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Gwr 3440 City Of TruroGreat Western Railway City Class 4-4-0 locomotive number 3440 City Of Truro (built at the GWR Swindon Works in 1903, and renumbered 3717 in 1912) is reputedly the first steam locomotive ever to travel in excess of 100 mph (160 km/h), reaching a speed of 102 mph (164 km/h) whilst hauling the "Ocean Mails" special from Plymouth to London Paddington on 9 May 1904. This is widely believed to be correct but has not been conclusively proved. The historical significance of City of Truro led to its continued survival after withdrawal from service in 1931. It was purchased by the London and North Eastern Railway and was subsequently displayed at a new museum in York. In 1957, the locomotive was returned to service by British Rail and based at Didcot it was used for hauling special excursion trains, usually on the Newbury and Southampton branch line and was renumbered back to 3440. It was finally retired from traffic in 1961, and passed into the National Collection (based at the National Railway Museum, York, as a static exhibit. The locomotive was restored once more in 1984 to take part in the 150th anniversary celebrations of the Great Western Railway. City Of Truro was recently restored to full working order, at a cost of 130,000 to mark the 100th anniversary of its record-breaking run. The locomotive has also featured as a character in "Duck and the Diesel Engine" (1958), part of the Thomas the Tank Engine series of books by the Rev. W. Awdry. City of Truro
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