Corfe

Corfe is a SECR H class 0-4-4 tank locomotive that works for Tri-ang Railways on Nerland, Scotland.

Biography
Corfe was built at the SECR's workshops at Ashford in 1909 for suburban passenger duties to replace the now underpowered SER Q class 0-4-4Ts. In the 1920s under the Southern Railway (SR), Corfe was sent to Isle of Purbeck to assist the Drummond M7s with the increasing workload, which after being inspired by the Corfe Castle on the route and his former LSWR crew at the time, chose to name himself "Corfe" as a reminder of time there.

In 1961, Corfe went on a daring escape to Nerland from Tonbridge after being withdrawn from service and sold for scrap, a fate that neither he, his BR crew and the manager didn't want happen. With a little help from locomotives in other regions, Corfe arrived on Nerland and was officially put into the TR roster.

Basis
Corfe is based off a South Eastern & Clapham Railway (SECR) H class 0-4-4T designed by Harry Wainwright. 66 were built at Ashford Works from 1904 to 1912 for suburban passenger duties on rural branchlines on the SECR system. They were based off the South Eastern Railway (SER) Q class 0-4-4T with the boiler of the SECR R1 0-6-0T. Some were sent over the place during the 1920s to replace withdrawn ex-LBSCR D3 class 0-4-4Ts and some examples loaned to the LMS during WWII. They were replaced by electric multiple units (EMUs) across the Southern Region and withdrawals occurred between 1944 and 1964 with one being preserved.

Livery
Corfe is painted in British Railways Lined Black.

Trivia
Originally, Corfe was going to be a LSWR Drummond M7 but this was changed to the SECR H class as the LSWR M7 was considered "too generic and not unique enough".

Corfe's name comes from the Old English word for "cutting".


 * His name also comes from Corfe Castle on the Isle of Purbeck, located in ex-LSWR territory!
 * This means that Corfe is the only member of the former SECR to have a name not associated with his home territory.