N°9 – Cockerill n° 509 “Petit Château”

Current state: pending restoration

The only steam locomotive in our collection that ran for a railway company. In this case la compagnie du chemin de fer Nord Belge, NB for short. This was the subsidiary of the mighty French chemin de fer Nord.

There are no known photos of our locomotive when it belonged to the Nord-Belge. Pictured here is the 752 "GODEFROID DE BOUILLON" (the later 602) in its original condition. © Trainworld Heritage

It was therefore on the basis of a design by the French Nord that the Belgian subsidiary placed an order on 20 May 1858 with the locomotive constructor Cockerill of 5 steam locomotives for use in the Charleroi area. A follow-up order was placed on 3 September 1859. On 11 October 1860, the last locomotive of the second order with construction number 509 was delivered. This locomotive was given the number 765 and the name HUY at the Nord Belge.

The 601 (ex 751) "CHARLEMAGNE" has now been fitted with a canopy and a new chimney. © P. Pastiels

These locomotives were very powerful and modern for their time. Staff nicknamed the locomotives "petits chateaux" because of their height. This model of tender locomotive was the first with four coupled axles worldwide according to some sources! The tender for water was located under the boiler, the so-called well tank arrangement. Yet it lacks things that were seen as standard on later locomotives, such as a cab to protect personnel or injectors to pump water into the boiler.

From the Saint Martin depot, the locomotive was used to tow local goods trains in the Charleroi area and for shunting services. In 1881, the locomotive was assigned the number 615. Over the years, the locomotive was rebuilt. It was fitted with a roof and received a new boiler with a flat belly firebox before 1911. It is not clear how World War I fared for the locomotive. It is possible that she ran for a while in France for the parent company.

The 612 (ex 762) "MARCHIENNES" stands at Saint-Martin on 27 July 1935. She shows us the final state of locomotives at the Nord-Belge: a new smokebox door and a new steam dome. © Joop Quanjer

In 1926, the locomotive was sold to the Charbonnages de Marcinelle Nord mine where she was given the number 6 and called Bertha. 7 years later, she was already sold on to the Monceau Fontaine mine. From now on, the locomotive was known as MF72. Here she was used for shunting and towing trains to SNCB's surrender station. In 1949, together with MF71, also a petit chateau owned by the mine, she was completely overhauled at the company Anglo Franco Belge. Here she received a new boiler, a full cab and new tenders along the side of the boiler. As early as 1952, the locomotive received another major overhaul after an accident, this time at the Couillet company.

In 1958, our locomotive was under steam at the Monceau-Fontaine mine. © H.G. Hesselink

In 1965, the locomotive was withdrawn from service after more than a hundred years of service (!). Miraculously, it was not scrapped and for ten years it remained rusting away on the Monceau mining site. In the early 1970s, the SNCB began to develop an active museum policy and in 1976 the locomotive was donated to the SNCB. She was transferred to the old steam locomotive workshop in Leuven, which was then used as a depository. She was preserved in the condition as she was found in Monceau. In 2013, the depot had to be vacated and the locomotive ended up at SDP. The driving gear was only partially transferred to Baasrode-North in 2025. The locomotive is currently tuned up behind the shed in Baasrode-North awaiting possible restoration.