Hampton Loade Locomotive Fund
The Hampton Loade Locomotive Fund was organised by Bill Bennett and supported the acquisition and restoration of GWR Large Prairie 4141.
History
4141 was acquired from Barry Scrapyard by SVR member Peter Waite and arrived on the SVR on 6 January 1973. Prior to its arrival, SVR News noted that the acquisition was "...in conjunction with the Hampton Loade Loco. Fund" of Mr. W. Bennett."[1]
The fund continued to raise money for the restoration, including a tombola organised by Bill Bennett in the early 1980s.[2] Members of the Fund also worked on the restoration of the locomotive itself. However in spring 1998 the Fund announced that Peter Waite had sold the partly-restored 4141 to Professor J.F. Kennedy, and that it was therefore the responsibility of the Fund’s committee to return all monies to the respective shareholders, with any unclaimed monies being donated to a worthy cause on the SVR.[3]
With the departure of the Fund, the FRUIT D they had formerly used was taken over and converted into the "Hampton Loade Curiosity Shop" to raise funds for the station.[4]