – July 2019
7325 at Kidderminster on the Severn Valley Railway – September 2022

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