Unique loco to arrive at the railway

LNWR 0-4-0 Saddle Tank No.1439 is arriving at the Ribble Steam Railway Centre on Friday 22nd January. The locomotive is on loan from the NRM and will be on permanent display at the Railway Centre.

Visitors will be able to see the loco when we reopen for the season at Easter.

This locomotive was built at Crewe Works in 1865, by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR). In 1919 the LNWR sold No. 1439 to Kynoch Ltd in Birmingham. It shunted wagons at their Witton Works for the next 45 years. Kynoch Ltd became part of ICI in 1926. In 1954, ICI gave the locomotive to the British Transport Commission for preservation. It has been repainted into its original LNWR lined green livery.

No. 1439 was one of 52 locomotives built to the same design between 1864 and 1892. The first locomotives were built to haul the Irish Mail between the town station and the pier at Holyhead. Others were built to work in docks and areas where small locomotives were needed. The LNWR renumbered No. 1439 several times. Christened as No. 3042, the locomotive worked for a while around Liverpool Docks. For this time it was fitted with a bell and converted to burn oil.

Special "History of Preston Docks" Exhibition launched

For the 2009 season, there will be a special exhibition in place at Ribble Steam Railway documenting the history of Preston Docks. This project has been completed by 2nd Year Community History Students from UcLAN. The display features photographs, and memories from former dock workers who were interviewed during the course of the project.

The exhibition was launched today with a special train carrying not only the students who have created the project, but also those former workers, who will have experienced a very different dock railway to that of the past.

2009 Visitors to Ribble Steam Railway will be able to view this informative exhibition throughout the season, which begins in April.