South Devon Railway Comet class

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South Devon Railway Comet Class
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
Designer Daniel Gooch
Buildervarious
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 •  Whyte 4-4-0 ST
Gauge 7 ft 1⁄4 in (2,140 mm)
Leading dia. 3 ft 6 in (1.07 m)
Driver dia.5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Wheelbase 17 ft 9 in (5.41 m)
Cylinder size 17 in × 24 in (430 mm × 610 mm)
Career
Operators South Devon Railway
Class Comet

The Comet class were 12 4-4-0 ST broad gauge locomotives operated on the South Devon Railway and associated railways. They were designed for passenger trains on this steep and sharply curved line but were also used on goods trains when required.

They were ordered by Evans and Geach who were contracted to operate the railway's locomotives. They were designed by Daniel Gooch and based on his Bogie class locomotives built for the Great Western Railway who had previously operated the South Devon Railway.

On 1 February 1876 the South Devon Railway was amalgamated with the Great Western Railway, the locomotives were given numbers by their new owners but continued to carry their names too.

Six similar locomotives were built for the Vale of Neath Railway by Robert Stephenson and Company in 1851. Some of these could be found working on the South Devon lines after the 1876 amalgamation.

Locomotives

Built by Longridge and Company. Named after the goddess Aurora.
Built by Longridge and Company. On 1 August 1853, it was working an express train when it collided with Ixion, which had passed a danger signal at Rattery, Devon.
The name Comet represents a heavenly body, and was reused on a Leopard class locomotive built in 1875.
Built by the Haigh Foundry, it was named after Damon, a Greek mythological character.
Built by the Haigh Foundry. On 13 September 1866, Falcon was working the mail train when it failed to stop at the signal at Plympton so it collided with Brutus , which ran away to Plymouth. It was named after a bird, the falcon.
Built by Stothert and Slaughter. On 1 August 1853, Ixion was working a goods train from Exeter to Plymouth. At Rattery the driver ignored a danger signal and collided with a mail train while shunting. Ixion was badly damaged and was out of use for many months, despite having seen less than five months' work at the time. Named after Ixion from Greek mythology.
Built by Longridge and Company. Lance was written off after it was involved in a head-on collision with another train near Menheniot railway station on the Cornwall Railway on 2 December 1873. At the time it was providing front-end assistance to a heavy goods train. The name Lance means a projectile, and was reused on a Leopard class locomotive built in 1875.
Built by Longridge and Company, Meteor was named after a heavenly body, a meteor.
Built by the Haigh Foundry. Named after Orion, a Greek Titan.
Built by Stothert and Slaughter. On 31 October 1853, it was approaching Totnes railway station with a passenger train when it was hit by a goods train which had been unable to stop after descending the incline from Rattery. After withdrawal, Osiris was taken to Portreath where it provided steam for the stationary engine that powered the cable railway which raised wagons from the harbour up to the West Cornwall Railway line.
Named after Osiris, the Egyptian god of death, the name was reused on a Leopard class 4-4-0ST.
Built by Fairbairn and Sons, Ostrich was named after a large African bird, the ostrich.
Built by the Haigh Foundry, it was named after Priam, the king of Troy.
Built by Longridge and Company, it was named after a projectile, a rocket.

Related Research Articles

Locomotives of the Great Western Railway

The first Locomotives of the Great Western Railway (GWR) were specified by Isambard Kingdom Brunel but Daniel Gooch was soon appointed as the railway's Locomotive Superintendent. He designed several different 7 ft 1⁄4 in broad gauge types for the growing railway, such as the Firefly and later Iron Duke Class 2-2-2s. In 1864 Gooch was succeeded by Joseph Armstrong who brought his standard gauge experience to the workshops at Swindon. To replace some of the earlier locomotives, he put broad gauge wheels on his standard gauge locomotives and from this time on all locomotives were given numbers, including the broad gauge ones that had previously carried just names.

The Banking Class were five 0-6-0ST Brunel gauge steam locomotives for assisting ("banking") trains up inclines on the Great Western Railway. Designed by Daniel Gooch, they were tank engine versions of his Standard Goods class, and mainly built at Swindon Works.

