Throughout its existence the London and North Western Railway re-used the numbers and names of withdrawn locomotives on new ones as they came out of Crewe Works. This resulted in each class of locomotives being allotted numbers virtually at random, with names that adhered to no discernible theme. By 1911 new locomotives were being produced at a much faster rate than old ones were being scrapped, and it became necessary to introduce a new set of names for Bowen Cooke’s 4-6-0 express engines which were beginning to enter service.