Background Information[]
The Railway Series[]
Rheneas is a fictional narrow gauge well-tank locomotive created by the Rev. W. Awdry. He is one of the oldest engines on the Island of Sodor. Rheneas lives and works on the Skarloey Railway as their No. 2 engine.
He first appeared in The Railway Series book, Four Little Engines, which was published in 1955. His last appearance was in New Little Engine, published in 1996.
Front of Rheneas:
Rear of Rheneas:
Rheneas is based on the Talyllyn Railway No. 2 locomotive, Dolgoch (briefly named "Pretoria"). Several historical events that occurred with Dolgoch in real life, were mirrored with his fictional counterpart, Rheneas. Dolgoch has also been used by the Talyllyn Railway to represent Rheneas in real life. In the books, Dolgoch is mentioned as being Rheneas' twin, while Skarloey and Talyllyn are mentioned as being his brothers.
Behind the Scenes[]
Awdry's model[]
The Reverend Wilbert Awdry built an OO9 scale model of Rheneas. The model was made from a GEM Dolgoch kit. Rheneas' model is now on display at the Narrow Gauge Museum in Tywyn, Wales, located at the Talyllyn Railway along with the other Skarloey Railway engines and rolling stock.[1]