The life Time of ‘K4’ No. 61994
Purpose-built under Gresley’s direction to provide greater power on the steep gradients and tight curves of the West Highland Line to Fort William and Mallaig, The Great Marquess (built at Darlington in 1938 as LNER No. 3442) and its five sisters spent 21 years working out of Glasgow Eastfield shed (65A), removing the need for double-heading the heaviest passenger trains as their forerunners, the ‘D34’ class ‘Glen’ 4-4-0s, had been required to do. The ‘K4s’ were in turn relegated from passenger work on the West Highland, first by the allocation of a number of ‘B1’ 4-6-0s to Eastfield and Fort William in 1947, and after nationalisation, by an influx of ‘Black Five’ 4-6-0s and ‘K1’ class 2-6-0s. But the ‘K4s’ continued to work freights - most notably the fish trains from Mallaig - until December 1959, when all six engines were transferred to Thornton Junction (62A). Withdrawn by BR in 1961, the ‘Marquess’ was initially placed in store, pending its purchase in 1963 by Viscount Garnock (David Lindesay-Bethune, the 15th Earl of Lindsay) who earlier in his life had worked for the LNER. Who was ‘The Great Marquess’? The history behind the title isn’t clear, but John Cameron has always believed it was either Lindesay’s father or grandfather, who also had LNER boardroom connections. The engine was overhauled at Cowlairs Works, returned to LNER apple green livery, and between 1963 and 1967 was maintained at Neville Hill shed, Leeds (55H) for working railtours, including the March 1967 ‘Marquess goes South South-West’ special from London Victoria to Brighton and Chichester. With the end of steam in 1968 and the BR steam ban from which only Alan Pegler’s ‘A3’ class ‘Pacific’ No. 4472 Flying Scotsman was exempt, the ‘K4’ remained stored until 1972, when it was moved to a new home at the Severn Valley Railway. Viscount Garnock had previously been SVR chairman and president. The engine ran only a handful of trains before being withdrawn for a comprehensive rebuild at Bridgnorth, which was ultimately completed in 1989. Viscount Garnock was there to see The Great Marquess recommissioned but died later the same year, the ‘K4’ being inherited by his son Jamie, the 16th Earl of Lindsay. The ‘Marquess’, then still running as No. 3442, was put back into BR mixed traffic (lined black) livery in the autumn of 1997 for the last few months of its ten-year boiler certificate - a move which had photo charter organisers queuing up, and no fewer than 13 days of charters were arranged. But then, on October 23, the ‘K4’ was declared a ‘terminal’ failure, following a wheelslip incident at Bewdley Tunnel, which caused the centre driving wheels to turn on the axle. Now in a five-year queue of engines awaiting overhaul, No. 61994 languished until 2003 when, in a deal brokered by SVR General Manager Alun Rees, the ‘K4’ was sold by Jamie Lindesay - to his neighbouring landowner in Fife, John Cameron, with the condition that it return to Scotland - and be repainted back into LNER apple green livery. The ‘Marquess’ was ultimately repaired and re-certificated at Pete Waterman’s LNWR Heritage Engineering factory at Crewe, following which it did return to Scotland - to its old stamping ground at Thornton Junction, where Cameron’s ‘A4’ Union of South Africa was also based. But it has remained in BR lined black livery - John Cameron’s personal preference ever since. By popular demand, No. 61994 returned to West Highland metals to work ‘Lochaber’ and ‘Jacobite’ passenger trains on seven occasions - in LNER green livery in 1989, 1994 and 1995, and in BR black from 2010-2012 and again in 2014. Elsewhere on the main line, it has worked over the Settle-Carlisle line and on the Railway Touring Company’s springtime series of ‘Great Britain’ trains, while on the preserved railway front, it has made working appearances at Barrow Hill Roundhouse, the North Yorkshire Moors, East Lancs, Keighley & Worth Valley, Great Central and Mid-Norfolk railways.