''Doll'' is a gauge

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

based at the

Leighton Buzzard Narrow Gauge Railway The Leighton Buzzard Light Railway (LBLR) is a light railway in Leighton Buzzard in Bedfordshire, England. It operates on narrow-gauge track and is just under long. The line was built after the First World War to serve sand quarries north of ...

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...

History

Industry

''Doll'' was built by Andrew Barclay Sons & Co. in 1919 (works number 1641), and was one of three identical engines built for Hickmanas at Sydenham ironstone quarries, near Banbury in Oxfordshire. The quarries were closed in 1925 following the takeover by Stewarts & Lloyds Minerals in April 1925, and the three engines (named after Hickmans daughters) were transferred to Bilston steelworks, near Wolverhampton. The other two engines were ''Winifred'' (AB1424/1915) and ''Gertrude'' (AB1578/1918). ''Gertrude'' and ''Doll'' worked at Bilston until they were withdrawn from service in 1959, but ''Winifred'' seems to have been scrapped before 1939.

Preservation

In 1960, after some negotiations through the avid steam preservationist, Max Sinclair, ''Doll'' was moved to the Burton Green & District Light Railway near Kenilworth in Warwickshire, where she was returned to steam in 1962. By 1965, the site at Burton Green was for sale, and the railway was closed. In 1966, ''Doll'' was sold to Alan Bloom and she was moved to run at

Bressingham Steam and Gardens Bressingham Steam & Gardens is a steam museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or sci ...

museum. However, the Nursery Railway at Bressingham was laid to the

Penrhyn Quarry Railway The Penrhyn Quarry Railway was a narrow gauge railway in Caernarfonshire (now Gwynedd), Wales. It served the Penrhyn quarry near Bethesda, taking their slate produce to Port Penrhyn, near Bangor. The railway was around long and used a gaug ...

gauge of and ''Doll'' is gauge with a long fixed wheelbase and she was thus unsuitable for the line. The locomotive was sold to Henry Williams, who in turn sold her to the

Leighton Buzzard Light Railway The Leighton Buzzard Light Railway (LBLR) is a light railway in Leighton Buzzard in Bedfordshire, England. It operates on narrow-gauge track and is just under long. The line was built after the First World War to serve sand quarries north of ...

in 1969. At some point, ''Doll'' was temporarily withdrawn from service at the Leighton Buzzard Narrow Gauge Railway, at which point she received a new all-welded boiler from Bennett Boiler and a full bottom end overhaul at

Alan Keef Ltd Alan Keef Ltd is a British narrow gauge railway engineering company which manufactures, overhauls, and deals in narrow gauge locomotives, rolling stock and associated equipment. The Limited Company was formed in 1975 at Cote, Bampton, Oxon, co ...

. The valve gear was fitted with new eccentrics and repinned and bushed to remove lost motion which had developed. It appears that at some point in the locomotive's past the wear had been compensated for by sawing part of the lap from the slide valves and filling in notches in the reversing quadrant near mid-gear. After repair the engine returned to LBNGR and was in regular use from 2004 until the boiler tubes gave out prematurely. ''Doll'' returned to service in Summer 2017 after another overhaul. In 2019 it was joined at Leighton Buzzard by its sister locomotive, Gertrude.

Design

''Doll'' has

Stephenson valve gear The Stephenson valve gear or Stephenson link or shifting link is a simple design of valve gear that was widely used throughout the world for various kinds of steam engines. It is named after Robert Stephenson but was invented by his employees. ...

and outside frames. The design originated from a requirement for the War Department for a series of similar 0-6-0 locomotives, of which a total of only 16 were built.

In Fiction

On the Reverend Wilbert Awdry's Mid Sodor Railway, was an engine named Gerry (sometimes spelled Jerry by fans). His design, while fictional, did slightly resemble Doll. Gerry's model was scrapped and turned into a spare with his middle driving wheels being removed and gaining outside cylinders, around the time when Stuart's (Peter Sam's) Model was completed.

References

{{Reflist Preserved narrow gauge steam locomotives of Great Britain Andrew Barclay locomotives 0-6-0T locomotives Individual locomotives of Great Britain 2 ft gauge locomotives Industrial locomotives of Great Britain Narrow gauge locomotives of the United Kingdom