Having arranged for Furness 20 to go on holiday to York, it finally left Shildon yesterday and landed at York in the early afternoon. It’ll be back at Locomotion in time to run at our “Cab It” weekend on 7-8 November, when inside the museum, you’ll be able to “cab” “Woolmer” for possibly the last time before it goes to Basingstoke, “Green Arrow” and a new loco to be open, the London & South Western T3 4-4-0, number 563. As a taster, here’s No.20 again from last week, leaving the Goods Shed at the Welcome end of Locomotion’s site. Oh yes, as ever admission’s free!
Yesterday I returned to York to do some research on some vehicles and also have a meeting or two yesterday. Having arrived a bit early, I took a wander through the Great Hall via the model railway, whose locos I catalogued and researched back in 1997 as a Curatorial Assistant. I was pleased to see things developing on the layout, such as the brewery model in the foreground of this picture, and some of the stock from the collection of the late Trevor Simpson (the NRM’s much loved coachbuilder who died this last year) on show.
With GWR 175 looming, I had a quick look over “Iron Duke”, the only loco I know that wants to give so much more when you open the regulator. It towers over the standard gauge locos alongside, and you’ve no idea that under that cladding and ironwork is the boiler and mechanics of a standard Hunslet Austerity tank loco!
I am biased I know, but in the collection at York, Shildon and on loan across the country, we have one of the finest arrays of rolling stock in the world and this picture of “Hardwicke”, the Chinese KF7, Q1 and class 76 electric taken just before the museum opened for the day serves to show the truth of that. Why not come to either venue this half term and experience it for yourself? There’s much to discover in the collection as well as the well-known stars.
