Austin 1

A Brief History

This locomotive is an 0-6-0 Saddle Tank and was built by Kitsons of Leeds as works number 5459 in 1932. It was delivered new to the Austin Motor Company at their Longbridge works in the West Midlands where it was named Austin 1. She is one of three Austins built but, sadly, is the sole survivor. She was named Austin 1 as she was the first locomotive to be delivered brand new to the motor works. Austin II arrived in 1936 and Austin 3 in 1937. They were scrapped in 1970 and 1971. The locomotive was subsequently purchased by the Burtonwood Brewery in November 1973 on behalf of the Flint and Deeside Railway Society and was stored at the rear of the Nant Hotel in Prestatyn, North Wales, until the Society moved to Llangollen in 1975. The locomotive was renamed Burtonwood Brewer in honour of the brewery, who paid for the restoration and fitting of the vacuum brake gear required for working passenger trains.

When the Llangollen railway re-opened in 1981, Austin 1 was the only locomotive available for operating passenger services until the arrival of “Jinty” 47298 in 1983. It provided much of the motive power for the railway’s early years, although its small water capacity and limited power made operation to Glyndyfrdwy and beyond a struggle.

During 1994 and 1995 it was hired to the North Staffordshire Railway (now Churnet Valley Railway) and then to the Chinnor and Princes Risborough Railway during 1996 and 1997. Its ten-year overhaul fell due in 1997 and to enable this to proceed, the Llangollen Railway Trust took on ownership from the Burtonwood Brewery in 1998. The locomotive reverted to its original name, Austin 1 and was stripped down for major repairs. This included work on the motion and welding on the boiler. Since the rebuild was completed in late 2000, it has been available for hire, going to Chinnor for 2001 and part of the 2002 season.

Austin 1 at the Austin Motor Company's Longbridge Works.

She was freshly painted in Great Western colours lined in red, to represent the Llangollen Railway and arrived at the Lavender Line in late 2002 to help with steaming duties. Austin 1 stayed at Isfield for 5 years, working almost without fault and proved to be an extremely reliable and economical engine. By the autumn of 2007, her boiler ticket was out of date and she made her long journey back to Llangollen for a complete overhaul. Arriving back at the Lavender Line in 2011 to replace Birkenhead, the 0-4-0 Saddle Tank that had been on hire from the Southall Railway Centre since May 2010, Austin 1 has become a firm favourite with staff and visitors alike and is the perfect locomotive to hone the driving skills acquired on Clive Groome’s steam driving footplate courses.

Mark Hannaford, October 2011.

For more information contact:

FOOTPLATE DAYS AND WAYS LTD
Telephone: 01903 207587

Email: steamway@dircon.co.uk

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