In 1903, George Churchward, Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Great Western Railway, embarked upon his locomotive improvement scheme with three types of ‘standard’ class engines, of which his 2-6-2T design was destined to become probably the GWR’s most useful locomotive, lasting in traffic until the last month of Western Region steam operations in December 1965. The Class prototype, No. 99, spent two years working across the GWR system and the lessons learnt from its performance were incorporated into the thirty-nine production locomotives of the 3100 Class, introduced during 1905/1906.

At eighteen tons, they were designated as red route engines, initially being able to cover 42% of the GWR network. In 1927 experiments were undertaken to reduce the weight distribution of the class leading to the locomotives gaining blue route clearance and being renumbered in the 5111-5149 range, changing the class designation to 5100 in the process. At the same time as the 3100 class locomotives were being converted to 5100 class, further locomotives to the same design and blue route designation were built, designated as the 5101 class. 140 locomotives were built between 1929 and 1949, incorporating all the modifications applied to the 3100 class. The need for new locomotives to work accelerated London suburban services at the beginning of the 1930s led to further development of the 5101 class, an uprated Standard 2 boiler being fitted to seventy new locomotives built between 1931 and 1935. Numbered in the 6100- 6169 range, they were designated as the 6100 class, being stationed at every London depot and replacing all other passenger tank locomotives except the auto-train fitted engines.

It was only the reorganisation of the London suburban timetables in 1955 that led to some locomotives being transferred away from London and it was these examples that survived to the end of steam on the Western Region. Built at Swindon Works under Lot No. 278 in January 1933, Diagram A10 Class 6100 'Large Prairie' No. 6147 entered traffic with the London Division, remaining there until 3 December 1960. From London, 6147 was moved to Bristol, first at St. Philips Marsh and then at Bristol Barrow Road, before moving to Westbury in November 1963 and the locomotive ended its working life at 85A Worcester Shed in January 1966, having moved there in January 1964.

In 1903, George Churchward, Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Great Western Railway, embarked upon his locomotive improvement scheme with three types of ‘standard’ class engines, of which his 2-6-2T design was destined to become probably the GWR’s most useful locomotive, lasting in traffic until the last month of Western Region steam operations in December 1965. The Class prototype, No. 99, spent two years working across the GWR system and the lessons learnt from its performance were incorporated into the thirty-nine production locomotives of the 3100 Class, introduced during 1905/1906.

At eighteen tons, they were designated as red route engines, initially being able to cover 42% of the GWR network. In 1927 experiments were undertaken to reduce the weight distribution of the class leading to the locomotives gaining blue route clearance and being renumbered in the 5111-5149 range, changing the class designation to 5100 in the process. At the same time as the 3100 class locomotives were being converted to 5100 class, further locomotives to the same design and blue route designation were built, designated as the 5101 class. 140 locomotives were built between 1929 and 1949, incorporating all the modifications applied to the 3100 class. The need for new locomotives to work accelerated London suburban services at the beginning of the 1930s led to further development of the 5101 class, an uprated Standard 2 boiler being fitted to seventy new locomotives built between 1931 and 1935.

Numbered in the 6100- 6169 range, they were designated as the 6100 class, being stationed at every London depot and replacing all other passenger tank locomotives except the auto-train fitted engines. It was only the reorganisation of the London suburban timetables in 1955 that led to some locomotives being transferred away from London and it was these examples that survived to the end of steam on the Western Region. Built at Swindon Works under Lot No. 259 during April 1931, Diagram A9 Class 5101 'Large Prairie' No. 5189 entered traffic with the Wolverhampton Division, with all bar fifteen of the 5101 fleet of ‘Large Prairies’ forming the mainstay of the suburban passenger services until the early 1940s. On entering service with British Railways in 1948, 5189 was allocated to Stourbridge Junction, from where it would have mainly worked local services towards Birmingham, but the locomotive was one of the earlier withdrawals from traffic due to increasing use of Diesel units, being withdrawn at the end of August 1959.

