ISTG Stanton No 50 0-6-0DE YE 2670/1958

The Yorkshire Engine Company, formerly of Meadowhall Works, Sheffield, was a long established and well respected steam locomotive builder with numerous industrial and main line locomotives to its credit, built during the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries. The Company was taken over by the United Steel Companies Ltd. in 1945, primarily to build up and standardise the locomotive fleets of the USC's various steelworks, coal mines, coke works and ironstone quarries, with large numbers of locomotives being supplied to Scunthorpe, Rotherham, Stocksbridge (Sheffield) and Workington.

The Yorkshire Engine Company produced its first diesel locomotive in 1949, with the first 'Janus' type being built in 1956. The design – so named after the mythical Roman god who, with two faces, looked both ways – found immense popularity with a wide range of industrial railway operators, especially steelworks, due to the rugged simplicity of operation and maintenance. The 48 ton 0-6-0 diesel-electric, centre-cab machine was highly regarded in particular by drivers and maintenance staff.and is generally acknowledged to be one of the most successful industrial locomotives of its type ever built.

Powered by two Rolls Royce 6-cylinder, supercharged diesel engines, together producing 440 bhp, the locomotive can be operated on either or both engines according to the power required.

The Yorkshire Engine Company closed down in 1965, much of the site now being taken up by the giant Meadowhall Shopping complex. The last loco to be built was a Janus type and by that time just over one hundred Janus locos had been produced. Indeed, some are still at work seeing daily use in industrial service throughout Great Britain, particularly, for example, at the Corus steelworks at Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire - a fitting tribute to a fine design.

Stanton No 50, an early Janus design, was completed at Meadowhall Works on 30th September 1958 (Works No. 2670) and delivered to the Stanton Ironworks Company's Ilkeston (Derbyshire) iron and steel making complex near Nottingham (which incidentally, was then part of Stewarts & Lloyds of Corby).

At that time, in fact, Stanton Ironworks Co. replaced their fleet of steam locomotives with a number of Yorkshire Engine Co. built diesels of 0-6-0 and 0-4-0 design. In view of the fact that Stanton No 50 was the only Janus design acquired by the company, it is interesting to speculate whether the loco was obtained for a specific duty or as a trial.

With the nationalisation of the UK steel industry in 1967, Stanton Ironworks became part of the British Steel Corporation. With closure of the Work's blast furnaces and the end of iron making at the Plant (the steel production and pipe making continued), Stanton's fleet of Yorkshire Engine Company built locos was reduced.

In 1973 Stanton No. 50 was transferred to BSC's coke ovens at Brookhouse, near Sheffield, and then, in 1981, to Orgreave Coke Works, Sheffield, loosing its 'Stanton' identity and being renumbered '2444/20' and 'No.5' along the way, probably in that order at each location.

Upon the closure of Orgreave Works, in August 1990, the loco, which was nominally in working order, was presented to Appleby Frodingham Railway Preservation Society and moved, on loan to Rutland Railway Museum at Cottesmore.

It was subsequently purchased by the late Chris Jones and moved to the Nene Valley Railway, on 26th July 1993, where the Yorkshire Engine Group commenced restoration, including the fitting of re-tyred wheels and side rods, which had been preserved along with the loco from Orgreave Works.

The locomotive has more recently been purchased by members of the Iron and Steel Traction Group and restoration work continues in Wansford Workshops.

Under the ISTG, the locomotive, which is being restored to its original identity as Stanton No 50, is receiving a full mechanical overhaul and is being fitted with dual braking system to enable it to operate both air and vacuum braked trains on the NVR. The two Rolls Royce engines are basically in reasonable condition, requiring only relatively minor external attention. The electrical power and control equipment, however, is badly deteriorated due to the passing of time and is being rewired to current standards, for example, using trunking and conduit, which did not feature in the machine's original build. Whilst the rewiring is following the Yorkshire Engine Company's plan, a lot of modifications and additions are being incorporated which will bring the loco's specification up to Twenty-First century modern standards..

2670
Builders: Yorkshire Engine Company; Works No.2670 Year: 1958.
Engines: 2 x Rolls Royce C6SFL supercharged units, totalling 440 bhp @ 1,500 rev/min.
Driving wheels diameter: 3' 6"; Locomotive max. speed: 23 mph;
Locomotive weight: 48 tons; Max. tractive effort: 32,000 lb,
Original owner: Stanton Ironworks Company;
Current owner: Privately owned within the Iron & Steel Traction Group

Photos