Hawthorn Leslie 0-4-0 saddle tank built 1924, number 3581 "Marston, Thompson & Evershed No 3"

 
 

A classic and attractive Hawthorn Leslie saddle tank built to serve the transport of beer, it carries an excessive name for such a small locomotive. It was one of a long line of Hawthorn Leslie saddle tanks with 14 x 22 inch cylinders of comparable size to Peckett "Henry Cort". The development of the design can be traced back to 1873 but the first locomotive of really similar specification was built by Hawthorn Leslie at their Newcastle-upon-Tyne works in 1905. Altogether some 274 of these locomotives were built, including small design variations, right up to the 1950s. "Marston, Thompson & Evershed No3" was delivered new to the brewers of that name in Burton-on-Trent in 1924 and joined two similar locomotives, the first having been bought new in 1901 and another bought secondhand in 1918. The design was obviously well liked by the brewery, as a further similar locomotive was bought new in 1931. Like most of the motive power at the breweries in Burton, "Marston Thompson & Evershed No3" and its stablemates were kept in immaculate condition, and were even housed in a heated shed when not being used. They were employed shunting wagons in and around the brewery but rail traffic contracted severely during the 1960s, making all the locos redundant. 

When originally preserved at Foxfield, "Marston, Thompson & Evershed No3" was only the second steam locomotive to be delivered. Arriving on 12 April 1967 in private ownership, it was only steamed a few times and did not work after 1968. Some restoration was carried out, and the loco was also unfortunately shunted through the back wall of the old shed at Foxfield Colliery. The loco was unscathed but the shed sustained serious damage! Six years later "Marston, Thompson & Evershed No3" was sold and moved to the Great Central Railway at Loughborough on 2 April 1973. There it was used for footplate rides within the yard, but the GCR very soon had only limited use for small industrial locomotives. Happily "Marston, Thompson & Evershed No3" returned to Foxfield from the Great Central Railway on 25 October 1996, and has undergone further restoration. The work on frames, motion and platework is almost complete and boiler repairs are making good progress.

Technical information:

Steam pressure: 160 lbs
Cylinders: 14in x 22in
Tractive effort:13,962 lbs (at 85% boiler pressure)
Wheel diameter: 3' 6"
Coupled wheelbase 5' 6"
Weight in working order: 27.5 tons
Water capacity: 650 gallons
Coal capacity: 38 cu ft

Below: "Marston Thompson & Evershed No3" at Burton in 1960 [late HB Holland collection]