This locomotive was built in 1954 by Robert Stephenson & Hawthorn for the National Coal Board (NCB). It was one of a pair that was designed specifically for working passenger trains on the extensive NCB system at Ashington in Northumberland. The duties of these two locomotives covered the conveyance of miners to the various collieries within the system. They undertook this work until they were replaced by diesel traction in the 1960s.
This locomotive then went into preservation at the North Norfolk Railway whilst the other engine was scrapped.
In 1974 the locomotive was sold and it moved to the Colne valley Railway.
In 2006 the locomotive was purchased by the Weardale Railway Trust.
The locomotive is being thoroughly overhauled. The work on the boiler involved the replacement of a large part of the barrel and a new front plate, firebox and ash tray. It will be fitted with new stays and tubes. The work is being carried out by McEwen’s, Boilersmiths, near Skipton. The work has taken far longer than we expected, but it is nearing completion and it is expected that the boiler will be returned and reunited with its frame soon.
The bottom end has been stripped at the Wolsingham depot on the Weardale Railway and prepared for the return of the boiler.
The hope is that the locomotive will enter traffic on the Weardale Railway during 2018.
In the summer of 2020 the locomotive was reported to be still under overhaul.
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Preserved British Steam Locomotives 