Wigan Album
Railways
10 Comments
Photo: roland middleton
Item #: 21881
What a magnificent machine. I love it.
Great looking loco. not many of these around, has even got the Caprotti Valve Gear, its a long time since I worked on one.
Where's this photo taken cos it aint Wigan North West
Is it not Ramsbottom on the ELR?
I don't think the midday scot went anywhere near ramsbottom!!
Note the mod air brake train pipe.red on rh side of buffer beam.
Having had another look at this photo Paddy could be right in thinking it was taken at Ramsbottom on the East Lancs Railway.The Duke of Gloucester has since preservation been mostly based on the ELR when not out on main line runs.The Mid Day Scot headboard could be due to the fact during the loco,s short(1954-1962)BR career it regularly hauled this train.This isn't saying that the facts relating to the driver of the Midday Scot collapsing and being relieved by Driver Jimmy Lincoln aren't correct just that this isn't a photo of the actual event.
Sorry for misleading you, this is not the actual day that Jimmy took over from the sick driver, I will get more details from him, looking at the coach it does not look like one which would be on the Mid day Scot.
This loco is a unique engine and the only one of it's class. It was built as a replacement for the Princess Class loco, Princess Anne, which was destroyed in the Harrow crash 8th Oct 1952. The loco is definitely at Ramsbottom and it is common for preserved railways to fit train headboards that bare no relation to the actual line, just purely cosmetic. The loco spent a lot of it's time hauling trains between London and Liverpool as well as Holyhead. It did venture on to more northerly metals but was not a very successful loco due to a design fault when built. The cylinders were removed for display at the science museum and the rescuers of the loco had to have new ones cast. It was then that the original cylinders were found to be incorrect. The new cylinders make this loco a top performer on the mainline at present.
Roland. I am writing a book about my service as a signalman on the railways, and would like to include this photograph in it, any objections.