The last broad gauge Cornishman at Paddington
While the end of the broad gauge had been anticipated since the 1860s, difficult economic conditions had slowed conversion work. In 1885, the directors of the Cornwall Railway voted to convert its line between Plymouth and Falmouth at the earliest opportunity, and the Great Western Railway made plans to convert all the remaining 177 miles of broad gauge track in May 1892.
The last broad gauge services ran on Friday 20 May 1892, the final train into Paddington being the Night Mail hauled by Bulkeley which arrived at 5.30am on Saturday. As soon as services ceased, all rolling stock and locomotives were worked to Swindon where several miles of additional sidings had been laid in preparation. By early Saturday morning all broad gauge stock had been removed from the lines west of Exeter.
Approximately 4,000 men had been hired to convert the track, most of which was laid on longitudinal sleepers. As with previous conversions, the transoms between the longitudinal sleepers were cut (some having been already prepared in the preceding weeks) and one rail slewed on its sleeper into the new standard gauge position.
The work was completed on schedule and normal services resumed on Monday 23 May, using the standard gauge locomotives and stock that had been readied in the preceding weeks.
At Swindon the convertible locomotives were changed to standard gauge over the following months and most of the older broad gauge stock scrapped. The locomotives North Star and Lord of the Isles were initially preserved, but were then scrapped in 1906. Hedley and Tiny continued in use as stationary engines at Conwil Quarry and Newton Abbot respectively. Hedley was sent to Neath in 1905 and was scrapped in 1929, leaving the little 0-4-0 dock shunter Tiny the only surviving original broad gauge locomotive today - an ironic testimony to Brunel's vision of a high speed railway.