The A2/3 Class were designed by Edward Thompson as standard express passenger locomotives. After Sir Nigel Gresley’s unexpected death in April 1941, Edward Thompson desired to standardise the locomotives of the LNER. This process involved rebuilding locomotives using standard components such as wheel sizes and boiler designs. The A2/3 Class were new built to a similar specification to the A2/2 rebuilds, differing in cylinder sizes and boiler pressure. Thompson advocated divided drive, a system in which the middle cylinder drove the forward two of the six driving wheels whilst the outside cylinders drove the middle two.

Due to his quest for standardisation, this arrangement necessitated the middle cylinder to be placed further forward than normal and the outside cylinders further back, behind the leading bogie, so that standard connecting rods could be used for all cylinders. LNER No. 511 'Airbourne' was built at Doncaster Works and entered service in July 1946. After nationalisation, it was renumbered 60511 and assigned to the Heaton engine shed. It was withdrawn in November 1962.

Upon becoming Chief Mechanical Engineer of the LNER, Thompson sought to create an unstreamlined, mixed traffic version of Gresley’s A4 Pacific locomotives. Being unable to secure permission to construct new locomotives, Thompson decided to rebuild the 2-8-2 P2 Class locomotives as the new A2/2 Class. Thompson advocated divided drive, a system in which the middle cylinder drove the forward two of the six driving wheels whilst the outside cylinders drove the middle two.

Due to his quest for standardisation, this arrangement necessitated the middle cylinder to be placed further forward than normal and the outside cylinders further back, behind the leading bogie, so that standard connecting rods could be used for all cylinders. Although the new designs retained much of the P2’s power despite their lighter weight, wheel slip issues made them unsuitable for the routes the P2’s had been designed for. P2 No. 2002 ‘Earl Marischal’ was rebuilt to become a A2/2 in June 1944, before being renumbered 502 in 1946 and 60502 upon the nationalisation of the railways. After becoming a A2/2, ‘Earl Marischal’ returned to Scotland before being moved south of the border to the York Shed at the end of 1949. The locomotive was withdrawn for service in 1961

Having completed nearly 90,000 miles of test running since new, Sir Nigel Gresley's W1 4-6-4HP 10000 entered Darlington Works on 21 August 1935 for what was anticipated to be a major overhaul and modification. During this period Gresley decided that it was time to rebuild 10000 as a three cylinder locomotive with a conventional firetube boiler and 10000 was moved to Doncaster Works on 13 October 1936, the first drawing for the modification being prepared at the end of November. When 10000 was finally released from Doncaster Works in November 1937, it was a significantly different locomotive; being fitted with a diagram 111 boiler that was very similar to the diagram 108 boiler fitted to 2006 Wolf of Badenoch, and with a streamlined casing to the same pattern as the A4 class.

As many components as possible from the original W1 were used in the rebuild, including the frames, which were shortened by 1½ feet at the front end. Other items, where needed, were sourced from the A4 class, the A3 class or, like the front bogie, from the B17 and an experimental double Kylchap blastpipe and chimney was fitted. The cab, while similar to that of the A4 class, was considerably longer and this led to the retained original tender's coal delivery chute having to be lengthened to compensate for the extra distance from the firebox doors. The original tender was retained, but with superficial modifications, such as to the curvature of the front plates and the addition of streamlined plating to the front and rear, although this was partially removed just a year later, in 1938. Up to the outbreak of war in 1939, and during the war years, 10000 worked mainly on Kings Cross main line duties and with its power and smooth riding it was a popular engine with the LNER's drivers, though less so with the firemen due to the distance between the shovelling plate and the firehole door.

The first reference to 10000's designation as Class W1 was on 9 November 1926, but where the widely adopted name of 'Hush-Hush' came from is disputed. It could be that the nickname arose in the late summer of 1928, as news of Gresley's new locomotive began to leak out, however other sources suggest this was possibly an internal Darlington name that came from the distinctively quiet motion sound the loco made, or even because of a mistaken caption that featured in a Pathé News item. On 20 November 1929, nameplates were drawn up featuring the name British Enterprise and were cast soon after, but these plates were never fitted and the loco remained unnamed, being referred to as 'Hush-Hush' ever since.

