| Carruthers |
03-06-2019 05:05 AM |
It only took forty years.
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It was one of the unsung heroes of the early 20th Century railway system in the UK.
'Hall Class' locomotives were never going to be confused with the likes of the Flying Scotsman, Mallard or Duchess of Hamilton, but they gave many years of sterling service.
Each was named after a stately home, in this instance Wightwick Hall, and when the production run came to an end and they were running out of names, some wag suggested that the last one should be named 'That's Hall'.
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Restored Wightwick Hall locomotive to run in Bucks
A steam locomotive is due to run for the first time in more than half a century after a restoration which has taken over 40 years.
The 6989 Wightwick Hall was built in 1948 and last ran in 1964.
It arrived at the Buckinghamshire Railway Centre in Quainton in 1978 and has been rebuilt by volunteers from the 6989 Restoration Group.
Project member Chris Taylor said its run on Sunday would be "pretty emotional".
Built in Swindon and named after Wightwick Hall, near Wolverhampton, it covered 640,645 miles over 16 years in a fast express and freight role, including taking supporters to Wembley on football specials.
After decommissioning, it was sold to a scrapyard in Barry in Glamorgan, where it sat for more than 13 years before the engine and a tender were bought for £13,000 by the Quainton Railway Society after a fundraising appeal.
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Attachment 66654
Wightwick Hall arrives at Buckinghamshire Railway Centre (Quainton) in 1978.
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Chris Taylor is one of two men who have worked on it for 44 years - he first started travelling to Wales at weekends in 1974.
He said that over the years about 40 people have been involved and the current core team of eight have been together about 20 years.
"It had to be stripped right down to the basic components and then slowly rebuilt," he said.
"It's been totally done by a group of volunteers who've raised every penny themselves and done it on weekends as a hobby."
The locomotive passed its steam test in December and on Sunday it will travel about half a mile along the track at the museum.
"I will be at the helm for part of it - it will be pretty emotional," Mr Taylor said.
He said she would "earn her keep" by going on hire to other heritage railway companies where she would do runs of about 10-12 miles.
The locomotive passed its steam test in December and on Sunday it will travel about half a mile along the track at the museum.
"I will be at the helm for part of it - it will be pretty emotional," Mr Taylor said.
He said she would "earn her keep" by going on hire to other heritage railway companies where she would do runs of about 10-12 miles.
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Attachment 66656
Restored to her former glory.
BBC
Wiki
Buckinghamshire Railway Centre |
