Stephen Holden's inside-cylinder 4-6-0 'S69' design was developed to deal with steadily increasing train loads on the difficult Great Eastern main line to Norwich via Colchester. The first of an initial 40 was built in 1911: numbers started at 1500, which became the designation for the class, subsequently coded B12 by the LNER. Thirty more examples were built just after the first world war. And, perhaps surprisingly, a final ten were built for the LNER by Beyer Peacock of Manchester in 1928. The Society’s B12 is the second of these, no. 8572 (British Railways 61572).

Under the LNER, the B12s worked on all Great Eastern section express services, hauling loads of up to 15 bogie vehicles and maintaining timings as tight as 65 minutes for the 51.7 miles from
Liverpool Street to Colchester.

The Society's 61572 is now the UK's only working inside-cylinder 4-6-0. She benefited from a major restoration some 13 years ago, since when a continuous programme of improvement has kept her in first-class condition. But at the end of 2007 her boiler 'ticket' runs out, and she cannot steam again until she has received a full boiler overhaul. Half the conservatively-estimated cost of £200,000 has already been raised. Now we're asking for YOUR help in securing her future by donating to the…

£100,000 Boiler Appeal

• Please celebrate the B12’s 80th birthday by making a donation to the Boiler Appeal.
• If you are a UK taxpayer, you can significantly increase the value of your donation by making a Gift Aid donation. Higher rate taxpayers can also offset their donations against personal tax.
• Companies are invited to support the restoration by donating cash, or materials and appropriate services in kind.
• Gifts may be recognised in various ways, subject to discussions between major donors and the Society on how best to do this.

Boiler Appeal Leaflet