Yarrow's had completed the boiler in February 1929 and on April 3rd the chassis was moved from Darlington to Glasgow for testing, these being completed by October 1929 and it was during this period that wind tunnel tests led to the unusual front-end design that gave the W1 part of its distinctive appearance. Official photographs were released on December 10th and the first trial run took place on December 12th, followed by another on December 29th and, on 9 January 1930, the first trip to Kings Cross, although it was to be a further six months of trials though before 10000 finally entered traffic on June 20, 1930. Between June 1930 and May 29, 1933, 10000 ran 70,000 miles in service, from Kings Cross to Edinburgh, including the Flying Scotsman and Queens of Scots services, but in 1934 modifications and a general repair took 10000 out of service for just over a year, the locomotive returning to traffic on June 13, 1934.

At the end of January 1935, a Kylchap double blastpipe and chimney was fitted, which eventually required the fitting of a smoke lifter for better smoke clearance. On August 21, 1935, 10000 was returned to Darlington for the last time in its original form, having covered another 20,823 miles since June 1934. 10000 had proved to be extremely capable, but it was also unreliable, as out of the 1,888 days in service, the locomotive spent 1,105 at Darlington Works alone. This model represents No. 10000 in its 1935 condition fitted with a double chimney.

Having completed nearly 90,000 miles of test running since new, Sir Nigel Gresley's W1 4-6-4HP 10000 entered Darlington Works on 21 August 1935 for what was anticipated to be a major overhaul and modification. During this period Gresley decided that it was time to rebuild 10000 as a three cylinder locomotive with a conventional firetube boiler and 10000 was moved to Doncaster Works on 13 October 1936, the first drawing for the modification being prepared at the end of November.

When 10000 was finally released from Doncaster Works in November 1937, it was a significantly different locomotive; being fitted with a diagram 111 boiler that was very similar to the diagram 108 boiler fitted to 2006 Wolf of Badenoch, and with a streamlined casing to the same pattern as the A4 class. As many components as possible from the original W1 were used in the rebuild, including the frames, which were shortened by 1½ feet at the front end. Other items, where needed, were sourced from the A4 class, the A3 class or, like the front bogie, from the B17 and an experimental double Kylchap blastpipe and chimney was fitted. The cab, while similar to that of the A4 class, was considerably longer and this led to the retained original tender's coal delivery chute having to be lengthened to compensate for the extra distance from the firebox doors. The original tender was retained, but with superficial modifications, such as to the curvature of the front plates and the addition of streamlined plating to the front and rear, although this was partially removed just a year later, in 1938. Up to the outbreak of war in 1939, and during the war years, 10000 worked mainly on Kings Cross main line duties and with its power and smooth riding it was a popular engine with the LNER's drivers, though less so with the firemen due to the distance between the shovelling plate and the firehole door.

The locomotive also became more 'fitter' friendly after April 1942 when the skirting was removed from ahead and behind the outside cylinders to improve access in wartime conditions. Post war, at the time of nationalisation and now numbered 60700, the corridor tender was swapped for the streamlined non-corridor tender from 60004 William Whitelaw and the locomotive was engaged in more varied duties, working occasional passenger services to Leeds and Cambridge from Kings Cross alongside the occasional 'lodging' turns to Newcastle. Following allocation to Doncaster on 25 October 1953, 60700 became a more frequent visitor to Leeds and also worked turns to Sheffield, as well as Doncaster to Peterborough passenger services and various braked goods trains. In a similar circumstance to 10000 never receiving its proposed name of British Enterprise in November 1929, 60700 never received its intended name of Pegasus, for which the nameplates were cast on 13 April 1951.

Designed by R. A. Riddles and derived from Ivatt’s LMS 2MT 2-6-0 locomotive design, itself a variation of Ivatt’s Class 2 2-6-2T, the BR Standard Class 2 was the smallest of the BR standards and featured changes to the LMS design such as smaller cabs so that they could be used across the network where loading gauges were less generous. Darlington works was responsible for building the entire fleet of 65 engines and for a time construction of the LMS and BR designs overlapped. Like the LMS predecessor the BR design had a tender cab to enhance crew protection and visibility when running tender-first. Built as part of a batch of 10 destined for the Scottish Region, No. 78054 was built in 1955 and allocated to the Motherwell depot. The locomotive started out life hauling freight however after a year it was moved to Keith where it ran passenger services.

