Nine 9F locomotives avoided being scrapped at the end of steam traction on British Railways. Seven locomotives were obtained from Woodham Brothers scrapyard in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales. The other two were preserved upon withdrawal, with 92220 Evening Star reserved for the National Collection, and 92203 being purchased directly from BR by the noted artist and conservationist, David Shepherd in 1967.

As of 2013, four of the locomotives have not been restored to working order since withdrawal: 92134, 92207, 92219 and 92245. All were stored rusting in the open air for 20 or more years and had component parts removed. Most have since received at least some cosmetic restoration to prevent them from deteriorating further. However, the 9F was one of the largest locomotives to run on British railways, and the cost of restoration is high.

92134 was built at Crewe Works in June 1957 and allocated on completion to Saltley. On its withdrawal on 31 December 1966, it was allocated to Birkenhead. It was sold to Woodham Brothers for scrap and moved to their scrap yard at Barry Island in June 1967. Rescued for preservation in December 1980, 92134 became the 116th locomotive to leave Barry after having been there for 13 years and 6 months. Originally heading to the North Yorkshire Moors Railway, 92134's restoration was mostly carried out by The Railway Age in Crewe, but in February 2016, the loco moved to the East Lancashire Railway, before moving again in early 2018 back to the NYMR. Now completed, 92134 has become a resident at the railway for the foreseeable future.

Following the scrapping of sister 9F 92085 in the summer of 1980, 92134 became the last example of the 9F class to have a single chimney. All of the other preserved 9F's have double chimneys. The restoration of 92134 was completed for our Annual Steam Gala 2019.

Main Image: James Butterworth
Top Left Image: LBR 9F 2-10-0 No. 92134 (1962) © Ben Brooksbank - Wikimedia Commons.