This month’s train of the month is the LSWR Terrier in BR Black from Hornby.
Everyone should have at least one Terrier in their train collection. I’ve got the Merton.
My Terrier, the Merton.
The A1 Class 0-6-0T locomotive was designed by William Stroudley for the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) which was built from 1872 to 1880. The class was initially intended for the heavily congested lines in South and South-East London, as well as operating through the Thames Tunnel designed by Marc Isambard Brunel.
However, the larger and more capable D Class locomotives were later introduced by LB&SCR for most of the company’s commuter trains, while the reliable A1 class was put to other work or sold to other railways.
Between 1911 and 1913, twelve of the A1s that remained at LB&SCR were rebuilt with new boilers and extended smoke boxes to become the A1X class, and another four after the First World War. At the formation of Southern Railway in 1923, 15 A1 locomotives remained in LB&SCR ownership, and another 9 locomotives which had been sold to other railways in the region fell into Southern Railway ownership.
Despite their old age, the light A1 class locomotives remained in service due to weight restrictions on many of the light railways inherited by Southern Railway. One A1 locomotive and 14 A1X locomotives remained in service long enough to enter into British Railway stock, mostly in the Southern Region, with one remaining in the Western Region after previously being sold to the Weston Clevedon & Portishead Railway which closed in 1940.
The last operational A1X with British Railways was No. 32678, which remained in service until August 1963, while No. 32636 was the oldest working steam engine in British Railways ownership at the time of its withdrawal. The A1 class locomotives were also known as ‘Terriers’ due to the distinctive ‘bark’ of their exhaust beat.
LBSCR No. 46 ‘Newington’ entered service in January 1877 and was sold to the London and South Western Railway in March 1903. It served there until March 1914 and then moved on to the Freshwater, Yarmouth and Newport Railway. After the grouping, the locomotive was inherited by the Southern Railway, where it received the name ‘Freshwater’ and was rebuilt to A1X specification in March 1932. Under BR ownership, it was numbered No. 32646, and served until 1963.
The Hornby model is a lovely version of this little loco in OO gauge and is certain to delight Terrier fans.
Best price for the Hornby BR, ‘Terrier’ 32646
The best price I’ve found at the time of writing is just over £100 here.
Andy is a lifelong modeler, writer, and founder of modelrailwayengineer.com. He has been building model railways, dioramas, and miniatures for over 20 years. His passion for model making and railways began when he was a child, building his first layout at the age of seven.
Andy’s particular passion is making scenery and structures in 4mm scale, which he sells commercially. He is particularly interested in modelling the railways of South West England during the late Victorian/early Edwardian era, although he also enjoys making sci-fi and fantasy figures and dioramas. His website has won several awards, and he is a member of MERG (Model Railway Electronics Group) and the 009 Society.
When not making models, Andy lives in Surrey with his wife and teenage son. Other interests include history, science fiction, photography, and programming. Read more about Andy.