T9 30120

LSWR T9 30120
The story of this remarkable locomotive built in 1899, and still surviving today, is told in
this programme which coincides with the latest overhaul under the supervision of the ‘Project
120 group’ whose members successfully restored another LSWR victorian engine, No. 563.
Although currently numbered 30120, this unique locomotive started out in 1899 as No.
120 and then in the 1920s as No. E120 and then from 1948 into BR No. 30120. This ‘greyhound’
of the early 20th century express services to the south west from London’s Waterloo, covered
a multitude of services throughout its 64-year period before being chosen as the one of the 66-
strong T9 class to be saved for the nation.
We trace the early history of the engine and through the year’s of the new Locomotive
Superintendent, Robert Urie who modernised the class with new or reconditioned boilers,
smokeboxes, chimneys and tenders. Spending much of its time in Hampshire through the
1930s and the war years, the locomotive ended its main service days at Eastleigh with
eventual preservation.
30120’s last major overhaul was in 1958 and in 1962 it would receive a final
heavy casual repair at Eastleigh and given an apple green LSWR livery. It was to
operate many successful special trains in this guise from late 1962 and some ordinary
time-tabled services on occasions. From 1964 it was finally withdrawn and sent for
storage at various locations until moved to the newly- opened National Railway Museum at York. It laid in the reserve
collection at York until 1981 when an approach was made by the Urie Locomotive
Society to bring it south again to the Mid-Hants Railway. This occurred in September
1981 and the ULS overhauled the T9 for use again from 1983.
Between 1983 and 1993, numbered 120 by then, had been moved to the Swanage Railway and then to Bodmin where a benefactor paid for its second overhaul which saw it return to steam in 2010. Now, facing a third overhaul in
preservation, the T9 will be part of the Swanage Railway for many years to come. We see it in action at Mid-Hants, Swanage, Severn Valley and at Bodmin over a 45 year period.
Approximately 52 minutes duration