LMS Period Locomotives: lnwrbns_lms517

Ex-LNWR 5XP 4-6-0 No 5464 'Patriot' is seen standing at the East end of Platform 1 whilst at the head of a Birmingham to Harwich express service circa 1928. The locomotive was the LNWR memorial engine and named 'Patriot in honour of the LNWR employees who died during the 1914-18 'Great War'. When built at Crewe works in January 1920 it was given the appropriate No 1914. The coaching stock behind the tender was LNER in origin, not unusual as such workings would involve an outward journey being matched to an inward journey, with each company providing the stock for one of the services.

Following its change of number in June 1926 by the LMS to No 5964 it only remained in service for barely fourteen years being withdrawn in July 1934. The class was not a success despite many modifications including the addition of a larger diameter boiler and other improvements. Such was the scale of the problem that a new LMS 4-6-0 would pay for itself within just a few years compared to the costs of maintaining the Claughtons. Because it was officially rebuilt as the first member of a new class of 4-6-0 locomotives using the larger boiler supplied to the improved Claughtons and the chassis of the new Royal Scot class - and not least because the authorities wanted to discourage the description 'Baby Scots' being used colloquially - the new class was officially described as the Patriot class.

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