Campaign to return football train plate to Darlington
The race is on to raise more than £8,000 to secure the return of a rare steam engine nameplate to its namesake town, Darlington.
It commemorates Darlington Football Club, which owned the other "Darlington" nameplate until it was auctioned and sold to an American buyer.These were the only two plates ever made for the locomotive carrying this name - one was placed on each side of the locomotive.
The nameplate was produced for a locomotive called Darlington (LNER Class B17 no.2852), made at Darlington Locomotive works in 1936.Production of the nameplate came about only after engine workers in Darlington complained that their team had been missed off LNER's original list of fourteen "Football" engines produced in that era
There are only two "Darlington" nameplates in existence and Head of Steam Railway Museum in Darlington could return one of them to the town if enough money can be raised in the next four months.
A private seller based in Worthing is selling one of the nameplates and has given the museum the chance to buy it before it goes to auction. It has been valued at £20,000 but the buyer is willing to sell it to Head of Steam for £19,000, plus delivery costs, if sufficient funds can be raised by the end of the year.
Darlington Borough Council has earmarked £1,000 towards the appeal and PRISM, part of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council, MLA, has awarded a grant of £9,673 for half of the project cost.This must be claimed by January 17 2009.
George Houghton, chairman of Darlington Football Club said:"This is a piece of the town's history and I hope that the nameplate finds its way back to its rightful place in Darlington."
Donations can be made in person at the museum (please note the centre is closed on Monday) or on the phone with a debit/credit card (01325) 460532. Cheques payable to Darlington Borough Council can be sent to Head of Steam, North Road, Darlington DL3 6ST, please include contact details with any cheques sent.For a donation form, or for more information, please call the museum on (01325) 460532.
Donations of over £25 will be given a credit alongside the nameplate exhibition.
Local rail enthusiasts have the chance to win a mini slice of rail heritage and lend a hand to the Darlington Nameplate campaign.
Dapol Model Railways have donated an N-gauge set featuring their model of the "Darlington" along with three "Teak" Gresley coaches to help Head of Steam raise funds to secure the return of the Darlington nameplate.Each individual model has been personally checked and initialled by George Smith MBE, the Chief Executive of Dapol.
First sets such as these are usually retained in the company showcase. However, after hearing of the Darlington Nameplate campaign, George Smith kindly donated the model to Head of Steam.
The set is the first of one of only 250 produced for sale and comes complete with a letter of authenticity from George Smith.Normally it would retail for around £159.However, due to the unique nature of this first set, it would be worth considerably more.
Raffle tickets for the model are on sale at Head of Steam and North Eastern Models, Borough Road Darlington, for £1 for a strip of five. The model set can be viewed at the Head of Steam. Similar sets are on sale at North Eastern Models in the town, whilst stocks last. The draw will be made on Tuesday December 30.All proceeds from the raffle will go towards the Darlington Nameplate fund. For more details of the campaign or how you can donate, simply call (01325) 460532.
