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|image = GWR Prairie Class 5100 No 5164 (8062220732)5164_20100522.jpg|caption = 5164 at Bridgnorth in 2005Highley (2010)

5164 is a GWR The 5101 Class was an updated version by CB Collett 5101 class 2-6-2T 'Large Prairieof Churchward's 1903 3100/5100 Class. These Built from 1929 to 1949, these medium-sized tank engines were used all over the GWR network for suburban and local passenger and local freight services. Their increased axle loading of 17 tons 12 cwt was the maximum permitted for [[GWR Power and Weight Classification | 'Blue' route availability]], while their [[GWR Power and Weight Classification|power class]] was rated D (GWR) and 4MT (BR).  A total of 140 were produced; after available numbers in the 51xx range were exhausted, later examples were numbered in the 41xx range. The prevalence of the Large Prairie also resulted in examples numbered 61xx, 31xx and 81xx.<ref>[http://www.greatwestern.org.uk/m_in_262.htm Great Western Archive]</ref>This followed GWR practice, where more than 100 locomotives of one class were built, of maintaining the second number in the series and re-using older sequences of numbers where necessary.  A number of the class were allocated to the sheds at [[Worcester]], [[Kidderminster Shed|Kidderminster]] , Stourbridge and [[Shrewsbury#Shrewsbury Shed|Shrewsbury]] sheds and from where they were [[Locomotives used on the Severn Valley Branch in commercial service|regularly used on the Severn Valley Railway Branch]] on both freight and passenger services after the 1950s. Other examples from Wolverhampton Stafford Road and Tyseley were also seen on the Branch from time to time.<ref name=SVR20>SVR News 20</ref> Classmate 4175 was involved in the [[Level crossing at Hill Farm, Northwood Lane#Accidents in the BR Era|fatal accident at Northwood Lane level crossing]] in its declining yearsAugust 1964.  The 5101 Class was pictures below show classmates 4114 preparing to leave [[Bridgnorth]] with a passenger service for Shrewsbury in July 1959, 4175 with an updated version Up goods at [[Bewdley]] in April 1962, and 4153 on the coaling road at Kidderminster Shed (undated). Other class members photographed in use on the branch include 4100 in 1955,<ref>[[Bibliography#Books|Mitchell and Smith (2007)]] fig. 98.</ref> and 4129<ref>SVR News 16, photo by CB Collett of Churchward's 1903 3100Brian Moone)</5100 Classref>.  <gallery mode=packed heights=200px style="text-align:left">4114 at Bridgnorth.jpg|4114 at Bridgnorth (Peter Shoesmith collection) PGH BewdleyGoods.jpg|4175 at Bewdley (PG Hindley collection)Kidderminster Shed. British Railways rated jpg|4153 at Kidderminster Shed (right)</gallery> 5164 is an early 1930 example, while [[Former Residents|former resident]] [[GWR Large Prairie 4141|4141]] and [[GWR Large Prairie 4150|4150]] are also members of the class 4MT. 4150 having entered service at Stourbridge in 1947, it may also have worked on the branch although no photographs are known to exist.

5164 was built at the GWR Swindon Works as part of Lot 259 at a cost of £4,220.<ref name="5164org">5164.org</ref> The locomotive entered service at Tyseley in November 1930.<ref>[http://www.greatwestern.org.uk/262_5100det.htm GWR Archive] (Retrieved 28 January 2015).</ref> It remained allocated to the Wolverhampton region until 19571956, principally at Tyseley but also at Wolverhampton Stafford Road and Wellington.Duties included the haulage of local trains from Birmingham Snow Hill to Kidderminster and thence onto the Severn Valley Branch itself.<ref name="5164org">5164.org</ref> During its working life it was allocated to Tyseley 10 times, with the longest stay 3 years and the shortest 4 months.<ref name="PR1221"/>

Post 1957In August 1956, 5164 moved it was allocated to Newton Abbot, working local trains and also acting as a banker on the Dainton and Rattery Banks.<ref name="5164org" /> In July 1959, it had an overhaul at Swindon with boiler 5743 being fitted.<ref name="PR1221">EMF Press Release issued 14 December 2021</ref>

BR service ended <gallery mode=packed heights=200px style="text-align:left">File:Totnes_station,_with_2-6-2T_banker_geograph-2551558-by-Ben-Brooksbank.jpg|5164 at Totnes on banking duty 24 July 1958. Ben Brooksbank</gallery> 5164's last move was to Pontypool Road in October 1961. On 4 April 1963 after the loco was condemned with a slipping driving tyre,<ref name="PR1221"/> having amassed 67,447 miles from its last overhaul at Swindon and 811,367 miles in service.<ref> [http://www.brdatabase.info/locoqry.php?action=locodata&type=S&id=103347&loco=5164 BRDatabase] Retrieved 28 January 2015.</ref> A move It was sold to [[Barry Scrapyard]] followed in November on 9 October 1963and moved the following month.<ref name="PR1221"/>

By summer 1971, with a 5700 Pannier Tank and 4500 'Small Prairie' already secured for the SVR, purchase of a 'Large Prairie' was seen as the next logical step. A fund was established, organised by Mr. R.E. 'Bob' Sim, and No. 5164 was chosen as the best of the 10 'Large Prairies' at Barry. It was reserved for purchase 'with the usual help from Mr Woodham' while an appeal for fund raising took place.<refname=SVR20/>SVR News 20 <gallery mode=packed heights=200px style="text-align:left">S2445_5164_Barry_David_Cooke.jpg|5164 at Barry (David Cooke)</refgallery>.

