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An unidentified LNWR 2-4-0 Improved Precedent Class better known as a 'Jumbo' passes close to the GWR Leamington South Junction Signal Box in 1911. The locomotives were designed by FW Webb for express passenger work. with a total of one hundred and fifty-eight being built by Crewe Works in batches from 1887 to 1897 with two further additions in 1898 and 1901 respectively. They were officially described as 'renewals' (replacements) of ninety-six Newton Class and sixty-two 62 Precedent Class locomotives, so that, accountancy purposes, they could be charged against the Revenue account rather than the Capital account as a 'new' locomotive. On renewal, they kept the numbers and names of their predecessors, and as a result the numbering system continued to be completely haphazard. In addition, the eight Precedent Class locomotives that were not renewed, were rebuilt to the Improved specification, but they retained their original 7/8-inch thick frames, whereas the renewed locomotives had 1-inch frames. The most famous of all Precedent Class locomotives was LNWR 2-4-0 No 790 'Hardwocke' which on 22nd August 1895 took two hours and six minutes to cover the 141 miles from Crewe to Carlisle, with an average speed of 67.1 mph, setting up a new speed record during the Race to the North. Withdrawals of the class started relatively, in December 1905, but seventy-six of the class remained in 1923 to be taken over by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway who gave them the power classification 1P. The LMS assigned the surviving seventy-six locomotives the numbers 5004 to 5079, in order of build date, though not all received the numbers as withdrawals continued apace. By the end of 1933, only No 5001 'Snowdon' survived and in April 1934 it was allocated the the number 25001 to clear the number 5001 for an LMS Stanier Class 5 4-6-0, but it was withdrawn in October that year before it could be applied.
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