Urgent £24,000 appeal to complete Isle of Wight Ca lb our neo' sv er haul
PLANSto havethe IsleofWight Steam R ail way' (sl oW SRfl)ags hip 0-4-4 T No. W 24 C al bourne in steamto celebratethe 50th anniversaroyf the linein 2021 arehingingon the succesosf an urgent £24,000 fundraising appeal.
The 10- yearly boiler over haul of the sole-survivingAdams'02; whichwill alsoincludea repaint in post-war Malachite green with 'Sun shine le' ttering,w as started in December.
Work had been progressing well until the corona virus crisis brought the project- andthe railway- to a complete stand still.
The loss of revenue incurred by the loWSRduringthe lockdown periodhashit the overhaulhard, anddespitea resumptionof pass en ge sr er vice sin July, the railway has been compelled to launcha newappealto ensure Ca lb ournce an steam in time for next year' s Golden Jubilee celebrations.
"Un for tuna telyt,hecri sis means we have had virtually no income for the firstfour monthsof our generaml anagerSteveBackhouse. operating seasons ;' aid lo W SR '' While our engineering team isreadyandableto finishthe workon Calbournew,e currently no longerhavethe moneyto do so.Thereforet,he succesosf this appeal is essen ti at lo seeing Calbournbeackin steamfor next year:'
Lastsurvivor
No.W24holdsa speciapl lacein the historyof the island'srailways, being the first engine acquired bythe embryonicloWSRin 1967, andthe lastsurvivorof the 60 'O2s'built.
It emergedfrom the LSWR's Nine El ms works as No .209 in 1891, and spent its early years at Frattonandthen ExeterI.t was added to the Southern Railway' s booksin 1923,andtwo yearslater was shipped across to the Isle of Wightto replacethe aging'Terrier' fleet.
A total of 23'O2ss' awservice on the island but, following the electrification of the remaining railwayfrom RydePierHeadto Shanklinin early-1967,Calbourne founditselfasthe solesurvivor, beingretainedfor engineers' workstrains. It wassoldto the Wight Locomotive Societyt,hefoun ding groupof the currentloWSRa,nd in 1971hauledthe group'sstock from Newportto Havenstreet, workingfirst passengetr ainslater that year.
''Weareplanninga numberof excitingeventsto celebrateour 50th anniversaryin 2021';added Mr Backhouse.
"It would bedevastatingif Ca lb ournceould not be part of thesesowe areaskingall our friends and supporters to give g en erouslyd,e spite the difficult economictimes''.
Fordetailson howto donate to the appeal visit: https :// tiny url. com/y2zqw2Ibor alternatively chequesp, ayableto IsleofWight Railway Co Ltd, can be sent to the IsleofWight SteamRailwayT, he Railway Station, Havens tree Its, le of WightP0334DS.