The former Jokioinen Railway steam locomotive number 5 will return at her home at Jokioinen Museum Railway after nearly 35 years in Great Britain. At the locomotive shed of Jokioinen Museum Railway the number four, a sister locomotive of the number five is already waiting.
The locomotive which was before used at Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway arrived at the harbor of Harwich on Friday 29.9. at 13.30 hours local time and was loaded on board M/S Estraden of Man Lines at 17.00 hours. The estimated arrival time of the ship at Turku harbor is on Tuesday 3.10. at 06.30 hours. The locomotive will be moved the same day on road transport to Jokioinen Museum Railway depot at Minkiö.
The locomotive was built at the Tubize workshop in Nivelle, Belgium in 1948 and bought by Jokioinen railway to replace their newest and most powerful Henschel locomotive which had to be given to Soviet Union because of war payments of Finland were late of schedule.
Number five was used together with its sister locomotive number four to haul heavy goods trains of Jokioinen Railway until 1960s and until 1951 also to pull the passenger trains. JR 5 was removed of service in 1964 because of cracks in its firebox and until 1972 it was placed in a small hut built around the locomotive at Jokioinen station.
In 1972 the Tubize was bought by an Englishman who aimed to renovate the locomotive placed then in Wisbeck. However the owner had to give up the locomotive and the Tubize was bought by Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway.
At WLLR the number five was staying for few years on display, until in the mid 1990s the renovation work started. A new firebox was made and the locomotive was completely overhauled. In autumn 2000 everything was ready and the locomotive was running again.
Because of its large size and heavy weight the locomotive was however not suitable for a hilly WLLR with some tight turns, and in the beginning of 2006 the WLLR informed they are willing to sell it.
After long negotiations in the beginning of September a four man group of Jokioinen Museum Railway left for Llanfair to inspect and test drive the locomotive. Soon after this the contract was made and the locomotive will arrive in Finland on 3.10. after almost 35 years abroad.
More photos of JR 5 on the home page of Tapani Havia...