Welsh 0-6-2T types
The numerous railways of South Wales had one thing in common apart from transporting coal in large quantities; their liking for the 0-6-2T type. The first was in 1885 on the Taff Vale Railway the design being by their mechanical engineer Tom Hurry Riches, father of Charles T. Hurry Riches who was the designer of the Rhymney Stephensons.
The suitability of the type was because the nature of the work they undertook demanded high adhesive weight, plenty of power with good braking ability, but no need for outright speed, nor large tanks or bunker as the distances from pit to port were short. These Welsh locomotives were taken over by the GWR at the grouping in 1923 and many, including seventeen of the Rhymney A, M, P and R's, were rebuilt with GWR taper boilers. All the Rhymney Stephenson-derived locos passed into British Railways (BR) ownership in 1948. Others included (with some gaps in numbering):
- Brecon and Merthyr Railway, BR numbers 431-436
- Cardiff Railway, BR number 155
- Rhymney Railway, BR numbers 35-83
- Taff Vale Railway, BR numbers 204-399
For further information on these pre-grouping locomotives see Locomotives of the Great Western Railway.
The Taff Vale Railway (TVR) was a standard gauge railway in South Wales, built by the Taff Vale Railway Company to serve the iron and coal industries around Merthyr Tydfil and to connect them with docks in Cardiff. It was opened in stages in 1840 and 1841.
The Rhymney Railway was a railway company in South Wales, founded to transport minerals and materials to and from collieries and ironworks in the Rhymney Valley of South Wales, and to docks in Cardiff. It opened a main line in 1858, and a limited passenger service was operated in addition.
The Great Western Railway (GWR) 4200 Class is a class of 2-8-0T steam locomotives.
The GWR 5600 Class is a class of 0-6-2T steam locomotive built between 1924 and 1928. They were designed by C.B Collett for the Great Western Railway (GWR), and were introduced into traffic in 1924. After the 1923 grouping, Swindon inherited a large and variable collection of locomotives from historic Welsh railway companies, which did not fit into their standardisation programme. GWR boiler inspectors arrived en masse and either condemned the original locomotives or had them rebuilt. The systematic destruction of many examples of locomotives, most still in serviceable condition, followed, but various were worked alongside 5600 Class.
The GWR was the longest-lived of the pre-nationalisation railway companies in Britain, surviving the 'Grouping' of the railways in 1923 almost unchanged. As a result, the history of its numbering and classification of locomotives is relatively complicated. This page explains the principal systems that were used.
The Barry Railway Company was a railway and docks company in South Wales, first incorporated as the Barry Dock and Railway Company in 1884. It arose out of frustration among Rhondda coalowners at congestion and high charges at Cardiff Docks as well the monopoly held by the Taff Vale Railway in transporting coal from the Rhondda. In addition, the Taff Vale did not have the required capacity for the mineral traffic using the route, leading to lengthy delays in getting to Cardiff.
The Taff Vale Railway U and U1 classes were 0-6-2T steam tank locomotive operated by Taff Vale Railway, Wales, from 1895. All were still in use when the Taff Vale Railway was acquired by the Great Western Railway in 1922, but were withdrawn from traffic between 1927 and 1931.
The Rhymney Railway M class was a class of 0-6-2T tank locomotive introduced into traffic on the Rhymney Railway in 1904. These were substantial sized tank engines, and weighed 66 long tons and were 36 feet 9 inches (11.20 m) in length.
The Rhymney R class was a class of 0-6-2T steam locomotive introduced into traffic in 1907 designed by the railway's engineer Hurry Riches. These were substantial sized tank locomotives, and weighed 67 long tons and were 37 feet (11.28 m) in length.
The Rhymney Railway A class were 0-6-2T tank locomotives introduced into traffic in 1910 and designed by the railway's engineer Hurry Riches. These were substantial sized tank engines, and weighed 64 long tons and were 35 ft 9 in (10.90 m) in length.
The Rhymney Railway P class was a class of 0-6-2T steam locomotive introduced into traffic in 1909 designed by the Rhymney Railway's engineer C. T. Hurry Riches. These were substantial sized tank locomotives, weighed 60 long tons and were 35 feet 0 inches (10.67 m) in length.
Brecon and Merthyr 0-6-2T locomotives were steam tank locomotives of the Brecon and Merthyr Railway including classes 36 and 45.
The Neath and Brecon Stephensons were 0-6-2T tank locomotives introduced into traffic on the Neath and Brecon Railway in 1904 from a Rhymney Railway design. There were three locos in the class. They were built by Robert Stephenson and Company and were almost identical to the successful Rhymney Railway M class.
This article summarizes Welsh 0-6-2T locomotives and, where possible, give links to main articles.
The Taff Vale Railway A class was a class of 0-6-2T steam tank locomotives designed by J. Cameron and introduced to the Taff Vale Railway in 1914. The A class was an enlarged version of the Taff Vale Railway O4 class designed by Tom Hurry Riches in 1907.
The Taff Vale Railway O4 class was a class of 0-6-2T steam tank locomotives designed by Tom Hurry Riches and introduced to the Taff Vale Railway in 1907. They were rebuilt with taper boilers and superheaters by the Great Western Railway (GWR) from 1924.
The Taff Vale Railway O2 class was a class of 0-6-2T steam tank locomotives designed by Tom Hurry Riches and introduced to the Taff Vale Railway in 1899.
The Taff Vale Railway O1 class was a class of 0-6-2T steam tank locomotives designed by Tom Hurry Riches and introduced to the Taff Vale Railway in 1894.
The Taff Vale Railway O3 class was a class of 2 0-6-2T steam tank locomotives designed by Tom Hurry Riches, built by Kitson & Co. and introduced to the Taff Vale Railway in 1904. They were rebuilt with new boilers by the Great Western Railway (GWR) in 1930.
The Taff Vale Railway H class was a class of 3 0-6-0T steam tank locomotives designed by Tom Hurry Riches, built by Kitson & Co. and introduced to the Taff Vale Railway in 1884. They were primarily used on the Pwllyrhebog Colliery Incline, and had special tapered boilers for this purpose.
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