A legendary steam locomotive returned to the rails in Darlington as the town celebrated 201 years since the birth of the modern railway.
Crowds gathered at Hopetown Darlington on Sunday, September 27, as the attraction marked the anniversary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway.
The historic railway opened on September 27, 1825, when Locomotion No. 1 hauled the world's first passenger train on a public railway to use steam locomotives.
Crowds gathered at Hopetown Darlington on Sunday, September 27, as the attraction marked the 201st anniversary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway (Image: Stuart Boulton/NORTHERN ECHO)
Exactly 201 years later, visitors were once again able to experience the sights and sounds of steam as 60163 Tornado took charge of rides on Hopetown's Heritage Railway.
Crowds gathered at Hopetown Darlington on Sunday, September 27, as the attraction marked the 201st anniversary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway (Image: Stuart Boulton/NORTHERN ECHO)
The striking locomotive proved a major attraction as railway enthusiasts, families and visitors gathered to see it in action and capture pictures of the occasion.
Tornado has a particularly strong connection with the town.
Crowds gathered at Hopetown Darlington on Sunday, September 27, as the attraction marked the 201st anniversary of the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway (Image: Stuart Boulton/NORTHERN ECHO)
The locomotive was built in Darlington by the A1 Steam Locomotive Trust, with construction beginning in the 1990s before it moved under its own power for the first time in 2008.
It was built as a new example of the Peppercorn Class A1 express passenger steam locomotive, filling a gap left after all of the original locomotives in the class were scrapped.
Its appearance at Hopetown therefore brought together two very different eras of Darlington's railway story, from the pioneering days of the Stockton and Darlington Railway to a modern steam locomotive built in the town.
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The anniversary event formed part of Hopetown's S&DR201 celebrations, which have commemorated the railway heritage that put Darlington and the wider region at the centre of a transport revolution.
Visitors on September 27 were able to climb aboard for a steam ride behind Tornado, experiencing some of the noise, steam and atmosphere associated with the journeys which transformed railway travel.
The Stockton and Darlington Railway originally ran between Witton Park, Darlington and Stockton, and its opening in 1825 became a landmark moment in railway history.