now you know: the mcavity company was incorporated in saint john, new brunswick in 1834, importing and selling wool and candles from england. thomas, the company's founder, soon began manufacturing metal and rubber parts for the shipping industry. with the advent of the exciting 'age of steam' the mcavity clan flourished, marketing a dizzying array of brass valves, including many that were acid-resisant, a huge boon for many a fishwife. the locomotive, plumbing and fire prevention and control corporations all sucked at the massive, metal teat of the mcavity patriarch, and it seemed in the early 1900s that one day all in the empire would bow before the all-knowing, all-seeing lords of brass. when, in 1903, their first fire hydrants went screaming from the massive, hulking plants, even other planets took notice, threatened by the relentlessly exploring tentacles. what unholy terrors would next be unleashed could not be imagined and intergalactic forces decided to intervene. across the next several decades two world wars raged, millions dying in the conflicts, few humans aware of the real purpose of the fighting and the overall design and goals inherent in the acts. mcavity, though cunning beyond mortal comprehension and with nearly limitless resources, eventually succumbed to the ceaseless onslaught. the company was sold to crane canada ltd in 1960. this wheel is all that remains.

BR Standard Class 5MT 73129 was built at Derby Loco Works in 1956. She was part of the last batch of 30 5MTs to be built, which were fitted with Capprotti valve gear (rotary rather than sliding valves) of which 73129 is the only survivor. 73129 remained at Shrewsbury until 1958 when she was moved to Patricoft (26F) mpd near Manchester, where she remained until withdrawal from service in December 1967 and was sold to Woodham Bros. for scrap. 73129 was bought for potential display and restoration in 1972 by Derby Corporation. No serious restoration work was carried out until late 1994. Ten years later she is back to full working condition hauling trains at the Midland Railway – Butterley.