“Princess” on display at London Kings Cross Station, February 2016

Ffestiniog Railway’s first steam locomotive to pull passenger trains was this Princess, who was constructed in 1863 by George England & Co.in London.  As time passed, both needs and technology grew and the trains became heavier, yet the Princess remained slim.  As a result, she was moved away from hauling passengers and re-employed to drag wagons around quarries and slate wharves.   She came back to passengers, however, when the West Highland Railway opened in 1923 and she was the last steam locomotive in use at Ffestiniog Railway when it closed in 1946.  Since then her fame has been even more varied, ranging from storage, to museum display to starring at a Welsh pub.  Now, though, she has undergone cosmetic surgery and is helping to celebrate the 150^th anniversary of Steam Power on the Ffestiniog.

Hex reference: #CA3767
A colourful note: this deep shade of red-violet, known as jazzberry jam in the Crayola world, became a crayon in 2003.  If you fancy a bit of this colour at home, you can go for a Hibiscus ‘Jazzberry Jam’, with large attractive red flowers with bright yellow pollen.

Copyright Debbie Smyth, 17 February 2016