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From this month's featured article

The Simplex (officially the Simplex tractor) also known as Mary Ann is a small petrol locomotive operating on the Ffestiniog Railway. Originally built for the trench railways of the First World War the Simplex tractor arrived on the FR in 1923 where it was used for shunting work. In 1954 it became the first locomotive to work on the revived FR and for many years remained an important member of the FR works fleet. It was retired from front line service after the acquisition of more powerful diesel locomotives and has recently been restored, initially to '50s condition, and more recently to First World War condition.

The loco was not originally named when she arrived at the FR and was known as 'The Simplex'. Later it acquired the nickname Mary-Ann which later became official as 'Mary Ann' (without hyphen). The nickname came from Connie Garraway, Allan's mother, who used the name (usual in the early C20) as meaning a housemaid or maid-of-all-work.

Since the locomotives restoration to 1950s condition for the FR50 events the loco is once again unnamed. (more...)

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Purpose

Festipedia is dedicated to recording the history of the Festiniog Railway from the 19th Century to the present day. There is a user friendly index to help you find your way around the main categories. You will also find much detail on the Welsh Highland Railway.

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This month's featured picture

A new build replica of an original condition England Engine, to carry the name Mountaineer is currently under construction. The locomotive will be built by the 1863 Mountaineer Locomotive Ltd.

The project was announced in September 2019 and was officially launched at the Warley Show in November. The build is expected to take around three years and cost £250,000. In November 2019 the first boiler components had been delivered from Israel Newton to North Bay Railway Engineering Services where the locomotive is being assembled. The completed boiler was hydraulically tested in May 2020. With the completion of the boiler, attention was turned to construction of the wheels and axles. This will be constructed using modern methods in order to resemble the originals as closely as possible whilst meeting modern engineering safety standards.

Photo credit: User:Chrisjones

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