What became of Contractors' Locomotives?

The 'London Extension' was completed in 1899, by which time, some of the contractors' engines were still less than ten years old. Others had been built in the 1870's but still had plenty of life in them yet. They all left the Great Central's metals, although others would return in 1901 to work on the construction of the alternative route from Neasden to Grendon Underwood. The work was done in partnership with the Great Western Railway and a new group of contractors were brought in for the job.

Many of the locomotives continued to work in the ownership of the contractors that had worked on the Great Central Railway construction. Some, particularly those belonging to Logan & Hemingway, worked on other railway construction projects including the Wath Concentration Sidings and the Doncaster Avoiding Line which were both Great Central Railway contracts. There was very little railway construction after 1930, and many of the contractors' locomotives were sold to the mining industries, or even sold for scrap.

The lucky survivors found new employment, mostly in the ironstone quarries of Northamptonshire, but age and wear saw many replaced by newer locomotives. A few were given overhauls where decent weather protection was often fitted, and they continued to work until the late 1950's when most went for scrap. Today, only one of the former contractors' engines survives - SIR BERKELEY (formerly Logan & Hemingway No. 30), owned by the Vintage Carriages Trust and currently based on the Middleton Railway in Leeds.