Green Arrow in ‘surprise’ Sunday Doncaster Sunday homecoming
LNER V2 2-6-2 No. 4771 Green Arrow has returned to its Doncaster birthplace after being unveiled as the second locomotive to go on static display in the rail heritage centre at the town's new Danum Gallery, Library and Museum.
On Sunday, February 22, Green Arrow took its place alongside 1902-built GNR Atlantic No. 251, which was moved into the new museum from the Locomotion museum at Shildon on January 24, as reported last issue.
Since the summer, it had been widely speculated that 1898-built GNR 4-4-2 No. 990 Henry Oakley would be the second locomotive to be placed in display inside the new showpiece venue. However, it was Green Arrow – beleived to require less preparation for the move – that eventually arrived by road, a result of a partnership between its owner, the National Railway Museum (NRM), and Doncaster Council.
Operation
However, the NRM stressed that the loan of 1936-built Green Arrow, the first of its class and the last surviving UK 2-6-2 tender locomotive, will not alter the longterm plans to return it to traffic.
In a move carried out under social distancing and Covid-19 guidance, Green Arrow travelled the 90 miles from Locomotion.
Several main roads in Doncaster were sealed off to allow it to reach the heritage centre, where a team of specialist conservators and rail operations staff physically manoeuvred it into place in an operation that took 48 hours.
Both locomotives have taken up several months of preparation and more than 1000 hours of conservation from collection services, rail operations, engineering, and Locomotion. The work included corrosion treatment, a deep clean and the sensitive repainting areas of paint loss by colour matching the livery. This information, including an inventory of all parts of the locomotive such as the gauge glasses, lubrication pots and the whistles, have also been recorded onto the NRM object database.
The pair are being loaned to the new centre for an initial three years, but during this period another National Collection locomotive will take the place of Green Arrow alongside No. 251, according to a museum statement. Atlantic No. 990 could yet be moved there in its place.
Artefacts
The heritage centre will also display rare artefacts from the Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection and other rail exhibits, and is scheduled to open later this year, subject to Covid-19 pandemic restrictions.
Welcoming Green Arrow to the new venue were former Doncaster Grammar School pupils Chris Barron and Simon Ward, who attended it in the Sixties and both served as secretaries of its railway society.
Designed by Sir Nigel Gresley, the V2 class was derived from the Class A1/A3 Pacifics but had smaller driving wheels and a shorter boiler. A total of 184 locomotives were constructed between 1936 and 1944 at Doncaster and Darlington, and during the Second World War they earned a reputation as a versatile and powerful locomotive.
Green Arrow was named after the freight train for which it was built to haul. As No. 60800, it was withdrawn by BR in 1962 and preserved as part of the National Collection, subsequently being returned to steam and running on both the national network and heritage lines. Before its boiler certificate expired in 2008,
it developed tube problems. Worse still, en route from York to Shildon, its monobloc cylinder casting cracked, and the firebox was deemed to be in need of replacement – leaving it with a potentially very expensive overhaul bill.
However, in March 2019, the NRM released its 15-year strategic plan, known as the operational vehicle strategy, listing some of the locomotives set to return, including Green Arrow, which was earmarked for a potential return to the main line.
Reaction
Doncaster Mayor Coun Ros Jones said: “The incredibly-popular Green Arrow, together with No. 251, will spearhead a remarkable display of our great railway heritage, with many enthralling items going on public display for the very first time. They tell a compelling story of the golden age of steam and the major contribution Doncaster has made to the rail industry.
“In March, we plan a special online preview of Danum Gallery, Library and Museum to give people a taste of what they can experience once it's safe and legal for us to open the building. It will be a community asset packed with cutting edge services, and local and national collections of significance and importance.
“It's a great achievement to have delivered this public building during these difficult economic times and signals our intent and ambition for Doncaster. It will be a joy to behold.”
Coun Nigel Ball, cabinet member for public health, leisure and culture, said: “Having worked at Doncaster Plant in the past, I look at Green Arrow and the other exhibits with great fondness. Our heritage is a treasure we must remember by sharing our many achievements.”
NRM assistant director and head curator Andrew McLean added: “We are thrilled to be working alongside Doncaster Council to share the story of this fascinating locomotive.
“In the longer term we still see an operational future for Green Arrow ,as outlined in our operational vehicle strategy. For now, however, to see this locomotive to return to where it was built is a sight to behold.”
The Doncaster Grammar School Railway Collection began in the 1930s when pupils and teachers at the school, now called Hall Cross Academy, set up a railway society. In the years that followed, members created one of the biggest and most important collections of its kind, packed with signs, nameplates, lamps, signal posts and thousands of other rail related gems.
They were moved from Hall Cross Academy last year and are now archived in the former Doncaster Museum and Art Gallery. A selection of this remarkable collection will feature in the new heritage centre and will be regularly refreshed to bring more historical items into the public gaze.
School collection spokesman Chris Barron said: “This is the culmination of what we have worked on for several years. The new centre gives the opportunity for everyone to see this unique and important collection for the first time. We have been grateful that Hall Cross Academy has continued to house the collection for over 70 years, but the problem was that few people ever got to see it.
“This collaboration between the council and the NRM means two great Doncaster-built engines will provide a setting for these treasures.
“Our aim is to make this centre a recognised place of discovery for railway heritage, something that has been missing from this railway town for too long.”
➜ Watch a video of Green Arrow’s move to Doncaster on The Railway Hub at tinyurl.com/GreenArrowClip