Train Turntable at Hornsey Station c1960

Comment by Richard Matz on May 22, 2020 at 0:29

Lovely shot of one of British Rail's Class 9F 2-10-0 locomotive. The perspective gives an almost train-set look to the scene but the image below gives a more realistic representation of the mammoth size of the 9Fs. 

The Class was the last in a series of standardised locomotive types designed for British Railways during the 1950s, and was intended for use on fast, heavy goods trains over long distances. It was one of the most powerful, successful steam locomotive types ever built for British Railways and generally regarded as being the peak in steam locomotive design. The class was given the nickname of 'Spaceships' by locomotive crews due to their sheer size and shape, and a total of 251 were built.

The last of the class pictured below at York (92220 'Evening Star') was the final steam locomotive to be built by British Railways, in 1960, and the only one to be finished in lined green passenger livery. Withdrawals of the class began in 1964, with the final locomotives being withdrawn from service in 1968, the final year of steam traction on British Railways. Several survived into the preservation era in varying states of repair, including Evening Star, and examples can be seen running today on various heritage railways.

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