A vintage loco - the Ditcheat Manor - was delivered to Swindon’s Designer Outlet today. The engine replaces the Hinton Manor which has been in pride of place near the food court for 11 years.
Problems with the hydraulic lifting equipment delayed the delivery by a day - but the Ditcheat Manor now stand in pride of place for visitors to admire.
Great Western Railway 7800 Class No. 7821 was Built in 1950, and is the sister train of Hinton Manor. It was the second of the last batch of 10 engines of the thirty-strong class
Tina Cumpstey, Centre Manager at McArthurGlen Designer Outlet Swindon said: “We are delighted to be welcoming Ditcheat Manor to McArthurGlen Swindon after saying a fond farewell to our much loved steam train, Hinton Manor.”
Like most of the class of lightweight 4-6-0s, it was allocated to lines in Mid Wales, but was also based Oxley and Newton Abbott. 7821 was withdrawn in November 1965 and was sent to Woodham Brothers scrapyard in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales before being rescued in 1980 and put to work in the Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway, before moving to the Llangollen Railway and the West Somerset Railway.
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