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Locomotives - Evening Star
The Last of the Line
Evening Star was the last mainline steam locomotive built in Britain, and in honour of this occasion British Railways’ Swindon Locomotive works made sure it was given special treatment. Evening Star was painted in passenger green, its external pipe work made of copper and brass and its double chimney given a copper cap. The name Evening Star, decided through a competition, was the choice of three British Railways Western Region workers: Mr Phillips, a driver based at Aberystwyth; Mr Pugh, a Clerk in the General Manager’s office at London Paddington; and Mr Sathi, a boiler washer at Old Oak Common Depot. When the nameplate was unveiled on 18th March 1960, over 130 years of steam locomotive manufacture was brought to an end. Evening Star cost British Railways £33,500 to build. British Railways planned to use Evening Star for at least twenty years. In fact it was withdrawn from service in March 1965 and has been in preservation ever since.
Why Was Evening Star Built?
In 1948 The Railway Executive inherited 20,211 steam engines, 67 diesels and 17 electric locomotives. The Railway Executive (British Railways Board) and the British Transport Commission (BTC) agreed that this exhausted fleet needed replacing, but with what? British Railways wanted a fleet of new standard steam locomotives that would operate until the railways could go ‘all electric’. The BTC felt no money should be invested in new steam power; diesel and electric were the future. British Railways ignored the BTC and in 1951 unveiled plans for twelve ‘standard designs’ of steam locomotive. They built 999 of these standard locomotives and Evening Star, designed to give maximum power for minimum coal burn, was of the most successful type.
A Thoroughbred Freight Mover
Evening Star was built to pull the heaviest freight trains the railway had to offer. It was also designed to use minimal fuel when operating at 35 mph. Why 35 mph? Because a train of 800-900 tons which equates to over thirty wagons of stone, coal or fuel oil has to be handled with care. The tight curve restrictions found in industrial locations could have proved a problem for a locomotive with ten driving wheels. But Evening Star smoothed its way round this by having a flangeless middle driving wheel. Hence these massive engines could operate across the network. Evening Star was no slouch though! When standard freight engines like Evening Star were used to pull passenger trains they recorded speeds of 90 mph (145 kmh) on some express workings. But the 9Fs were not built for such speeds, they were Britain’s supreme steam freight locomotive.
Vital Statistics
Evening Star was built to a standard design, using many parts common to the other eleven locomotive types in British Railways’ Standard designs. But for all its innovative features, Evening Star still relied on the skill of the Driver and Fireman to turn cold steel into motive power.
- Object: 9F Steam Locomotive (Evening Star)
- Built: 1960
- Builder: British Railways Swindon Locomotive Works
- Designer: R A Riddles (Chief Mechanical Engineer, British Railways)
- Cost: £33,500
- Function: Heavy freight
- Weight: 101 tons (103 tonnes) empty 138 tons (140 tonnes) with coal & water
- Coal: 7 tons (7 tonnes)
- Water: 5,000 gallons (22,730 litres)
- Length: 66 feet 2inches (20.2 metres)
- Width: 8 feet 10 inches (2.7 metres)
- Height: 13 feet (4.0 metres)
- Wheel Arrangement: 2-10-0
- Withdrawn from service: 1965
Locomotive inventory number 1975-7024
Photograph reference number NRM_CT_936740