This locomotive was built in 1953 for the National Coal Board (NCB) by the Hunslet Engine Company to the design dating from 1923.
From the works it was delivered to NCB Markham Main Colliery, Armthorpe, near Doncaster where it was used until 1976. In 1972 it was overhauled and rebuilt using many parts which are thought to have come from Hunslet locomotive 2688. It is also believed that Hunslet 3714 also donated parts at some time. When withdrawn from service it was the last steam locomotive working for the NCB in the Doncaster area. During this period it was given the name Arthur.
Markham Main Colliery employed around 2,700 workers in the mid 1950s but this had declined to about 1,500 in the mid-1980s despite the building of a domestic fuel processing plant there in 1966. When the 1980s miners’ strike finished in 1985, Markham Main was the last Yorkshire pit to return to work, three days later.
After being taken out of service in 1976 the locomotive was stored until it was moved to Crab Key, Ellastone, near Ashbourne, Derbyshire. There it joined a private collection of industrial engines
A year later it was moved to a similar collection at High Cogges near Witney, Oxfordshire, but remained there only a short while.
It arrived at the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre at Quainton in December 1979 after being purchase by a Qainton Railway Society member. It then became the property of the Society after several members funded the purchase.
The locomotive was placed in long term storage a number of years ago but more recently it has been taken out of storage in order to overhaul the locomotive.
In December 2022 it was reported that rapid progress was being made in restoring the locomotive at the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre.
Preserved British Steam Locomotives 