GWR No. 12 is a

Sentinel Sentinel may refer to: Places Mountains * Mount Sentinel, a mountain next to the University of Montana in Missoula, Montana * Sentinel Buttress, a volcanic crag on James Ross Island, Antarctica * Sentinel Dome, a naturally occurring grani ...

geared steam locomotive A geared steam locomotive is a type of steam locomotive which uses gearing, usually reduction gearing, in the drivetrain, as opposed to the common directly driven design. This gearing is part of the machinery within the locomotive and should not ...

which was built for the

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...

and delivered in 1926. Its Sentinel works number is 6515. It was equipped to work train

vacuum brake The vacuum brake is a braking system employed on trains and introduced in the mid-1860s. A variant, the automatic vacuum brake system, became almost universal in British train equipment and in countries influenced by British practice. Vacuum bra ...

s and to provide steam heat for passenger trains. Initially, it was based at

Swindon Swindon () is a town and unitary authority with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Wiltshire, England. As of the 2021 Census, the population of Swindon was 201,669, making it the largest town in the county. The Swindon un ...

and used to work trains on the

Malmesbury Malmesbury () is a town and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, which lies approximately west of Swindon, northeast of Bristol, and north of Chippenham. The older part of the town is on a hilltop which is almost surrounded by the up ...

branch. Later, it worked at

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...

Goods Yard. These trials were not a great success and the locomotive was withdrawn in December 1926 and returned to Sentinel in January 1927.

Rebuilding

The locomotive was rebuilt by Sentinel with a larger boiler in 1927. It then underwent further trials as follows: * 1927,

Shropshire and Montgomeryshire Railway The Shropshire and Montgomeryshire Light Railway was a railway running from Shrewsbury, England to Llanymynech, Wales, with a branch to Criggion. It was promoted by Holman Fred Stephens, better known as Colonel Stephens, proprietor of several ul ...

* 1927, Further trials on the GWR * 1927–1929, Works shunter for Sentinel at Shrewsbury * 1929, Trial on the

London, Midland and Scottish Railway The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMSIt has been argued that the initials LMSR should be used to be consistent with LNER, GWR and SR. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway's corporate image used LMS, and this is what is generally u ...

(LMS) at Shrewsbury * 1929–1934, Works shunter for Sentinel at Shrewsbury again * 1934, Sold to Thomas E. Grey Ltd,

Burton Latimer Burton, Burtons, or Burton's may refer to: Companies * Burton (retailer), a clothing retailer ** Burton's, Abergavenny, a shop built for the company in 1937 **The Montague Burton Building, Dublin a shop built for the company between 1929 and ...

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

. Here, it was given the number 2 and the name ''Isebrook''.

Withdrawal

In 1958, the locomotive was withdrawn. The boiler and parts of the engine were removed and it was used as a brake van. In 1972, it was condemned and was then bought for preservation and moved to the

Buckinghamshire Railway Centre Buckinghamshire Railway Centre is a railway museum operated by the Quainton Railway Society Ltd. at Quainton Road railway station, about west of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire, England. The site is divided into two halves which are joined by two ...

Quainton Quainton (formerly Quainton Malet)Plea rolls of the Court of Common Pleas; National Archives; CP 40/647; 7th entry, with "North" in the margin; the defendant, Richard Longe is of Quenton Malet is a village and civil parish in Buckinghamshire, E ...

Restoration

Restoration took seven years and included fitting a reconditioned boiler and engine. The engine was first steamed in preservation on 26 August 1979. In 1981, vacuum brake equipment was refitted for passenger train working.

Visits

The locomotive has visited other sites since restoration. In May 2001, it moved to Rosemary Vineyards on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

, and then on to the

Lavender Line The Lavender Line is a heritage railway based at Isfield Station, near Uckfield in East Sussex, England. History The Lavender Line was originally part of the Lewes to Uckfield Railway opened to the public on 18 October 1858. This indepen ...

. In June 2008, it returned to Quainton. Since July 2012, it has been working on the

Chinnor and Princes Risborough Railway The Chinnor and Princes Risborough Railway is a preserved standard gauge heritage railway with its headquarters and main station at Chinnor in South Oxfordshire, England. It runs along the foot of the Chilterns escarpment. Although a few fi ...

, where it is expected to stay until September 2012. On 15/16 September 2012 it will make a brief visit to

Didcot Railway Centre Didcot Railway Centre is a railway museum and preservation engineering site in Didcot, Oxfordshire, England. The site was formerly a Great Western Railway engine shed and locomotive stabling point. Background The founders and commercial backers ...

for the "All in a Day's Work" steam gala. In September 2019 the locomotive visited

Cholsey & Wallingford Railway The Cholsey and Wallingford Railway is a long standard gauge heritage railway in the English county of Oxfordshire. It operates along most of the length of the former Wallingford branch of the Great Western Railway (GWR), from Cholsey station ...

for the Sentinel Gala.

References

{{GWR Locomotives Sentinel locomotives 0012 0-4-0T locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1926 Standard gauge steam locomotives of Great Britain Shunting locomotives