Thomas the Train was created in 1946 by the Reverend W.V. Awdry in his Railway Series books. He made his first appearance in the book Thomas the Tank Engine as a station pilot, shunting coaches and trucks for bigger engines, longing for more important jobs like pulling the express train. He eventually rescued his friend James after an accident, and the controller decided he was a useful engine and could handle his own branch line. Thomas's close friends are his coaches, Annie and Clarabel, as well as Percy, Toby, Edward, and Duck (his substitute).
Thomas was based on the E2 Class 0-6-0 T locomotives that were built for the London, Brighton, and South Coast railways between 1913 and 1916. Since the book series took off, Thomas the train merchandise has sold wildly, with five different types of tracks and trains to choose from: "Take Along Thomas," which has gray tracks; battery-operated engines with blue tracks; wooden engines with wooden rails and roads; electric model railways; and Lego engines and tracks. In addition to the train sets themselves, there is a broad array of complementary merchandise available, including videos, DVDs, games, puzzles, stationery, and clothing.
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