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Great
Western Railway 0-6-0 Pannier Tank no. 9629
Pre-Preservation
Great Western Railway 0-6-0 Pannier Tank no. 9629 was one of a large
class on locomotives built by the Company from 1929 onwards for almost 20
years. No. 9629 was built at Swindon Works and released into traffic during
December 1945.
Its first base was in South Wales at the shed in Canton
in Cardiff. Here it would have
spent a lot of time in the various yards, sidings and dock areas in and
around Cardiff. It would have
been involved in the transfer of goods between them by means of
short-distance freight duties. Slightly more glamorous duties would have
seen it help with commuter trains up the valleys and down the coast to
Barry.
This ended in June 1953 when no. 9629 was transferred to Exeter.
In addition to the shunting duties around the Exeter
area the lines 9629 would have worked on would have included the Exe
Valley line to Tiverton and
Dulverton as well as the Heathfield and Moretonhampstead branch lines.
No. 9629's next move came in May 1960 to the home of the Cambrian
Railway at Oswestry. In addition to the work in the yards there the engine
would have ventured out on rural lines such as the one to Llanfyllin.
After another couple of years, in November 1962, 9629 returned to Cardiff
but this time to the East Dock shed. Its time there would have been
increasingly affected by the use of diesels, both for shunting and freight
work and diesel multiple units on the commuter trains.
A final transfer came in April 1964 when no. 9629 was put on the books
of Pontypool Road shed
(Blaenavon's local shed). However, it is not clear if this move took place
in reality as the engine may have stayed on a siding in Cardiff.
It was formally withdrawn from service in September 1964 and moved to the
scrapyard in Barry in March 1965.
Preservation
No. 9629 stood in the long rows of condemned engines in Barry Docks
until May 1981 when it was chosen, under an initiative by Robert Adley, to
become a memorial to Cardiff's
rich transport and industrial past and placed outside the Holiday Inn in Cardiff.
It was cosmetically restored at Steamtown, Carnforth and brought back to Cardiff
in March 1986 being placed on a short piece of track outside the front door
of the hotel.
The engines most recent move came in 1995 when the engine was given by
the Hotel and moved to its present site in the work compound of the
Pontypool & Blaenavon Railway. Much of the locomotive was missing and
so the initial task of the group has been to acquire the missing parts and
take what we had apart for restoration. The process of putting all back
together again has now started.
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