The locomotive was also allocated to Aberdeen Ferryhill and Bathgate sheds before being withdrawn in December 1965.

Designed by R. A. Riddles and derived from Ivatt’s LMS 2MT 2-6-0 locomotive design, itself a variation of Ivatt’s Class 2 2-6-2T, the BR Standard Class 2 was the smallest of the BR standards and featured changes to the LMS design such as smaller cabs so that they could be used across the network where loading gauges were less generous. Darlington works was responsible for building the entire fleet of 65 engines and for a time construction of the LMS and BR designs overlapped. Like the LMS predecessor the BR design had a tender cab to enhance crew protection and visibility when running tender-first. 78006 was one of the first batch of the 2MT standard design built by British Railways. The locomotives in this batch were built for the Western Region at Darlington who had experience building the LMS Ivatt 2-6-0s.

The locomotive was initially assigned to the Oswestry depot for work in mid-Wales where the enclosed cab design proved a huge advantage. From 1962 the locomotive was based in Gloucester where it remained until withdrawal in December 1965.

The London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) Edinburgh to Aberdeen route had steep gradients and tight curves and the express passenger service was usually worked by a double header of two small engines. To overcome this situation, Nigel Gresley, Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the LNER began designing a new locomotive at the LNER Doncaster Works in 1932. The 2-8-2 configured locomotive was given the classification P2 and had four driving axles for greater adhesion, an A3 type boiler and a Kylchap type blastpipe/chimney system. A total of six of the Class were built. As the first two were returned to Doncaster for repairs they were fitted with streamlined fronts similar to the A4 Pacifics. The last four to be built were outshopped with streamlined fronts.

By 1944 the whole Class had been withdrawn. 2002 ‘Earl Marischal’ was the second P2 to be constructed and differed from its predecessor in a few key ways. No. 2002 was fitted with more conventional Walschaerts/Gresley valve gear which changed the locomotive’s characteristics substantially necessitating the instillation of large smoke deflectors, whilst the original front of the casing had its leading edge cut back 12”. ‘Earl Marischal’ entered traffic in October 1934 and soon began working Doncaster to Kings Cross trains before being transferred to Scotland in June 1935. It was later overhauled and streamlined to match the later members of the P2 class before being withdrawn from traffic and rebuilt as a Pacific locomotive in June 1944 having completed 360,907 miles as a 2-8-2 type locomotive.

The British Railways Standard 9F Class was a 2-10-0 steam locomotive, the last of the standardised BR designs. The Robert Riddles design was intended as a long distance heavy express freight locomotive. In total 251 of the class were produced between January 1954 and March 1960, with the final locomotive No. 92220 ‘Evening Star’ being the last steam locomotive built by British Railways. The huge length of the 10 coupled driving wheels proved problematic when faced with tight curves, a situation that freight haulage would make inevitable. A solution was found by removing the flanges from the centre driving wheel and reducing the size on the flanges on the second and fourth driving axle’s wheels. Riddles had chosen the 2-10-0 wheel configuration in-order to spread the load of the boiler over a greater area.

This meant that the boiler had to be raised considerably compared to other designs to allow the firebox to sit above the trailing driving wheels. As a result, the 9F features a distinctive void between the suspended boiler and the footplate. In operation the class proved extremely versatile. Not only did the 9F excel as a freight locomotive, but when required it also succeeded as a passenger locomotive. Reports even suggest that when 92220 ‘Evening Star’ was used to pull the Red Dragon express service between Cardiff and London it was forced to delay its arrival to allow the restaurant services to be completed, having outperformed the normal Britannia Class locomotives used on the service. This was not the only time 9Fs had been recorded outperforming dedicated express locomotives and on such services the locomotives were capable of running at over 90mph. This combination of high speed, fast acceleration and powerful hauling capabilities mean that many consider the class to be pinnacle of British steam locomotive design. Locomotive numbers 92165–92167 were built with a mechanical stoker. This system used a helical screw to move coal from the tender straight into the firebox. This meant that coal could be burnt a faster rate than a fireman could maintain otherwise. Systems like this proved extremely useful on long distance American railways however in Britain it was rare for a locomotive to require such as high rate of coal delivery over a long period of time meaning that a good fireman could prove just as effective. No. 92167 was built with a double chimney and a mechanical stoker in 1958 at Crewe and entered service at the end of March, stationed at the Saltley depot. In March 1962 it was moved to Tyne Dock, before moving on to Bidston by the end of the year. In early 1963 No. 92167 moved to its penultimate shed, Birkenhead Mollington Street, where it stayed until 1967 at which point it was allocated to its final shed at Carnforth before being withdrawn in mid-1968.

