LSWR ‘T3’ 4-4-0 No. 563
As a British express passenger steam locomotive, No. 563 has, arguably, the highest profile of all the de-accessioned exhibits in the history of the NRM. The LSWR 4-4-0 was given away in late March to the Swanage Railway - a line that the locomotive almost certainly operated over during its working life. The 20 ‘T3s’, introduced under William Adams’ chief mechanical stewardship in 1892, gained a fine reputation on the LSWR’s expresses from Waterloo; and were remarkable at a time when most British 4-4-0s were being built with inside cylinders. They continued on the front line until around the turn of the century, when newer 4-4-0s were introduced and the majority were cascaded down the chain of priority to handle trains west of Salisbury, but No. 563 was an exception, and spent the next four decades allocated to Guildford and Eastleigh, as well as a short stint at Salisbury. Withdrawal came in March 1939, but the commencement of war just five months later led to a reprieve that December. Duties for the now unlined green ‘T3’ were predominantly van trains, but No. 563’s usefulness finally expired in August 1945 when it was hooked from service for a second time. However, subsequent, and ultimately crucial, salvation for the ‘T3’ came when British Railways Southern Region made plans for a centenary celebration of Waterloo station in 1948. The Southern’s stores superintendent, A.B. MacLeod and the deputy Chief Mechanical Engineer, E.A. Turbett, were tasked with selecting a suitable locomotive to represent the Adams 4-4-0 as the centrepiece of an exhibition of vintage rolling stock. Maintenance records of surviving geriatric locomotives were examined with assistance from Eastleigh works’ running superintendent, S.C. Townroe, and No. 563 was selected to be extracted from the line of dumped engines in Eastleigh and Kimbridge yards and brought into the works for restoration to pre-Grouping condition. This wasn’t just a re-paint from utilitarian wartime black livery into 1903 Drummond-style green (with LSWR garter crests); the locomotive was adorned with an original pattern stovepipe chimney, and Adams pattern smokebox door, whistle, coupling chains and ejector. Restoration also included a return to operable condition, although the engine was by now so fragile that a 25mph limit was imposed on its light engine move to London and its maximum boiler pressure reduced from 175lbs/sq in to a measly 60lbs/sq in, on account of its weak firebox. After the capital showpiece, No. 563 went on to lead something of a nomadic existence, with spells in store at Farnham electric carriage shed, Eastleigh works and, of all unlikely destinations, the roundhouse in Tweedmouth. A ‘permanent’ home at the nascent Clapham Transport Museum, under the auspices of the newly formed National Collection, was announced in 1960, and during the following year the ‘T3’s’ graceful, as-built 1893 condition was restored with the addition of brass beading over the splashers and a further back-dating of its livery to the original lighter shade of green. It retains the very same paintwork to this day. Clapham’s closure and the opening of the NRM, York, in 1975 meant the engine moved away from Southern territory for a second time. Although never steamed under the NRM’s stewardship, No. 563 has been used for hugely popular live action performances of Edith Nesbit’s The Railway Children stage show; latterly in King’s Cross (2015-2016). Admirers included former prime minister David Cameron, who attended a showing in January 2015. But its most eye-catching stage role came in 2011 when it was loaned to Roundhouse Park in Toronto. In disposing of the engine in March, the NRM said: “We recognised we have a number of 4-4-0 type locomotives in the collection, mostly from the Victorian-Edwardian era, which had resulted in an imbalance in the collection of steam locomotives from this period. In observing due process, we concluded gifting the ‘T3’ class No. 563 locomotive to a well respected heritage railway line and one with a rich historical connection, would enable it to be enjoyed by the public for future generations.” Its removal from the National Collection foreshortens the unique thread of steam locomotives that worked expresses over the South Western main line, which still includes ‘T9’ No. 30120, ‘King Arthur’ No. 777 Sir Lamiel, No. 850 Lord Nelson, ‘Merchant Navy’ No. 35029 Ellerman Lines and ‘Battle of Britain’ No. 34051 Winston Churchill. The Swanage Railway hopes to return the ‘T3’ to working order if it is mechanically and economically feasible.