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 No. 778 hauling a train on the Ffestiniog Railway | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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DHR 778 (originally number 19) is a narrow-gauge steam locomotive, that was built in 1889 for the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway. It is preserved in the United Kingdom, and is the only DHR locomotive outside of India. The locomotive is notable for having the oldest locomotive boiler still in use anywhere in the world. [1]
DHR 778 is a 0-4-0 ST DHR B Class, a design built between 1889 and 1927. A total of 34 were built. By 2005 only 12 remained on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway and in use (or under repair). The B class locomotives were designed by Sharp, Stewart & Co. of Glasgow and built by them, their successors North British Locomotive Company (NBL, Glasgow), and three each by Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW, Philadelphia, USA), and the DHR works at Tindharia.
Number 778 (originally No.19) was built in 1889 by Sharp Stewart & Co at the Atlas Works in Glasgow. It is the only DHR locomotive that has been taken out of India. After many years out of use at the Hesston Steam Museum, it was sold to enthusiast Adrian Shooter in the United Kingdom and restored to working order. It was based on Beeches Light Railway, a private railway in Oxfordshire, and has also run on the Ffestiniog Railway, the Leighton Buzzard Light Railway, the Launceston Steam Railway and the South Tynedale Railway. [2] 778 is the only B class with a tender.[ citation needed ].
Locomotive No. 19B remained based at the Beeches Light Railway until the death of Adrian Shooter in December 2022. On 21 June 2023 the locomotive was purchased at auction for £250,000 by The Darjeeling Tank Locomotive Trust (DTLT), with supporters raising the required money three months beforehand. Following the sale, the locomotive and its two matching carriages were relocated by the Trust to the Statfold Barn Railway near Tamworth, Staffordshire.
In mid-2011, for the 40th anniversary of preservation of the Froissy Dompierre Light Railway in France, three Britain-based locomotives visited, including locomotive 778. [3]
In 2013, locomotive 778 ran as a part of Indian Extravaganza Fest in Bedfordshire in East England, [4] and in 2014 it was the main attraction at the South Tynedale Railway's Indian Summer Event [5]
The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, also known as the DHR or the Toy Train, is a 610 mm gauge railway that runs between New Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling in the Indian state of West Bengal. Built between 1879 and 1881, it is about 88 km (55 mi) long. It climbs from about 100 m (330 ft) above sea level at New Jalpaiguri to about 2,200 m (7,200 ft) at Darjeeling, using six zig zags and three loops to gain altitude. Ghum station is situated at an altitude of 2,258 metres (7,407 ft). Six diesel locomotives handle most of the scheduled service, with daily tourist trains from Darjeeling to Ghum – India's highest railway station – and the steam-hauled Red Panda service from Darjeeling to Kurseong. Steam-enthusiast specials are hauled by vintage British-built B-Class steam locomotives. The railway's headquarters are at Kurseong.
The Hunslet Engine Company is a locomotive building company, founded in 1864 in Hunslet, England. It manufactured steam locomotives for over 100 years and currently manufactures diesel shunting locomotives. The company owns a substantial fleet of Industrial and depot shunting locomotives which are available for hire. The company is part of Ed Murray & Sons Ltd.
The Northeast Frontier Railway is one of the 19 railway zones of the Indian Railways. It is headquartered in Maligaon, Guwahati in the state of Assam, and responsible for operation and expansion of rail network all across Northeastern states and some districts of eastern Bihar and northern West Bengal.
The Scottish Industrial Railway Centre is an industrial heritage museum operated by the Ayrshire Railway Preservation Group. The centre owns a number of standard gauge steam locomotives and diesel locomotives as well as some narrow gauge items and an extensive collection of photographs.
Indian Railways operates India's railway system and comes under the purview of the Ministry of Railways of Government of India. As of 2023, it maintains over 108,706 km (67,547 mi) of tracks and operates over 13,000 trains daily with a fleet of 14,800 locomotives. The railways primarily operates a fleet of electric and diesel locomotives along with a few compressed natural gas (CNG) locomotives. Steam locomotives are operated on mountain railways and on heritage trains.
The Mountain railways of India are the railway lines that were built in the mountainous regions of India. The term mainly includes the narrow-gauge and metre-gauge railways in these regions but may also include some broad-gauge railways.
W. G. Bagnall was a locomotive manufacturer from Stafford, England which was founded in 1875 and operated until it was taken over in 1962 by English Electric.
Manning Wardle was a steam locomotive manufacturer based in Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England.
Yaxham Light Railway is a 2 ft narrow gauge light railway situated adjacent to Yaxham railway station on the Mid-Norfolk Railway. It is located in the village of Yaxham in the English county of Norfolk. The railway is listed as exempt from the UK Railways (Interoperability) Regulations 2000.
The Statfold Barn Railway is a narrow gauge railway based near Tamworth, Staffordshire and partially in Warwickshire, England. Founded by engineering entrepreneur Graham Lee and his wife Carol at their farm-based home, they originally designed what is still termed the garden railway, in which Graham could run his trains and Carol could design an extensive English country garden around a lake.
The Froissy Dompierre Light Railway is a 600 mm narrow gauge light railway running from Froissy to Dompierre-Becquincourt, through Cappy, in the Somme department, France. It is run as a heritage railway by APPEVA and is also known as P'tit Train de la Haute Somme. It is the last survivor of the 600 mm narrow gauge trench railways of the World War I battlefields.
Adrian Shooter was a British transport executive.
The DHR B Class is a famous class of 2 ft gauge 0-4-0ST saddle tank steam locomotives used on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) in West Bengal, India.
The DHR D Class was a 2 ft gauge 0-4-0+0-4-0 Garratt-type articulated steam locomotive used on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) in West Bengal, India.
The DHR A Class was a class of 2 ft gauge 0-4-0WT well tank steam locomotives used on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway (DHR) in West Bengal, India. It was the DHR's first standard design of locomotive.
The Beeches Light Railway was a private narrow gauge railway in Steeple Aston, Oxfordshire, England, in the garden of the late Adrian Shooter, the former director of Chiltern Railways. The line contained one station, Rinkingpong Road at an elevation of 351 feet (107 m) above sea level.
The Rarawai–Kavanagasau Light Railway was a 142 miles (229 km) long narrow gauge railway on Fiji.
Gloddfa Ganol was a museum dedicated to the Welsh slate industry and narrow-gauge railways, situated in the Oakeley slate quarry in Blaenau Ffestiniog. It opened in 1974 and closed in 1998 following an auction of its exhibits.
x-ray inspection of the original boiler showed that there was virtually no wastage. No.19 now has the distinction of having the oldest locomotive boiler in use anywhere in the world.
40th anniversary of the Froissy-Cappy-Dompierre line entering preservation. … invitations extended to The Greensand Railway Museum Trust's Baldwin 4-6-0T WDLR No. 778 and Adrian Shooter's Darjeeling Himalayan Railway B-Class 0-4-0ST No. 19 (SS 3518/1888) to visit.
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| Steam (2 ft 6 in (762 mm)) |
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| Steam (2 ft (610 mm)) |
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| Diesel (2 ft (610 mm)) | ||||||
| Battery (2 ft (610 mm)) | ||||||