Paul Tansley remembers Robinsons and Thompsons
Among all of the Director's names is a Robinson Class B3 called 'Valour', this was often to be seen at Leicester and had a magnificent nameplate which commemorated the members of staff of the G.C.R. who lost their lives in the Great War. I believe that the tradition was very recently revived when a new diesel locomotive was given the name with due ceremony. Unfortunately the end of the Second World War and subsequent Nationalisation was the wholesale demise of most of those splendid locos, Thompsons 4-6-0 B1 class known as 'Springboks' were already to be seen at Leicester. The equivalent British locomotive was the 'Austerity' 2-8-0 and 2-10-0 which was very straight forward and easily serviced, large numbers were seen on the Central and both types are preserved. Go to the next page > | This is page 16 of A journey down Memory Lane. View the complete story contents. This quite magnificent photograph is thought to have been taken around 1905 near Birstall, Leicester. Running at speed along the cutting is a Robinson designed 4-4-0 Class 11B main line passenger engine of 1901. B1 class 4-6-0, No. 61106, designed by Edward Thompson (the London & North Eastern Railway's Chief Mechanical Engineer) as a mixed-traffic work horse. The class proved to be both successful and popular. The new Great Central Railway is one of the country's leading preserved lines, and as such is host to many large locomotives. One such visitor was this former War Department 'Austerity' 2-10-0 locomotive. |
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