The British Railways Standard 9F Class was a 2-10-0 steam locomotive, the last of the standardised BR designs. The Robert Riddles design was intended as a long distance heavy express freight locomotive. In total 251 of the class were produced between January 1954 and March 1960, with the final locomotive No. 92220 ‘Evening Star’ being the last steam locomotive built by British Railways. The huge length of the 10 coupled driving wheels proved problematic when faced with tight curves, a situation that freight haulage would make inevitable. A solution was found by removing the flanges from the centre driving wheel and reducing the size on the flanges on the second and fourth driving axle’s wheels. Riddles had chosen the 2-10-0 wheel configuration in-order to spread the load of the boiler over a greater area.

This meant that the boiler had to be raised considerably compared to other designs to allow the firebox to sit above the trailing driving wheels. As a result, the 9F features a distinctive void between the suspended boiler and the footplate. In operation the class proved extremely versatile. Not only did the 9F excel as a freight locomotive, but when required it also succeeded as a passenger locomotive. Reports even suggest that when 92220 ‘Evening Star’ was used to pull the Red Dragon express service between Cardiff and London it was forced to delay its arrival to allow the restaurant services to be completed, having outperformed the normal Britannia Class locomotives used on the service. This was not the only time 9Fs had been recorded outperforming dedicated express locomotives and on such services the locomotives were capable of running at over 90mph. This combination of high speed, fast acceleration and powerful hauling capabilities mean that many consider the class to be pinnacle of British steam locomotive design. Locomotive No. 92194 was built in Swindon during 1958 for use on the Eastern Region. The locomotive was initially allocated to the Doncaster shed where it spent around 8 months between June 1958 and February 1959 at which point it was reallocated to Immingham. Immingham remained the locomotive’s home throughout the rest of its service before withdrawal at the end of 1965, a life of just 7 and a half years.

The BR Standard class 9F, designed by Robert Riddles, was a 2-10-0 steam locomotive intended to be used for long distance freight. Capable of speeds of up to 90 miles per hour, the class proved highly versatile and 9Fs were even used to haul passenger trains in the 1950s. 'Evening Star' was built at Swindon Works in 1960 and was the last steam locomotive to be built by British Railways, and the 999th BR standard class locomotive. No. 92220’s life was special from the beginning, with a naming ceremony taking place in March 1960. ‘Evening Star’ was the only 9F to be named by BR and the only 9F to receive a lined green passenger express livery. The name 'Evening Star' was chosen following a competition held by the BR Western Region Staff Magazine.

The locomotive was withdrawn from service in 1965 after just five short years, and stored at Severn Tunnel Junction Marshalling Yard, after incurring minor damage in a shunting accident at Cardiff Docks. In preservation ‘Evening Star' became part of the national collection and after the completion of the National Railway Museum was based at York, occasionally operating on the mainline and visiting heritage lines. Although ‘Evening Star’ has moved around in recent years such as returning to its birthplace, Swindon in 2008, the locomotive can currently be found on static display at the NRM in York. This model depicts ‘Evening Star’ as the locomotive would have been when withdrawn from British Railways service in 1965.

The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) A1 Class 0-6-0T locomotive was designed by William Stroudley. A total of 50 locomotives were built between 1872 and 1880. Initially, the class were designed to haul commuter trains on the heavily congested lines in South and South-East London, as well as operating through the Marc Isambard Brunel designed Thames Tunnel. The LB&SCR later introduced larger and more capable D Class locomotives which began being used for most of the company’s commuter trains.

