Cracking little gala with Polish loco Karel/Flour Mill 0-4-0 Willie the Well Tank, and WD Saddle tank Sapper, and very special guest Bellerophon named as a Nelson Fleet Battleship... one of the oldest steam locomotives to be seen in action anywhere in the world and offers one of the best surviving insights into the development of early purpose-built powerful industrial engines Bellerophon was built in 1874 by the Haydock Foundry, to the design of Josiah Evans, son of Richard Evans who owned the Haydock Collieries which were to become Lancashire's largest privately owned mining and related engineering concern. It was one of the first six similar locomotives turned out from the Foundry from 1868, and it was an unusual practice there to give locos letters rather than numbers, indicating that Bellerophon was the third to be built. The valve gear is a modified Gooch-type Stephenson link motion working off the rear axle, and makes an interesting contrast with simpler modern designs. It originally had just a spectacle plate, and was first fitted with a cab in the 1880s.Bellerophon is one of the oldest steam locomotives to be seen in action anywhere in the world and offers one of the best surviving insights into the development of early purpose-built powerful industrial engines, rather than simply ex-mainline stock that had been pensioned off. Bellerophon was built in 1874 by the Haydock Foundry, to the design of Josiah Evans, son of Richard Evans who owned the Haydock Collieries which were to become Lancashire's largest privately owned mining and related engineering concern. It was one of the first six similar locomotives turned out from the Foundry from 1868, and it was an unusual practice there to give locos letters rather than numbers, C indicating that Bellerophon was the third to be built. The valve gear is a modified Gooch-type Stephenson link motion working off the rear axle, and makes an interesting contrast with simpler modern designs. It originally had just a spectacle plate, and was first fitted with a cab in the 1880s.
Copyright of all pictures in this gallery belong to R Kelsey.