September debut for new L&B Lyn

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THE new £600,000 replica of original Lynton & Barnstaple Railway Baldwin 2-4-2T Lyn is to make its eagerly-awaited debut at the line’s September 30/October 1 gala, following its first steam testing in July.

As the Sunny South was marking the 50th anniversary of the end of Southern steam, the steaming of the new Lyn at Alan Keef’s workshops in Ross-on-Wye heralded a new dawn for the Southern Railway.

As yet unpainted, but with its cab fitted, the new Lyn’s first public steaming at Alan Keef’s locomotive workshops for members and supporters of the 762 Club took place on July 8, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the end of Southern steam. It will leave the workshops in September and be taken to Woody Bay for its gala debut, which will include running over what was, at around 1000ft, the highest point on the Southern Railway. TONY NICHOLSON

The first Lyn arrived from the Baldwin Company of Philadelphia as a kit of parts for assembly at the L&B’s Pilton yard, and first steamed in July 1898. It was nicknamed ‘The Yankee’.

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Despite initial problems, Lyn became a popular and distinctive engine that was also the most powerful on the line, on occasions pulling five-coach trains, one more than normally allowed.

Under Southern ownership, Lyn was shipped to Eastleigh in 1928, returning the following year fully refurbished – and in full Southern livery.

Read more in Issue 231 of HR – on sale now!

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