Wantage Tramway Company locomotive No 5 was known on the tramway as Jane but later named Shannon on the Sandy and Potton Railway in Bedfordshire. It survives and can be found at the Great Western Society's Railway Centre at Didcot. This fine model in 7.25” gauge was built from scratch in just two years by the late Pat Beesley and shown at a Midlands exhibition while completing a major overhaul. There were no drawings available to the builder and all measurements were taken from the original at Didcot, seen here.

The Wantage Tramway Company was a two-mile line that carried passengers and freight between the Oxfordshire town of Wantage and Wantage Road Station on the Great Western Main Line. Formed in 1873 the line was built parallel to what was then the Besselsleigh Turnpike, now the A338.

Built as a standard gauge line, and first run using horse drawn rolling stock, the line became the first to adopt powered traction when a steam tramcar, designed by John Grantham, was tried out in the summer of 1875. In November that year the first steam locomotive arrived for trials, and the line was converted to steam traction in the late 1870s.

For most of its operation the line was well-used and profitable but the growth in road transport saw a steady decline in passengers and freight. The tramway closed to passengers in August 1925, and to goods in December 1945, and closed after the track was damaged by heavy lorries during the World War II.

The line remained independent throughout its existence, and its range of unusual and often antiquated equipment attracted plenty of attention from enthusiasts.