Walking along the platform at the Middleton Railway was a trip down memory lane for Gordon Crapper. Seeing Sentinel Y1 0-4-0VB No. 68153 in steam, an engine he previously worked with during his days as traffic manager at what is believed to be the world’s oldest continuously working railway, was particularly poignant.
Built in 1933 as Sentinel works No. 8837 for the LNER, the engine has had several running numbers, starting out as LNER No. 59.
It was the first steam locomotive to arrive at the Middleton in 1961, after having been withdrawn by BR earlier in the summer from working in the Geneva
