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Longest time a loco or unit has carried a name

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The Prisoner

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Seeing the classes 91 and 390 it becomes apparent that these classes have had a number of locos/units renamed over the years which got me to thinking what is the longest period that any operational loco or unit has carried a single name?

The Class 47s named in the 60s (Odin, Thor, City of Truro etc) seem a good place to start - which of those carried their names for the longest? Have any of the HSTs carried the same name since the 70s? Was there a steam loco that went longer with the same name?

I think the parameter here needs to be operational time on the network, so discounting steam which may have carried the same name for 70-80 years.
 
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TheEdge

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Steam locos must have kept their names for a fairly long time compared to modern stuff, just a few preserved examples.

Lode Star: 44 years (1907 - 1951)
Flying Scotsman: 40 years (1923 - 1963)
Pendennis Castle: 40 years (1924 - 1964)

These all seem to be a fairly normal length of time.
 
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I think the LBSCR A1 Terriers would be high on the list. Knowle had an operating life of 70ish years before being preserved but I am not sure if the name was continually displayed for all of that period.
 
Cowley

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Would locos like 47580 Great Eastern or 50049 Defiance not count because they’ve been away from the network and come back as it were?

Edit - Is 43049 still named ‘Neville Hill’? If so that was named in 1984, 35 years ago.
 
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The Prisoner

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Think the parameters should be single period in use on the national rail network

D1662/47484 Isambard Kingdom Brunel was held by the same loco 1965 -2006 (withdrawal) from what I can see which seems decent for a modern era loco. Any post 1960 locos that can beat that?
 
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Ianigsy

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Any of the original Foster Yeoman Class 59s still named must be going on for 35 years now.
 
TheEdge

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In a similar thread are there any names that have just kept on being moved onto newer toys?
 
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The Prisoner said:
Seeing the classes 91 and 390 it becomes apparent that these classes have had a number of locos/units renamed over the years which got me to thinking what is the longest period that any operational loco or unit has carried a single name?

The Class 47s named in the 60s (Odin, Thor, City of Truro etc) seem a good place to start - which of those carried their names for the longest? Have any of the HSTs carried the same name since the 70s? Was there a steam loco that went longer with the same name?

I think the parameter here needs to be operational time on the network, so discounting steam which may have carried the same name for 70-80 years.
Click to expand...

You have to be a bit careful with names like Thor, it was on D1671 from 9/65 to 4/66, then moved to D1677/47091/47647/47846 from 8/66 to 9/75, when it was removed, then named again from 4/85 until rebuilt as a 57/3 in 05/03, City of Truro was another one with a big gap carrying three other names between 10/88 and 4/16
 
Speed43125

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Honestly having a look at some of the longer lasting Steam classes, I'm genuinely surprised how much stuff wasn't named when outshopped.
 
43096

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Cowley said:
Definitely worth an honorary mention I reckon.
@43096 - Are there any others like that?
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There’s no other power cars that have carried a name continuously for that long. Most have lost names over time, sometimes temporarily (e.g. after cast plates were removed on Swallow repaint until the reflective type were fitted). 43084 did retain its County of Derbyshire name for a long time but hasn’t had plates for some time now.
 
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The Prisoner

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Longest class 47 I can find is D1661/47077/47613/47840 which carried North Star from 1965 until preservation in 2007 (42 years). Still carries it.

Answering the Thor/City of Truro point above the op does state the same loco has to carry - so transferring around doesn't count. Class47.co.uk is good for tracking what names were carried when and by which loco.

Answering the names moved around point the likes of City of London/Glasgow/Manchester etc must all have been carried by three + units/locos (LMS, Class 86/87, Pendolino) - must be a few examples?

Benbow, Vanguard, Hercules and Monarch were carried by class 42 Warships and Class 50s, Ramillies, Royal Oak, Temeraire, Tiger, Triumph were carried by class 43 Warships and 50s, whilst Superb was carried by class 43 warship D849, 50002 and now 68025.

Class 68s and 50s share the names Fearless, Achilles and Courageous.

Titan has been carried by D1665/47080/47612, 68009, an Irish Railways Midland Great Western Rlwy 0-6-0 No.133 Later Gt Sthn Rlwy No.587, LNWR 4-4-0 'Precursor' class No.7 Renumbered LMS No.5276, LNWR 2-2-2-0 Webb Dreadnought No.508 & GWR 4-4-0 Bulldog class No. 3336 (info from the Class 47 site linked above!)
 
Spartacus

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While not a loco it’d be interesting to know how long Caroline’s carried the name.
 
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I suggest "Glenfinnan" (North British Railway D34 class) may take some beating....I think it lasted in service from 1913 to 1960. The former NB locos always kept their names as far as I know.....unusually they were painted on rather than having plates.
 
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An interesting thread would be of how many names have been carried by more than one loco/unit at the same time. I know there were a few examples in steam days, simply through similarly-named locos from pre-nationalisation companies coming together under British Railways. King George VI, Gordon Highlander, and Earl of Mount Edgcumbe spring immediately to mind, but there were probably others.
 
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The LNER had two each of Ypres, Marne, Mons and Somme - one D11 ex-GC, one J36 ex-NB.
 
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The Great Central Railway class B2 ("Sir Sam Fay") class included Ciy of Manchester, City of Chester, City of London and City of Liverpool. All these locos were in service for 10 years or more after the LMS Duchess class with the same names were introduced. All 8 of these locos would probably have appeared at Manchester London Road station from time to time (the ex GCR engines more regularly)....however the chances of seeing a duplicate pair would be tiny.
 
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In more recent years, a 365 and a 221 were both named after George Vancouver.

I never quite understood why the WCML electrics had an 86 named Duke of Wellington and an 87 named Iron Duke as well.
 
30907

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ilvaporista said:
I think the LBSCR A1 Terriers would be high on the list. Knowle had an operating life of 70ish years before being preserved but I am not sure if the name was continually displayed for all of that period.
Click to expand...
LBSC locos lost their names at Grouping (possibly before?) except Remembrance.
I would have thought a large number of steam locos carried a name for all or most of their working life, so 40+ years would be common.
 
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A few of the class 87s have carried the same name since naming and scrapping or export to Bulgaria.
 
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Ianigsy said:
I never quite understood why the WCML electrics had an 86 named Duke of Wellington and an 87 named Iron Duke as well.
Click to expand...

You'd have thought they might have had one called 'IRON LADY', or 'THE IRON LADY'.
 
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xotGD

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Bovverboy said:
You'd have thought they might have had one called 'IRON LADY', or 'THE IRON LADY'.
Click to expand...
That would not be a good idea.

See how I've managed to keep my response in moderate language - I've impressed myself!
 
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