OTD - 11th February (1927) - first private preservation of locomotive

[whole diary]

[grahame]

From the Stevenson Locomotive Society's circular of 11 February 1927

It is with utmost pleasure that, on behalf of the Council, I am able to announce that preliminary negotiations for the celebrated LB&SCR locomotive "Gladstone" are now completed. This engine has been withdrawn from service and is at Brighton works, where the work of restoring her to her original condition and painting her in the famous old yellow livery is to be put in hand immediately. I am sure that all our members will appreciate fully the kindness of the Southern Railway Co. in helping us to carry out such a scheme as this, certainly the most ambitious scheme ever undertaken by our Society. We are, also, deeply indebted to the London & North Eastern Railway Co.. who have offered to find space for the "Gladstone" in their Railway Museum at York until such time as accommodation can be found in London, possibly at South Kensington Museum, in the course of a few years.

Background ((here))

On 20th September 1997 members of the Stephenson Locomotive Society met at the National Railway Museum, York, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of preservation by the Society of the London Brighton & South Coast Railway Stoudley "B" Class 0-4-2 No214 Gladstone. This was the first instance of preservation of a locomotive by a private body. Gladstone was built in 1882, went into service at Brighton in January 1883 and was withdrawn in December 1926, after running 1,346,918 miles.

[grahame]

Gladstone is still with us (preserved):

214 Gladstone has been preserved by the Stephenson Locomotive Society, and is now at the National Railway Museum, in York.

Other preserves stock seems to have a less secure future - example

The Clacton Express Preservation Group, which was formed to save the three-car express electric multiple unit Class 309 624 from scrap and restore it to working order, has announced that the benefactor who helped secure the initial purchase of the unit last year has decided to step away from the project.

However, this does not mark the end of the Clacton Express Preservation Group as it has engaged in a lot of discussions up to this point to ensure that it can find a way forward. The unit will be listed “For Sale” on the group’s website, with the priority being to keep all three carriages of the unit in one piece as a set. The ideal solution would be for a new benefactor to purchase the unit outright, with the Clacton Express Preservation Group coming as part of the package so it can continue to support the vehicles wherever they are located.

[Chris from Nailsea]

An update on the Clacton Express Preservation Group, from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) on 12 April 2025:

Clacton Express train saved from the scrap heap is fully restored

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Brad Wright and a team of volunteers have finished the restoration of the Clacton Express

The restoration of a historic electric train has been completed, with members of the public able to have a look inside for the first time.

Brad Wright, 22, a railway enthusiast from Needham Market, Suffolk, bought the British Railways Class 309, also known as the Clacton Express, in March 2022. He had been restoring it along with a team of volunteers at the East Anglian Railway Museum in Wakes Colne, near Colchester.

Mr Wright said he was proud to have finished the work and have it on show during the Essex Electrics Exhibition at the museum on Saturday.

"It was great to get involved to save it, but to then donate it to the museum to ensure that it survives well beyond me... was my main goal – to make sure it was safe and preserved for future generations to remember," he explained. "I couldn't be prouder." He added he had felt "an immense amount of satisfaction" in completing the restoration.

Mr Wright saved the train from scrap in Sussex in 2022 and set up the Clacton Express Preservation Group – a non-profit group that offers support and volunteers to restoration projects.

The train was a pioneer of its time and operated on the Great Eastern Main Line from London Liverpool Street to Colchester, Clacton and Walton-on-the-Naze from the 1960s. It also ran to Harwich, Ipswich and Norwich from the 1980s before it was retired in the 1990s.

The Essex Electrics Exhibition celebrates the 40th anniversary of the lines being electrified to Ipswich as well as the 40th anniversary of the refurbishment of the Clacton Express trains. "They went through a big change in the middle of their lives," Mr Wright said. "That's how it's preserved now – just as it would have rolled out of the factory 40 years ago after that rebuild."

The team have given the train a complete restoration both inside and outside. Members of the public can look inside and enjoy other guided talks and demonstrations during the event.

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[johnneyw]

It was probably one of those that we were on when we went from London to visit one of mum's friends who had moved to Frinton in the 1960s.

It's a remarkable achievement to buy and organise the restoration of the unit at such a young age, and in such a short time too.