Steam heating van 3189 began life at British Rail’s Ashford works in June 1952 as a brake corridor second, No. S34264. Originally employed on the Southern Region of BR, it later moved to the Midland region as M34264.
The carriage, along with 21 others, was rebuilt in Derby in 1971 for use as a steam generator van for CIÉ—originally Irish carriages were heated by the locomotive, but as the steam train era ended CIÉ needed to look for alternative ways of heating their services (boiler-fitted diesel locomotives being less common than they were across the water). Due to their origins, they became known as ”BR Vans” by Irish railwaymen and enthusiasts alike. Now numbered 3189, it contained no passenger seating but instead a large boiler, generator, and ample luggage space. While firmly associated with the diesel era in Ireland, this van would have operated during the latter era of British Rail’s steam train era, and undoubtedly have been hauled by a variety of Southern Region and Midland Region steam locomotives while in Britain.
3189 and the rest of the BR Vans were withdrawn in 2007. We acquired it for preservation in July of that year, and until 2018 it was used on our buffet set to provide heat and power to the train. As with the rest of the set, it was taken out of everyday use in August 2018 having been replaced by railcar 458, and is now in storage and likely to be scrapped.