Built by the Midland Railway Company at Derby in 1902, this locomotive was designed by S.W. Johnson. A compound engine used a series of high and low pressure cylinders to increase efficiency.
For many years the class was the frontline passenger locomotive on the Midland Railway and the LMS until the advent of larger, more powerful types in the late 1920s. The company used these locomotives over all parts of the Company`s system and because of this and their lined red livery they earned themselves the nickname ‘Crimson Ramblers’ . They were popular in many parts of Scotland and frequently, into the 1930s, could be found on Anglo-Scottish Expresses – often double headed on heavier trains.
As relatively small locomotives they were well suited to the Midland Railway policy of frequent, light trains, but were not large or powerful enough for the much heavier trains on the LMS from the mid 1920s. Many of the engines had a long life, not withdrawn from service until the late 1950s, ending their days on secondary services.
The only really successful compound locomotive built for a British railway, demonstrating significant economies in coal and water, but at the expense of complications in construction and driving controls. No. 1000 was set aside for preservation after withdrawal in 1951 and restored in 1959 to close to its 1914 condition.
