Locomotive 1210 was built in 1878 by Beyer, Peacock & Co., Manchester, England. The locomotive arrived in Sydney and began its working life as No. 120 on the southern and western lines. After 15 years service the locomotive was transferred to Penrith and in 1896 it was transferred to the far north-west of NSW. The locomotive was returned to Sydney in 1912 and in 1914 was shifted to Goulburn, where it hauled trains to Queanbeyan. On 25 May 1914 locomotive 1210 hauled the first revenue-earning train into Canberra. This was the coal train that served the main Canberran electricity generation station. The re-classification of NSW engines gave the engine number 1210 post 1924 and worked in the Parkes and Mudgee districts.
Demise and preservation
In 1932 Locomotive 1210 was declared obsolete and withdrawn from service but not scrapped due to a shortage of engines and in 1935 assigned to Moree to haul local branch line trains. In 1943 the engine was again withdrawn from service but due to war-time pressure on the railways returned to service. In 1947 the engine was returned to Parkes for use as a relief or emergency engine. It continued in use until 1958 when it was finally withdrawn from service. In 1955 for the centenary of rail operations in New South Wales, with sister locomotive 1243 hauled the Vintage Train across the state for railway celebrations. 1210 and 1243 also celebrated the NSW Railway's "Last Steam Train to Gosford". On 31 October 1959 the NSW Steam Tram and Railway Preservation Society hired the locomotive to haul a train from Sydney to Canberra for the dedication of All Saints Church, Ainslie. Bruce Macdonald and the Society successfully appealed to the National Capital Development Commission and the NSW Railways to assist in the locomotive's preservation. In 1962 the Locomotive left Sydney for Canberra for the formal presentation ceremony arriving at 2:50 pm on 27 January. 1210 was accepted and placed on display outside the Canberra railway station. The ARHS obtained permission to clean and polish 1210 while plinthed and subsequently relocated to the Canberra Railway Museum in 1984. The locomotive was restored to operational condition with Australian Bicentennial Authority funds and re-commissioned on 19 September 1988. At that time No 1210 was the oldest operational main line steam locomotive in the world and continues to haul heritage trains. In the early 2010s, locomotive 1210 underwent mechanical and boiler works in the hope it could be back in steam for the Centenary of Rail to Canberra in May 2014. This restoration has stalled due to the ARHS ACT Division being placed into liquidation in November 2016. Hopes to have it running by Easter 2018 were dashed following parts such as copper boiler tubes being stolen. In May 2020 it was announced by the new Canberra Railway Museum that the locomotive would be reassembled for static display only.
