Steam Railway Mini Magazine

failed because it meant that more LMS engines were
saved. By now, Mr Ogg was fully orientated towards LMS
engines, mainly due to a good business relationship
with A.B. Macleod.
“He preferred locomotives with a story to display
alongside them and, following the failure to acquire
Silver Link, Mr Ogg was initially interested in No. 46220
Coronation for Minehead because of its USA trip, much
like Royal Scot. But until I told him, he was not aware that
the actual locomotive involved was No. 46229 Duchess of
Hamilton.
“I had no direct involvement with the choice of
No. 46233 Duchess of Sutherland - this was simply a case
of availability as, by coincidence, it was stored at Edge
Hill shed in Liverpool with No. 46229. Its name also had a
direct Scottish link.
“In fact, my suggestion to him for the Ayr camp was
No. 46242 City of Glasgow, for obvious reasons, plus
the historical status of being the only locomotive to be
rebuilt following the Harrow & Wealdstone disaster of
1952. In hindsight, I don’t think either Nos. 46220 or
46242 would have been available because they were early
withdrawals. Plus, having a locomotive connected to one
of Britain’s worst rail disasters was hardly in keeping with
a family holiday destination.”
Dad’s Army
One of the great regrets of steam preservation is that
none of the Fowler ‘Patriots’ escaped being scrapped,
leaving a big gap in the history of LMS express passenger
locomotive design.
Had the Butlin’s scheme to save 4-6-0 No. 45543 Home
Guard been successful, the LMS Patriot Project obviously
wouldn’t have needed to build The Unknown Warrior.
Among the other classes on Roger Bell’s list,
Crewe Works Open
Day in 2005 gave us
the opportunity to
witness the three
Stanier ‘Pacifics’ saved
by Butlin’s gathered
together for the first
time in preservation.
From left, Nos. 6233
Duchess of Sutherland,
46229 Duchess of
Hamilton and 46203
Princess Margaret
Rose. All that’s needed
to complete this
picture is No. 46100
Royal Scot. SR ARCHIVE
sent in February 1963 at the start of the Butlin’s
preservation scheme, were classes overlooked for
inclusion in the National Collection, including the
‘Merchant Navies’, the GWR ‘47XXs’ and ‘72XXs’, and
the un-rebuilt ‘Patriot’ class.
Coincidentally, Brian Walker had also been lobbying
Butlin’s to save a ‘Baby Scot’, in the form of Home Guard.
He says: “None of the un-rebuilt ‘Patriots’ were
earmarked for preservation and Home Guard was the last
to be overhauled and operating in 1962. Also my father,
like many railwaymen, had been in the Home Guard
during the Second World War.”
“I felt there was quite a good chance of saving No. 45543
Home Guard. I had been speaking at every sensible
opportunity to Mr Ogg about it being displayed alongside
Royal Scot and he felt that its name would have wartime
sentimental appeal for the camp’s visitors.”
Upon receiving Mr Bell’s letter, Mr Ogg made enquiries
with, as Brian puts it “an appropriate railway authority”.
At the time, Mr Ogg was negotiating with A.B. Macleod
for the acquisition of Royal Scot and Princess Margaret
Rose and with the ‘Duchesses’ on the horizon, Butlin’s was
more interested in engines with historical significance.
Although both Brian and Mr Bell highlighted the fact
that the ‘Patriots’ were the missing link between the
LNWR and LMS, and the popular significance of
All I wanted to achieve was the
saving of some important
steam locomotives from the
scrapman
BRIAN WALKER
50 Issue 457 August 12-September 8 2016 www.steamrailway.co.uk