Purchase was successfully completed at a cost of £2,250.<ref name="5164org" /> The locomotive was officially the 30th to leave Barry,<ref>The Barry Story, Beckett & Hardingham, 2010</ref>, arriving on the SVR on 6 January 1973 in the company of [[GWR 4930 Hagley Hall]] and [[GWR 7819 Hinton Manor]]. The initial owners were [[The 5164 Preservation Group]].

Restoration took place at Bewdley, with a team led by Pete Simpson. By September 1974 the engine had been completely stripped down. The tyres all needed reprofiling which, if done, would have left sufficient material for one further turning. However with a loose tyre having brought about the locomotive's withdrawal from service, the decision was taken to replace all the tyres, the work being carried out by the BSC Railway Materials Division at Rotherham. The tanks and bunker were overhauled by Wagon Repairs Ltd of Stoke-on-Trent. The boiler was completed refitted on 3 May 1976 as part of the [[Severn Valley Railway Timeline 1970-1979#1976|'150 ton big lift']] which saw the lifting of 5 boilers and 2 frames in a single day.<ref>SVR News 40</ref> 5164 was not steamed until 20 October 1979 when , by which time the entire restoration was effectively complete, as by the following week the locomotive had moved to Bridgnorth ready for use on that December's Bridgnorth to [[Hampton Loade]] [[Christmas services]].<ref group="note">The [https://www.erlestokemanorfund.co.uk/new-year-2024-news-update/ EMF's 2024 New Year update] included Peter Mudie's recollections of 5164’s original restoration and his photographs of its first steaming and test runs.</ref> It formally entered service in December, performing faultlessly and recording the highest mileage of the three locomotives used.<ref>SVR News 54, 55</ref>  5164 was taken out of service in late summer 1980 for some 'finishing touches' and a full repaint.<ref>SVR News 56</ref> Retuning to service in 1981, the locomotive suffered some frost damage during the first timefollowing winter<ref>SVR News 63</ref> but continued in service until being withdrawn due to tube failures in July 1984. <ref>SVR News 73</ref> Mileage recorded during the first boiler ticket was as follows:<ref>SVR News 152 pp. 24-25</ref>

Service ===Second boiler ticket===After service ended in July 1984,a heavy overhaul was deemed necessary including boiler crown stays and side stays and a full mechanical repair.<ref>SVR News 75 76 p. 1916.</ref> following which the locomotive appeared 5164 was scheduled to appear as a static exhibit at the following year's GWR 150exhibition at Swindon<ref>SVR News 75</ref>, although the event was subsequently cancelled when British Rail Engineering Ltd (BREL) insensitively announced the closure of the Swindon Works in the anniversary year.  A heavy lengthy period out of service in the 'overhaul queue' followed. By the end of 1999 some component refurbishment had been carried out, hampered by the lack of machine shop facilities at Bewdley. By summer 2001 5164 was deemed necessary including 'next in line to be put through the shops' at Bridgnorth. In summer 2002 work on the boiler crown stays was under way, with the [[The Erlestoke Manor Fund|Erlestoke Manor Fund]] team assisting the boilersmiths in de-tubing and de-staying. The mechanical overhaul was also starting and new side stays tanks were being fabricated.<ref>SVR News 136, 140, 142</ref>. The boiler was steamed in mid-2003, and a full mechanical repairnew hopper ash-pan wad being fabricated to complement the new rocking grate already made by Pete Simpson at Bewdley. The overhaul was completed the following year with a passenger train test run on 12 May.<ref>SVR News 76 p. 16.145, 147</ref>

<gallery mode=packed heights=200px style=Second boiler ticket==="text-align:left">GWR Prairie Class 5100 No 5164 (8062220732).jpg | 5164 at Bridgnorth in 2005 (Wikimedia Commons)</gallery> Following 5164 saw out a lengthy period out of servicefull "10 year ticket", including visits to the overhaul was completed West Somerset Railway in time for 5164 to re-enter service Autumn 2006 and the Mid Hants Railway in 2004spring 2013. Mileage However by 2013 the locomotive was "''sounding extremely tired and worn out at the front end''"<ref>SVR News 183</ref> and with valves "''playing a tune unbecoming of a steam engine''".<ref>SVR News 184</ref> Service ended in early January 2014, with mileage recorded in during the following years was second boiler ticket as follows (X indicates not recorded in SVR News):<ref>SVR News 185 p. 12</ref>

