Margaret
 | |
.jpg) Hunslet "Margaret" No 605. Photo - R Bance | |
| Home Railway | Vale of Rheidol Railway |
|---|---|
| Original Railway | Penrhyn Quarry |
| Status | In Service |
| History | |
| Built by | Hunslet Engine Company |
| Built | 1894 |
| Technical | |
| Wheel Arrangement | 0-4-0ST |
| Locomotives | |
Margaret, Hunslet 605, is a Small Quarry Engine, built in 1894. It was supplied to Penrhyn Quarry to work in the quarry galleries. Margaret ended work in Penrhyn Quarry on the 8th November 1950. The engine spent its working life in the quarries, until withdrawal from traffic in 1950. Margaret was once thought to be beyond restoration, due to the engines poor condition. The Vale of Rheidol Railway purchased Margaret in 1999. Some restoration had been undertaken prior to this, though it was far short of completion. The locomotive was stripped back to the frames to establish what had already been done, and by 2004 was a rolling chassis. Progress slowed, as maintenance of the running fleet took priority. A new boiler was delivered in 2007. With the completion of the new workshop in 2014, Margaret’s completion moved up the agenda. In September 2015 Margaret was returned to steam for the first time in 65 years, and takes the distinction of being the first locomotive to be completed in the new workshop.
It is currently based on the Vale of Rheidol Railway and visited the Ffestiniog for the Hunslet 125 weekend.