TAFFY TANK NO. 6695 RETURNS IN TRIUMPH TO SWANAGE

News item from Andrew P.M. Wright - dated 5th Sept 2005.
Photographs are copyright Andrew P.M. Wright unless otherwise noted
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Andrew P.M. Wright has supplied over 160 photos of this historic occasion, but only a selection are used on this page. To see all of Andrew's photos chronicling the journey of 6695 from Herston works to Swanage on Wednesday 31st August 2005, please visit the dedicated pages of photos by clicking here.

GWR 0-6-2T No. 6695 at Corfe Castle on Wednesday 31st August 2005

She arrived at the fledgling Swanage Railway perched on a lumbering road transporter on a warm day in May back in 1979 - after almost 15 years of rusting away in the salty air of a South Wales scrapyard.

Now, the gleaming and freshly painted ex-GWR 0-6-2 Taffy tank No. 6695 of 1928 has triumphantly returned to Swanage - but this time on the rails - after a protracted restoration back to full working order that has taken a total of 26 years.

GWR 0-6-2T No. 6695 at Herston works on Wednesday 31st August 2005

And what an amazing ‘journey’ the Geordie-built No. 6695 has taken - the volunteers of the No. 6695 Locomotive Group battling against a range of problems to finally triumph over the outdoor conditions at Swanage station until 1996, funding problems, technical and engineering problems as well as the sheer hard work of restoring an ex-main line steam locomotive from a rusting hulk to a gleaming steam machine.

GWR 0-6-2T No. 6695 at Herston Works on Wednesday 31st August 2005

The restoration of the Armstrong Whitworth manufactured steam locomotive has cost some £200,000 - with £20,000 still needed to pay for the work.

At this weekend’s Swanage Railway steam gala, No. 6695 will be the star of the show - either in steam as the station shunter or on display in the bay platform at Swanage station.

No. 6695 left the Swanage Railway’s Herston engineering works on the outskirts of the seaside town - the locomotive’s home since 1996 - on the early afternoon of Wednesday, 31st August, 2005.

GWR 0-6-2T No. 6695 at Herston Works with some of the volunteers who have helped to restore the locomotive

The latter stages of No. 6695’s restoration has seen the volunteers of the 6695 Locomotive Group assisted by the staff of Southern Locomotives Ltd who are currently restoring the Bulleid Pacific ‘Manston’ in Herston Works.

No. 6695 at Herston works being loaded onto the transporter

After being carefully winched on to the low-loader transported, No. 6695’s route to the Swanage Railway’s Norden road/rail interchange north of Corfe Castle was via Swanage seafront, Ulwell, the B3351 Studland road to Corfe Castle - under the viaduct that she crossed a few hours later when being slowly and carefully towed to Swanage - and then the short trip along the A351 to the Norden roundabout and the Swanage Railway’s award-winning park and ride car park.

GWR 0-6-2T No. 6695 travelling by road through Swanage to Norden

Running around its train at Norden, fellow GWR locomotive - 1920s Pannier Tank No 6412 from the West Somerset Railway which was the star of the 1970s children’s TV programme The Flockton Flyer - seemed to welcome the latest GWR addition to the Swanage Railway.

No. 6695 at Norden with the 1920s Pannier Tank No 6412 from the West Somerset Railway

After hauling the last steam train of the day back to Swanage, the Pannier Tank returned to Norden station to pick up No. 6695 and slowly tow her back to Swanage.

The crew of the Pannier Tank was driver Nigel Clark - a founder member of the Swanage Railway who first saw No. 6695 in the Barry scrapyard as a teenager in the mid-1970s - and fireman Annie Mitchell.

Pictured with 6695 are Nigel Clark and Dave Round of the 6695 Locomotive Group, and Nigel Clark, Annie Mitchell and Graham Froud.

On No. 6695 for her slow trip to Swanage - but this time on the rails rather than a road transporter - was fireman Graham Froud of Corfe Castle who was there to make sure that the newly restored locomotive did not run hot on its trip to its new home.

The two locomotives slowly made their way in tandem from Norden down to Swanage - stopping at Corfe Castle station’s ‘down’ platform to check that everything was OK on No. 6695 before then stopping at Harman’s Cross station; to pass the ‘up’ diesel railbus service to Norden and once again check that any parts on the newly restored locomotive were not getting too hot.

GWR 0-6-2T No. 6695 at Corfe Castle and Harman's Cross

Finally, No. 6695 arrived at Swanage station just after dark - a station now very different to the fledgling Swanage Railway of May, 1979; when diesel trains of a shunter and two coaches ran over only a few hundred yards of single track from the partially restored station to behind the yet to be restored engine shed by the Swan brook.

GWR Pannier Tank No 6412 with No. 6695 at Swanage Station

No. 6695 would not recognise the Swanage station of today with the Swanage station that she arrived at, marooned on her road transporter, on that warm May day back in 1979.

The restoration of both - the Swanage Railway and No. 6695 - is an amazing story of the triumph of the human spirit against all the odds and adversity a plenty.

With both, a huge amount has been achieved but, rest assured, the best is yet to come!