In 1923, at Grouping, all of the individual railway companies except the mighty Great Western Railway lost their identities, the Highland Railway becoming part of the London, Midland & Scottish Railway. At that point in time the Highland Railway possessed 173 locomotives, but only 150 were taken over by the LMS.
The first new arrival on former Highland territory was ex-Glasgow & South Western Railway (G&SWR) Smellie class â218â 0-4-0ST No 658 (LMS No 16040), still in that companyâs livery; it was brought in to work the Inverness Harbour branch. For that branch, the Canal Basin and shunting around Inverness and its motive power depot, several âPugâ engines, mostly ex-Caledonian Railway, made their appearance over the years, among them Drummond â264â class 0-4-0ST No 16011 from the Dawsholm sub-shed atâŠ