Mallard at National Railway Museum YorkMallard: photo 11/04/2004 taken at National Railway Museum, York. The Doncaster built Mallard is the holder of the world speed record for steam traction on rail. This record was set on the 3rd July 1938 (same year as it was built) when the 70 ft, 102 ton locomotive registered a speed of 126 mph.
LNER Chief Mechanical Engineer Sir Nigel Gresley designed the Mallard. He came up with the name while feeding the ducks at Salisbury Hall.
The £8,500 Mallard ended its service in 1963 after a lifetime distance of almost 1.5 million miles (2.4 million km). It's official name was: LNER 4-6-2 A4 class No 4468 Mallard.
Picture added on 20 October 2006
Added by Bart on 16 November 2006.