''Annie'' is a

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, Fuel oil, oil or, rarely, Wood fuel, wood) to heat ...

that operates on the Groudle Glen Railway on the

Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...

Design

The replica ''Annie'' was built by Richard Booth to the design of a Bagnall class 'E' locomotive named ''Annie'' which was built in 1911 and shipped to

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

to operate the Gentle Annie Tramway near Gisborne. The original ''Annie'' later ended up at a

quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mining, open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock (geology), rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some juri ...

at Motuhora along with another Bagnall engine from the Gentle Annie Tramway, and was buried on the site by a landslide in the late-1950s/early 1960s. Dug up in the late 1970s, the remains of ''Annie'' passed through several owners, and are now owned by the East Coast Museum of Technology at Makaraka near Gisborne, who have prepared what remains of the engine for static display. The replica ''Annie'' was constructed based upon working drawings; mechanically identical to ''

Polar Bear The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a large bear native to the Arctic and nearby areas. It is closely related to the brown bear, and the two species can Hybrid (biology), interbreed. The polar bear is the largest extant species of bear ...

'' but with a 0-4-2 wheel arrangement. The cylinder mould was obtained from the Bennett Brook Railway in Australia, where another replica ''Annie'' had been built. The two replicas are both gauge whereas the original ''Annie'' was built to run on gauge tracks.

Construction

The locomotive was built locally and at the time of construction was the island's newest steam locomotive, having been completed in 1998 and officially launched as part of the Steam 125 event that year. Since this time two new steam locomotives have been provided for the Laxey Mines Railway making them the newest locomotives on the island, although the volunteers at Groudle Glen Railway are currently in the process of building ''

Brown Bear The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear native to Eurasia and North America. Of the land carnivorans, it is rivaled in size only by its closest relative, the polar bear, which is much less variable in size and slightly bigger on av ...

'', a replica of the railway's 1905 locomotive ''

'' which they aim to have in service by 2018.

Components

The locomotive has carried a number of steam whistles/hooters since entering service, with as many as three carried at any one time. Despite having been "built from scratch", the locomotive can claim some original components - the water tank lid on one of the side tanks is in fact an original one from '' Sea Lion'', new ones having been fabricated as part of her 1987 rebuild.

Livery

The locomotive carries a deep tuscan red livery, the same as that carried by Manx Northern Railway locomotive

Caledonia Caledonia (; ) was the Latin name used by the Roman Empire to refer to the forested region in the central and western Scottish Highlands, particularly stretching through parts of what are now Lochaber, Badenoch, Strathspey, and possibly as ...

upon her return to service in 1995, with the notable difference that ''Annie'' carried a black/yellow lining out scheme whereas ''Caledonia'' carries a more intricate vermilion lining with gold leaf detailing.

Service

Together with ''Sea Lion'' she provides the main traction on the Groudle Glen Railway and can be seen in service at summer weekends on the line as well as some evenings in peak season and various out of season special services, notably the popular annual ''Santa Trains''. She has been out of service since Easter 2013 for a rebuild which includes new cylinders, works to her side tanks and a new livery. She's expected back in regular service during the 2014 summer season.

References

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External links

Groudle Glen Railway
official site
Groudle Glen Railway

Guide to the railway
{{DEFAULTSORT:Annie (Locomotive) Groudle Glen Railway Steam locomotives of Great Britain 2 ft gauge locomotives 0-4-2T locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1998 Narrow-gauge locomotives of the United Kingdom Individual locomotives of Great Britain