IN a bid to recapture the Golden Age of Steam, a replica locomotive is to be built for the Lynton and Barnstaple Railway — and enthusiasts will be able to buy shares in the project.

The plan comes just months after the poignant dedication of the First World War engine 'Axe,' by the Bishop of Exeter on Armistice Day. Axe enters active service on March 1.

Now, the Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Trust is embarking on the ambitious plan to build a replica of one of the line's original locomotives — the 'Lyn', which, in keeping with tradition, is named after a three-lettered Devon river.

Trustee Tony Nicholson explained: "When the legendary two-foot gauge railway was officially opened on May 11, 1898, it was equipped with three handsome 2-6-2 tank engines built by Manning Wardle of Leeds. But the directors decided that they would need a fourth locomotive to handle the summer traffic.

"No British manufacturer was able to build an engine quickly enough, so the company turned to the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia.

"A 2-4-2 tank engine was duly shipped across the Atlantic as a kit in July 1898 and the parts were assembled in Pilton Yard by railway staff — no doubt with a certain amount of head-scratching over how all the pieces of this American interloper fitted together!"

Tony said: "Christened 'Lyn' by the Board of Directors, the loco was always known as 'The Yankee' by the staff. It sported a very American-looking wooden cab and following standard American practice, the boiler was secured to the front of the frames by a pair of sturdy iron bars.

"After a few teething problems Lyn soon proved its worth and Exmoor farmers grew used to the remarkable sight of an American frontier engine complete with cow-catchers steaming through the North Devon countryside."

Tony said that when the Southern Railway took over the line from Barnstaple to Lynton in 1923, they gave the engines numbers as well as names and Lyn became Southern Railway No 762. So the Trust has now set up a 762 Club to sell non-transferable shares in the scheme to build a replica of the locomotive, in three years.

He said: "The plan has been carefully costed at £350,000 and the shares sell for £762 each. They can be bought outright or in 30 monthly instalments of £25.50 by standing order. The Gift Aid which can be claimed for UK taxpayers brings their value to the project up to nearly £1,000 each. And it will also be possible to sponsor various components."

The scheme has its own website: www.762club.com where details of how to obtain shares can be found.

Tony said: "Applications are already flowing in from both sides of the Atlantic."

Of the original 'Lyn', Tony said: "It served the railway well for 37 years. But a few weeks after the line closed, all the original engines were auctioned off and cut up for scrap. Lyn was sold for just £50."

There is a chance, though, that part of the engine still graces a little corner of North Devon.

Tony explained: "It is widely believed that the wooden cab — being of no use to the scrap-metal merchants — was taken home by one of the drivers to serve as a summer-house and may still survive in a Barnstaple back garden."

Anyone with memories, photos or memorabilia of the locomotive can contact Tony at 10 Castle Heights, Lynton, North Devon EX35 6JD. Or call him on: 01598 752795; e-mail: tonynicholson@ukonline.co.uk.

●The first service train of 2009 will leave Woody Bay Station on Sunday March 1 at 10.30am. Steam trains will be running every Sunday in March and most days of the week from Saturday April 4.

You can also celebrate Mother's Day on March 22 with a ride on the train and a special traditional afternoon tea in the station's Edwardian tea-room. If you bring your mum one person travels free. Tel: 07732-921064.