Outside the main building at Locomotion, Shildon, County Durham

The Locomotion Museum is part of the National Museum of Science and History (NMSI). It was built during 2004 in the town that gave birth to passenger rail travel, Shildon, County Durham in the UK. It cost £11.3 million. The museum was expected to bring 60,000 visitors a year to the small County Durham town. However, during its first six months, the museum pulled in a staggering 94,000 visitors. It was shortlisted as one of the final five contenders in The Gulbenkian Prize which is "the largest arts prize in the United Kingdom". Image File history File links Locomotion_shildon2. ... The National Museum of Science and Industry (NMSI) is a collection of British museums, comprising: The National Railway Museum in York. ... Location within the British Isles Shildon is a town in County Durham, in England. ... County Durham is a county in north-east England. ... The Gulbenkian Prize is a British annual prize for museums and galleries. ...

It is home to 60 locomotives from the National Collection, including Timothy Hackworth's Sans Pareil. The engine was built to compete in the Rainhill Trials. These trials were to decide which engine was used to operate the intercity passenger railway between Liverpool and Manchester. After 175 years of absence from the town, residents were delighted at her return. The Sans Pareil now sits proudly at the entrance of Locomotion. It is the first engine visitors see. A locomotive (from lat. ... Timothy Hackworth (December 22, 1786 – July 7, 1850) was a steam locomotive mechanical engineer who lived in Shildon, County Durham, England and worked with George Stephenson on the Stockton and Darlington Railway. ... The Sans Pareil was a locomotive built by Timothy Hackworth which took part in the 1829 Rainhill Trials on the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, held to select a builder of locomotives. ... The Rainhill Trials were an important competition in the early days of steam locomotive railways, run in October of 1829 near Rainhill (just outside Liverpool). ... Liverpool waterfront by night, as seen from the Wirral. ... Manchester is a city in the North West of England. ...

The main building is home to the majority of the collection and includes the sole examples of the prototype APT-E and Deltic units. For a full list of the rolling stock collection visit the museum's website. The Advanced Passenger Train, (APT) was an unsuccessful tilting train developed by British Rail during the 1970s and early 1980s. ... DP1, or DELTIC as it is more popularly known, was a demonstrator locomotive built by the English Electric company in 1955. ...

The museum is highly ecologically friendly: its roof is made of solar panelling, it has a wind turbine which also provides power to the National Grid and an on-site biodiesel bus for transporting visitors around the site without harming the environment. Solar Panel (photovoltaic array) Solar panels are collections of solar cells used for capturing the energy in sunlight. ... Horizontal axis wind turbine, the Enercon model E-66 wind energy converter, in Germany. ... The National Grid is the high-voltage electric power transmission network in Great Britain, connecting power stations and major substations and ensuring that electricity generated anywhere in Great Britain can be used to satisfy demand elsewhere. ... Biodiesel sample Biodiesel refers to diesel-equivalent biofuel usually made from vegetable oils or animal fats. ...

On September 27th 1825, the world's very first passenger train made its first journey from Shildon to Darlington on the Stockton and Darlington Railway. The train, hauled by Locomotion No 1, was unlike modern trains. It was slow, and took 2 hours to complete the 12 mile trip. The Locomotion Museum is sited near Timothy Hackworth's Soho Works. This article discusses Darlington, England. ... The Stockton and Darlington railway (S&DR), which opened in 1825, was the first railway to use steam locomotives and carry passengers. ... Locomotion No. ... Shildon railway works began in 1826 in the town of Shildon in County Durham, in England Shildon was the terminus of the Stockton & Darlington Railway, when it opened in 1825. ...

Shildon railway station, on the Darlington to Bishop Auckland Tees Valley Line was rebuilt and modernised as part of the museum's construction and is actually situated partway through the museum itself. It is served by all services on the line, operated by Northern Rail. Shildon railway station serves the town of Shildon in County Durham, England. ... This article discusses Darlington, England. ... Location within the British Isles Bishop Auckland is a market town in County Durham in North East England. ... The Tees Valley Line is a name for the railway route between Bishop Auckland and Saltburn via Darlington, Thornaby (for Stockton-On-Tees), Middlesbrough and Redcar. ... Northern Rail is a train operating company that has operated local services in the north of England since 2004. ...

See also

• List of British railway museums
• List of transport museums

This list is intended as a list of museums in Britain. ... This is a list of transport museums throughout the world. ...

External links

• Locomotion site, part of National Railway Museum Website