Nonetheless, the reliability of the A1 class was such that most were put to other work or sold on to other railways rather than being scrapped. Between 1911 and 1913 twelve of the A1s that had remined at the LB&SCR were rebuilt with new boilers and extended smoke boxes to become the A1X class along with a further four after the first world war. By 1923, at the formation of Southern Railway, 15 locomotives had remained in LB&SCR ownership, and these along with another 9 locomotives which had been sold to other railways in the region fell into Southern Railway ownership. Weight restrictions on many of the light railways inherited by the Southern Railway necessitated that the light A1 class locomotives remain in service despite their old age. One A1 locomotive and 14 A1X locomotives remained in service long enough to enter into British Railway stock. Most of these remained in the Southern Region, although one remained in the Western Region having previously found its way into GWR ownership after been sold to the Weston Clevedon & Portishead Railway which closed in 1940. The Class remined in service until many of the lines they operated on were eventually closed.

The last of these was the line to Hayling Island which was scheduled for closure in November 1963. With the impending closure of the line, BR decided to withdraw the class from service. At the time of her withdrawal, No. 32636 was the oldest working steam engine in British Railways ownership. The final operational A1X with BR was No. 32678, which remained in service until August 1963. The engines were famously known as ‘Terriers’ due to the distinctive 'bark' of their exhaust beat. Built in 1872, this locomotive spent much of the first 30 years of its life working the suburban London lines as L&BSCR No. 70. When the L&BSCR decided to reduce its numbers of ‘Terrier’ locomotives, No. 70 was sold to the Rother Valley Railway (later the Kent & East Sussex Railway) in May 1901. Now painted blue and numbered No. 3 ‘Bodiam’, the locomotive was temporarily withdrawn from service in 1931, but returned to the line in 1933. After nationalisation ‘Bodiam’ was re-numbered No. 32670, continuing to serve on the K&ESR before being moved to Hayling Island. No. 32670 was withdrawn due to that branch's closure in 1963, but saved for preservation.

The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) A1 Class 0-6-0T locomotive was designed by William Stroudley. A total of 50 locomotives were built between 1872 and 1880. Initially, the class were designed to haul commuter trains on the heavily congested lines in South and South-East London, as well as operating through the Marc Isambard Brunel designed Thames Tunnel. The LB&SCR later introduced larger and more capable D Class locomotives which began being used for most of the company’s commuter trains.

Nonetheless, the reliability of the A1 class was such that most were put to other work or sold on to other railways rather than being scrapped. Between 1911 and 1913 twelve of the A1s that had remined at the LB&SCR were rebuilt with new boilers and extended smoke boxes to become the A1X class along with a further four after the first world war. By 1923, at the formation of Southern Railway, 15 locomotives had remained in LB&SCR ownership, and these along with another 9 locomotives which had been sold to other railways in the region fell into Southern Railway ownership. Weight restrictions on many of the light railways inherited by the Southern Railway necessitated that the light A1 class locomotives remain in service despite their old age. One A1 locomotive and 14 A1X locomotives remained in service long enough to enter into British Railway stock. Most of these remained in the Southern Region, although one remained in the Western Region having previously found its way into GWR ownership after been sold to the Weston Clevedon & Portishead Railway which closed in 1940. The Class remined in service until many of the lines they operated on were eventually closed.

The last of these was the line to Hayling Island which was scheduled for closure in November 1963. With the impending closure of the line, BR decided to withdraw the class from service. At the time of her withdrawal, No. 32636 was the oldest working steam engine in British Railways ownership. The final operational A1X with BR was No. 32678, which remained in service until August 1963. The engines were famously known as ‘Terriers’ due to the distinctive 'bark' of their exhaust beat. Built in 1872, this locomotive spent much of the first 30 years of its life working the suburban London lines as L&BSCR No. 70. When the L&BSCR decided to reduce its numbers of ‘Terrier’ locomotives, No. 70 was sold to the Rother Valley Railway (later the Kent & East Sussex Railway) in May 1901. Now painted blue and numbered No. 3 ‘Bodiam’, the locomotive was temporarily withdrawn from service in 1931, but returned to the line in 1933. After nationalisation ‘Bodiam’ was re-numbered No. 32670, continuing to serve on the K&ESR before being moved to Hayling Island. No. 32670 was withdrawn due to that branch's closure in 1963, but saved for preservation.

