num_pages: 164
description: Presented in chronological order, the last locomotive class featured in this volume of 60 classic engines is the British Railways standard 2-10-0 9F freight class which included Evening Star, the last steam locomotive built by British Railways.  Evening Star, completed in 1960, represented the culmination of steam locomotive evolution and design dating back a century and a half. As soon as it was built Evening Star was ear-marked for preservation as part of the National Collection and was appropriately finished in Brunswick green with a copper capped chimney and brass fittings, quite resplendent when compared to the utilitarian unlined black of its nameless class mates.  As a tribute to the success of that preservation industry, representatives of virtually all the 60 engines included in this book can still be seen whether working on heritage railways, as static exhibits in museums or even running on mainline specials.  As a chronological record, the engines featured in this book are important for either technological innovation or else simple workmanlike efficiency such as the ubiquitous 0-6-0 freight engines built in their thousands and confirming their durability by remaining in service for 50, 60 or even, in some cases, 70 years.
language: English
title: Little Book of Steam Classics
publisher: Demand Digital Limited