We are extremely pleased to be in partnership with our sister organisation the Locomotive Conservation and Learning Trust (LCLT), delivering the transformational Cumbrian Victorian Locomotive Experience Project - a £1 million scheme to restore No.65033, create an interpretation suite at Kirkby Stephen East (KSE) and increase the outreach of our organisation. This project will help us to tell the story of KSE to a greater number of visitors, creating a wider range of authentic experiences for them to enjoy and giving additional reasons to visit us. We will use this project to tell the real story of the steam railway system - one of hard work to deliver freight and connect communities by determined railway employees.
In 2023, KSE will become home to a second Victorian locomotive of national historic importance. A humble North Eastern Railway freight locomotive built in 1889, No.876 (later No.5033 then No.65033) and its sister locomotives operated the backbone of railway services, goods trains. By 1939, the engine had been withdrawn from traffic and moved to awaiting scrapping. The Second World War, though, stopped all thoughts of disposal and the engine returned to service. It operated until 1962, far beyond the end of hostilities, and was withdrawn again. Originally considered for a place in the National Collection of railway locomotives, it was removed from this list because it had been modified since building and was rescued by Frank Atkinson, the man who founded the Beamish Open Air Museum. In preservation, apart from a brief period of operation, No.65033 has never been in the limelight until the formation of the LCLT in 2009. Now, thanks to a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant, it is being returned to steam and will operate at KSE, where many of its classmates were prominent in their careers and No.65033 itself operated. The engine will be used on open days and events for visitors, driving experiences and educational visits.
The second rolling stock element of this project is North Eastern Railway Bogie Stores Van. This vehicle was built in 1902, and was used to transport tools and men between places on the rail network to carry out ‘running repairs’, much like the transit van of today. It is being restored on the site at Kirkby Stephen East, and will become an interpretation suite for educational groups and casual visitors. It is being sympathetically restored to its North Eastern Railway appearance.
To learn more about this vehicle there is YouTube Video produced for our Heritage Open Days in 2021.
You can find out more about this project by getting in touch with us by emailing or by visiting the website of our partner in the delivery of this project, the Locomotive Conservation and Learning Trust - www.lclt.org.uk.
In 2023, KSE will become home to a second Victorian locomotive of national historic importance. A humble North Eastern Railway freight locomotive built in 1889, No.876 (later No.5033 then No.65033) and its sister locomotives operated the backbone of railway services, goods trains. By 1939, the engine had been withdrawn from traffic and moved to awaiting scrapping. The Second World War, though, stopped all thoughts of disposal and the engine returned to service. It operated until 1962, far beyond the end of hostilities, and was withdrawn again. Originally considered for a place in the National Collection of railway locomotives, it was removed from this list because it had been modified since building and was rescued by Frank Atkinson, the man who founded the Beamish Open Air Museum. In preservation, apart from a brief period of operation, No.65033 has never been in the limelight until the formation of the LCLT in 2009. Now, thanks to a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant, it is being returned to steam and will operate at KSE, where many of its classmates were prominent in their careers and No.65033 itself operated. The engine will be used on open days and events for visitors, driving experiences and educational visits.
The second rolling stock element of this project is North Eastern Railway Bogie Stores Van. This vehicle was built in 1902, and was used to transport tools and men between places on the rail network to carry out ‘running repairs’, much like the transit van of today. It is being restored on the site at Kirkby Stephen East, and will become an interpretation suite for educational groups and casual visitors. It is being sympathetically restored to its North Eastern Railway appearance.
To learn more about this vehicle there is YouTube Video produced for our Heritage Open Days in 2021.
You can find out more about this project by getting in touch with us by emailing or by visiting the website of our partner in the delivery of this project, the Locomotive Conservation and Learning Trust - www.lclt.org.uk.