I had lunch at the Rattlebone, in Sherston, today. Just sayin’!

 
12th May 1945 - First "Thomas the Tank Engine" book published - (link)

 

More like the Morecambe Bay gas field has come onshore. Didn't see that in the books.

 

Sounds a bit Irish to me.

 

It was the artist who illustrated the Railway Series books who drew Thomas as an E2 0-6-0T. The author only gives a very general description of him in the text.

According to the book 'The Island of Sodor, Its people, history and railways' by The Rev W. Awdry and G. Awdry' (and they ought to know), James is a L&YR Class 28 0-6-0, but as this class 'had a tendency to be nose-heavy especially when...driven at speed the designer George Hughes, in an effort to counteract this defect, built the engine we now know as James with 5' 6" coupled wheels, and a pony truck in front. The design did not entirely produce the improvement hoped for, and after the Grouping the LMS sold this engine to the North Western Railway [i.e. the main line railway of Sodor] who have now corrected most of the faults in the design, including the wooden brake blocks'.

 

He went to school in Hawkhust in Kent and later in Wiltshire.  He then lived in Birmingham, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk, before retiring to Gloucestershire. So quite apart form holidays he would have seen plenty of different engines.

 
One of the books was certainly based on the Talyllyn railway

 

Hmmm ... from my limited reading of the Rev Awdry's books, I've drawn an impression of a whole load of engines, each of different design and with different foibles, and as such I would draw a closer parallel with a heritage railway than any main line prototype.  The timeline is probably wrong, but perhaps holidays were taken at Horsted Keynes, or near to one of the Col. Stevens lines.

 
But there really is a Bishop of Sodor and Man.

 
A bit pedantic.  If he was watching trains at Box why is Thomas remarkably similar to a LBSC E2 0-6-0T.

As for James has anyone worked out the prototype? Wikipedia gives: 

James the Red Engine is a mixed-traffic L&YR Class 28 'Mogul' 2-6-0 tender engine. But the 28s were 0-6-0s.

 

 

All about efficiency - a couple of minutes at http://www.corington.co.uk/projects/blueplaque/

 
Very good Grahame,using your lockdown time wisely ✅

 

Sadly, you cannot 100% trust every blue plaque you see ...

 
Well Box has the blue plaque,so no dispute.

 

I would agree with Box, and so would the local historian sitting beside me (no social distancing - part of same household unit).

 
Locally we all agree that the idea for Thomas was generated by the Rev watching from his home in Box.

Although I was watching a preservation railway programme some where in Central Wales,a few weeks ago.

Presenter, Matt Baker? saying THEIR railway gave the idea to the Rev to write the books.

 
And from The Mirror


76. The Awdry family owned Melksham House from late Victorian times until 1920 when it was bought by the Avon India Rubber Company for the leisure use of their employees.

 

We're getting there...

 
Oooos gonna pay?

 
the Tank story,this coming May.