OF all the Swindon Railway Works memorabilia in the Adver’s archive, one of the most poignant items dates from 1960.

It is a programme issued ahead of the naming ceremony for 92220 Evening Star, which took place at the Works on Friday, March 18 of that year.

Our main image is a photograph of the new locomotive which was chosen for the centre pages.

The spread also featured a drawing of Premier, the first Swindon-built freight engine, which was completed in February of 1846, and one of Great Western, the first Swindon-built passenger locomotive, completed in April of the same year.

Our smaller image shows Evening Star in 1989 while on loan to the Somerset Railway. Evening Star can be seen at the National Railway Museum in York, although the engine was on loan to Steam at the beginning of the decade to mark its 50th birthday.

The foreword to the programme says: “The building at the Swindon Works of British Railways’ last steam locomotive marks the end of an era begun by Watt, Trevithick and Stephenson, and the onrush of modernisation by which diesel and electric traction become the impelling force of the country’s railways.

“This ceremony is held fittingly to praise steam as a medium by which untold millions of miles have been run in the service of humanity and through which Britain developed a network of railways second to none in the world.”

The foreword added that the chairman of the Western Area Board, Mr RF Hanks, would invite Mr KWC Grand of the British Transport Commission,to perform the naming ceremony.

He was also to unveil a plaque on the locomotive, saying: “No.92220 BUILT AT SWINDON MARCH 1960. The last steam locomotive for British Railways. Named at Swindon on March 18th 1960 by KWC Grand Esq. MEMBER OF THE BRITISH TRANSPORT COMMISSION.”

The following pages of the programme are packed with detailed information about the locomotive and its tender, which were together 66ft 2ins - a little over 20 metres - long and weighed 139 tons and four hundredweight, or 141.433 metric tonnes.

The pistons in the two cylinders each had a diameter of 20 inches and and a stroke of 28.

The remaining pages are filled with photographs of other notable steam locomotives, including the Swindon-built King George V and Doncaster-built speed record breaker 60002 Mallard.