The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) A1 Class 0-6-0T locomotive was designed by William Stroudley. A total of 50 locomotives were built between 1872 and 1880. Initially, the class were designed to haul commuter trains on the heavily congested lines in South and South-East London, as well as operating through the Marc Isambard Brunel designed Thames Tunnel. The LB&SCR later introduced larger and more capable D Class locomotives which began being used for most of the company’s commuter trains.

Nonetheless, the reliability of the A1 class was such that most were put to other work or sold on to other railways rather than being scrapped. Between 1911 and 1913 twelve of the A1s that had remined at the LB&SCR were rebuilt with new boilers and extended smoke boxes to become the A1X class along with a further four after the first world war. By 1923, at the formation of Southern Railway, 15 locomotives had remained in LB&SCR ownership, and these along with another 9 locomotives which had been sold to other railways in the region fell into Southern Railway ownership. Weight restrictions on many of the light railways inherited by the Southern Railway necessitated that the light A1 class locomotives remain in service despite their old age. One A1 locomotive and 14 A1X locomotives remained in service long enough to enter into British Railway stock. Most of these remained in the Southern Region, although one remained in the Western Region having previously found its way into GWR ownership after been sold to the Weston Clevedon & Portishead Railway which closed in 1940. The Class remined in service until many of the lines they operated on were eventually closed.

The last of these was the line to Hayling Island which was scheduled for closure in November 1963. With the impending closure of the line, BR decided to withdraw the class from service. At the time of her withdrawal, No. 32636 was the oldest working steam engine in British Railways ownership. The final operational A1X with BR was No. 32678, which remained in service until August 1963. The engines were famously known as ‘Terriers’ due to the distinctive 'bark' of their exhaust beat. LBSCR No. 46 ‘Newington’ entered service in January 1877. In March 1903, the locomotive was sold to the London and South Western Railway where it served until March 1914, then moving on to the Freshwater, Yarmouth and Newport Railway. Upon grouping the locomotive was inherited by the Southern Railway, later receiving the name ‘Freshwater’, and was rebuilt to A1X specification in March 1932. Under BR ownership the locomotive lost its name and became No. 32646, serving until 1963 at which point it was sold for £750 to the Sadler Railcar company of Droxford.

The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) A1 Class 0-6-0T locomotive was designed by William Stroudley. A total of 50 locomotives were built between 1872 and 1880. Initially, the class were designed to haul commuter trains on the heavily congested lines in South and South-East London, as well as operating through the Marc Isambard Brunel designed Thames Tunnel. The LB&SCR later introduced larger and more capable D Class locomotives which began being used for most of the company’s commuter trains.

Nonetheless, the reliability of the A1 class was such that most were put to other work or sold on to other railways rather than being scrapped. Between 1911 and 1913 twelve of the A1s that had remined at the LB&SCR were rebuilt with new boilers and extended smoke boxes to become the A1X class along with a further four after the first world war. By 1923, at the formation of Southern Railway, 15 locomotives had remained in LB&SCR ownership, and these along with another 9 locomotives which had been sold to other railways in the region fell into Southern Railway ownership. Weight restrictions on many of the light railways inherited by the Southern Railway necessitated that the light A1 class locomotives remain in service despite their old age. One A1 locomotive and 14 A1X locomotives remained in service long enough to enter into British Railway stock. Most of these remained in the Southern Region, although one remained in the Western Region having previously found its way into GWR ownership after been sold to the Weston Clevedon & Portishead Railway which closed in 1940. The Class remined in service until many of the lines they operated on were eventually closed. The last of these was the line to Hayling Island which was scheduled for closure in November 1963. With the impending closure of the line, BR decided to withdraw the class from service. At the time of her withdrawal, No. 32636 was the oldest working steam engine in British Railways ownership.

The final operational A1X with BR was No. 32678, which remained in service until August 1963. The engines were famously known as ‘Terriers’ due to the distinctive 'bark' of their exhaust beat. Starting life as LBSCR No. 40, the locomotive was built in March 1878 and served with the LBSCR until being sold to the Isle of Wight Railway in January 1902 where it was upgraded to A1X specification in August 1918. With grouping in 1923 the locomotives fell into southern ownership before transferring to BR ownership upon nationalisation. The locomotive served with BR until September 1963 when it was sold to Butlin’s for static display.