"Preserved" steam locos that were subsequently scrapped

I doubt that this was too much of a challenge, as the boss in question was R.H.N. (Dick) Hardy! I suspect that they were in cahoots.

 

In the days before TOPS, rolling stock (especially wagons) would often go missing. BR used to publish a list of missing stock and I believe that a small reward was offered to the person who found it. Missing locos might not have been common but I bet it wasn't unknown.

 

There was one GWR Van out of use at Taunton Station which the GWS Taunton group wanted to buy, but were told by BR that it was owned by the Road Freight department so when they asked them they were told it belonged to BR, so as nobody claimed ownership of the van they got it shunted into their siding at Taunton and now the van is at Didcot. So it is easy to see how they could loose rolling stock.

 

When 44806 was delivered to Steamport in 1973/4 it came as a special working from Ulverston with B.R. standard brakevans either end and left at our boundary. We collected the loco and returned the vans leaving them, for collection, on the B.R. side of the gate. Some time later we got a slightly 'snotty' enquiry as to when we were going to remove "our" brakevans from B.R. property!
Around this time it was well known that a certain Liverpool scrap merchant had a habit of 'losing' a proportion of the 'empties' delivered to his yard - usually as part of the loads in the 'fulls' leaving his yard! Fortunately TOPS put a stop to a lot of this. Ray.

 

Even dismantling a loco for overhaul increases the risk as parts can get mislaid , easy to take apart , long hard expensive slog to restore and people inevitably lose interest , life changes etc

How often do you hear an appeal from someone usually from a long term restoration 'we need parts x,y and z' because someone (usually with good intentions) took them home to work on and now said persons circumstances have changed or is no longer with us? They usually tend to be difficult/expensive bits to replace too!

 

I can assure you that it happened even after the introduction of TOPS!

 

There is a story of a loco being towed to Keighley in the early days of them running there, running hot in transit and being dumped in a siding right on the LM/ER boundary I think it was. Both Regions said the other had it until one day they had a phone call from someone saying 'theres a steam engine at location
X, is it yours?' Lo and behold! So I think you could say locos have gone missing!

 

I can remember back in the 70's when a main line diesel was delivered to a preservation site , towed by a class 25 & using a withdrawn full brake coach from the works scrap line as a brake vehicle. The loco went back to B.R. minus the brake coach & to my knowledge the brake coach is still in preservation.

Bob.

 

Could this be 41708? It was photographed up on blocks at Leeds Holbeck, with the wheelsets out, in 1967. It had run hot on its journey from Rotherham to the KWVR. However, it would have been at ER/NER boundary somewhere.

 

I dont think it was, from what I was told it was an industrial I could have the regions wrong too apologies I should have mentioned this in my earlier post.

 

Holy thread resurrection Batman!

However I just came across this which does feature stuff in real documents:-

http://www.railwaymagazine.co.uk/news/gwr-did-try-to-place-broad-gauge-locos-elsewhere

 

In America, at least, it would appear that a historical artefact in a museum collection is not safe - see this month's Heritage Railway story about the sale of a Braithwaite & Ericsson loco - imagine if the NRM decided to sell off one of its early locos!

 

Well, I am sure many would view it as preferable to a later loco - after all, no chance of restoration to working and unable to authentically carry BR livery!!

 

At the risk of making Mr. Coulls groan, I'd like to see this engine purchased for the NRM, as an example of how Britain's manufacturers dominated the early world of loco exports. It's surely small enough that space could be found!

 

http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/...omobile-auction-adds-something-for-rail-fans/

http://blog.the-saleroom.com/uncategorized/pioneering-american-steam-locomotive-offered-by-bonhams/

 

Also in America; a military museum had the only WW1 German tank still in existence. They scrapped it as "it's space was required for a newer exhibit".

 

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-07-...wwi-tank-on-display-aust-war-memorial/6654320

 

Well I don't want to be too quick to condemn the museum in question as the articles that have been linked to don't really give us the full story. It may be that they have already tried to donate these items to other museums or public bodies without success. But selling exhibits on the open market should really a last resort for a museum. It certainly shouldn't, as the quote from Bonhams in one of the blogs implies, be common practice.