===Storage and transfer of ownership===Following withdrawal, 5164 saw out a full “10 year ticket”, although by 2013 resumed its place in the locomotive SVR's 'overhaul queue'. In March 2014 it was ‘sounding extremely tired and worn out at moved to the front end’Barrow Hill Roundhouse Railway Centre,<ref>[https://forum.svr-online.org.uk/viewtopic.php?t=964 SVR News 183-Online forum thread 'GWR 2-6-2T 5164'] (Retrieved 14 February 2017)</ref><ref>[http://www.barrowhill.org/collections.html Barrow Hill Roundhouse] (Retrieved 26 January 2020)</ref> and where it could be stored under cover as a static exhibit. While there it was cared for by members of the owning group, The 5164 Preservation Group. However the Group was an unincorporated organisation with valves ‘playing a tune unbecoming small and diminishing group of shareholders. In 2020 the remaining shareholders agreed to offer the locomotive to the [[The Erlestoke Manor Fund]] for a steam engine’nominal sum in order to secure the locomotive’s future within an incorporated, charitable organisation strongly affiliated to the SVR.<ref>SVR News 184EMF Newsletter no 75 August 2020</ref> Service ended in early January 2014.

===Film After negotiations between the Group, the EMF and television===A short clip the SVR, the transfer of 5164 appeared ownership to the EMF for a nominal sum was completed in November 2021.<ref>EMF Newsletter no 78, November 2021</ref> In January 2022 the Series 1 Episode 1 EMF announced that their members had agreed to a change of the 2017 BBC drama series Fund's Articles, allowing fund raising for an overhaul to begin.<ref>[[Decline and Fall]https://www.erlestokemanorfund.co.uk/announcement-emf-shareholders-approve-proposal-to-restore-5164-to-steam/ EMF Announcement January 2022]'. </ref>

===Current statusOverhaul and third boiler ticket===In July 2022 the EMF announced the launch of an appeal to raise funds to return 5164 is now awaiting its next overhaul. {{As of|2020}} the locomotive is under cover on display at Barrow Hill Roundhouse, where it moved in March 2014to service.<ref>[https://forumwww.svr-onlineerlestokemanorfund.orgco.uk/viewtopic.php?t=964 SVRthe-big-large-prairie-Online forum thread 'GWR 2appeal-6returning-2T 5164'] (Retrieved 14 February 2017)<-to-service/ref><ref>[httpEMF://www.barrowhill.org/collections.html Barrow Hill Roundhouse''The Big "Large Prairie" Appeal – Returning 5164 to service''] (Retrieved 26 January 2020retrieved 1 August 2022)</ref>

The locomotive is owned by left Barrow Hill to be the centre-piece attraction at the [[The 5164 Preservation GroupSVR-based locomotives visiting other events#Steam_locomotives_timeline_2020-2029|Warley Model Railway Club Show at Birmingham NEC]]. In July 2020 on 25/26 November 2023, before moving to Tyseley Locomotive Works for detailed assessments of the locomotive's condition and further purchases of materials in preparation for overhaul, due to commence once [[The Erlestoke GWR 7802 Bradley Manor Fund|7802]] announced it was in discussion with The 5164 Preservation Group has returned to steam and the SVR regarding the proposed transfer its new build GWR 3500 gallon tender project T2329 is complete. This work 'will occupy a large part of 5164 to the 2024'<ref>EMFPress Release 18 October 2023</ref>. ==Film and television==*A short clip of 5164 appeared in the Series 1 Episode 1 of the 2017 BBC drama series '[[https://wwwDecline and Fall]]'.erlestokemanorfund.co.uk/announcement-gwr- *The final episode of [[The Box Of Delights]] ends with a brief scene involving 5164/ EMF announcementat [[Arley|Condicote]] (retrieved 29 July 2020)</ref>.

*[[Steam Locomotives]]<br>*[[GWR Large Prairie 4141]] (classmate resident on the SVR between 1973 and 1988, left before restoration was completed)*[[SVR-based locomotives visiting other events]]<br>*[[Locomotives used on the Severn Valley Branch in commercial service|Classes of locomotives used on the Severn Valley Branch in commercial service]]

*[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GWR_5101_Class 5101 class on Wikipedia]<br>*[http://5164www.greatwestern.org.uk/ m_in_262.htm 5101 tank class introduction on the Great Western Archive] *Unofficial 5164 web site]<br>Preservation Group (www.5164.org.uk/): archive of discontinued website on the Internet Archive Wayback Machine [httphttps://wwwweb.barrowhillarchive.org/ Barrow Hill Roundhouse web site/20211123182128/http://5164.org.uk/ Last captured 23 November 2021].