The Great Western Railway Sir Watkin Class were 0-6-0T broad gauge steam locomotives. They were designed for working goods trains through to the underground Metropolitan Railway in London. This class was introduced into service between December 1865 and the last was withdrawn at the end of the GWR broad gauge in May 1892. They were all named after directors and senior officers of the railway.

GWR Firefly Class

The Firefly was a class of broad gauge 2-2-2 steam locomotives used for passenger services on the Great Western Railway. The class was introduced into service between March 1840 and December 1842, and withdrawn between December 1863 and July 1879.

The Great Western Railway Sun Class 2-2-2 broad gauge steam locomotives for passenger train work. This class was introduced into service between April 1840 and January 1842, and withdrawn between January 1864 and June 1879.

The Bristol and Gloucester Railway was a railway company opened in 1844 to run services between Bristol and Gloucester. It was built on the 7 ftBrunel gauge, but it was acquired in 1845 by the 4 ft 8+1⁄2 instandard gauge Midland Railway, which also acquired the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway at the same time.

Bristol and Exeter Railway

The Bristol & Exeter Railway (B&ER) was an English railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter. It was built on the broad gauge and its engineer was Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It opened in stages between 1841 and 1844. It was allied with the Great Western Railway (GWR), which built its main line between London and Bristol, and in time formed part of a through route between London and Cornwall.

South Devon Railway locomotives

South Devon Railway locomotives were broad gauge locomotives that operated over the South Devon Railway, Cornwall Railway, and West Cornwall Railway in England. They were, at times, operated by contractors on behalf of the railways.

The West Cornwall Railway was a railway company in Cornwall, Great Britain, formed in 1846 to construct a railway between Penzance and Truro. It purchased the existing Hayle Railway, and improved its main line, and built new sections between Penzance and Hayle, and between Redruth and Truro, and opened throughout in 1852.

The Eagle class were sixteen 4-4-0ST broad gauge locomotives operated on the South Devon Railway (SDR), Cornwall Railway (CR) and associated adjacent railways. They were designed for passenger trains on this steep and sharply curved line but were also used on goods trains when required.

South Devon Railway Leopard class

The Leopard class were four 4-4-0STbroad gauge locomotives designed for passenger trains but were also used on goods trains when required. They were built by the Avonside Engine Company for the South Devon Railway, but also operated on its associated railways. Although designed for easy conversion to standard gauge this was never carried out.

The four Tornado class locomotives were 0-6-0ST broad gauge locomotives operated on the South Devon Railway and associated railways. They were designed for goods trains but were also used on passenger trains when required.

South Devon Railway <i>Dido</i> class Class of 8 British broad-gauge 0-6-0ST locomotives

The eight Dido class locomotives were 0-6-0ST broad gauge locomotives operated on the South Devon Railway and Cornwall Railway and associated other adjacent railways. They were designed for goods trains but were also used on passenger trains when required.

The Bristol and Exeter Railway 0-6-0 locomotives include three different types of broad gauge and standard gauge 0-6-0 steam locomotives designed for working freight trains. On 1 January 1876 the Bristol and Exeter Railway was amalgamated with the Great Western Railway, after which the locomotives were given new numbers.

The seven Bristol and Exeter Railway 2-2-2WT locomotives were small 2-2-2 well tank locomotives designed by James Pearson for working branch lines such as those to Tiverton and Clevedon, as well as acting as pilot locomotives at Bristol. The first was delivered in 1851, and the last withdrawn in 1880.

Vale of Neath Railway 0-6-0ST locomotives were 0-6-0ST steam locomotives for working the heavy goods traffic on the Vale of Neath Railway and its associated lines in Wales. The first of 13 broad gauge locomotives entered service in 1854 and the last was withdrawn in 1886. The remaining four were standard gauge locomotives.

GWR Haigh Foundry locomotives

The first 19 locomotives ordered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel for the Great Western Railway included two unusual Haigh Foundry locomotives.

North Devon Railway

The North Devon Railway was a railway company which operated a line from Cowley Bridge Junction, near Exeter, to Bideford in Devon, England, later becoming part of the London and South Western Railway's system. Originally planned as a broad gauge feeder to the Bristol & Exeter Railway, it became part of a battle between the broad gauge group and the standard gauge railway interests. In this context, standard gauge lines were often described as narrow gauge.

References

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