| Caledonian Railway 49 and 903 Classes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 903 Cardean | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Caledonian Railway 49 Class and 903 Class were 4-6-0 express passenger locomotives designed by John F. McIntosh and built at the Caledonian Railway's own St. Rollox Works in 1903 and 1906 respectively.
In 1903, the Caledonian Railway had no passenger locomotives larger than 4-4-0s, and the heaviest trains over its main line between Glasgow and Carlisle required to be double headed, even in the less demanding southbound ('up') direction. Northbound ('down') trains also required banking assistance on the climb to Beattock Summit. In an effort to avoid these requirements, McIntosh designed a large 4-6-0 based on his 'Dunalastair' series of 4-4-0s. Two locomotives were built in 1903, and immediately became the Caledonian's flagship locomotives. Nonetheless, their performance did not live up to expectations, and it was soon clear that banking assistance was still required over Beattock. [3] Until 1906 the Caledonian railway had no turntables long enough for the 49 Class, and arrangements for turning them included use of the Cathcart Circle or turning locomotive and tender separately. [4]
By 1906, experience with the 49 Class had enabled McIntosh to design an improved version, and the installation of new turntables at major engine sheds presaged the arrival of five new locomotives. The first of these, number 903, was named "Cardean" after the country estate of one of the CR directors, and immediately became the company's new flagship locomotive, with its name becoming a nickname for the whole class. The Caledonian gave the new locomotives a great deal of publicity and "Cardean" thus achieved some fame. Even so, the performance of the 903s was still unremarkable. [5]
Neither class was equipped with superheating when built, but all seven locomotives were rebuilt with Schmidt superheaters and new cylinders during 1911. These modifications reduced coal consumption but made little difference to the locomotives' performance, [2] and McIntosh built no more large passenger 4-6-0s (although he did build smaller 4-6-0s for goods traffic). His successor William Pickersgill had no greater success with his sluggish outside-cylindered 60 Class or the disastrous three-cylinder 956 Class, so the Caledonian Railway continued to rely heavily upon 4-4-0s for express passenger traffic until the Grouping.
One 903 class locomotive was withdrawn in 1915 due to accident damage, but the other six locomotives passed to the London, Midland and Scottish Railway in 1923. The two 49 class locomotives were extensively renewed around 1924 with new frames and cylinders, [6] but all of the Caledonian passenger 4-6-0s were quickly eclipsed by new LMS Compound 4-4-0 and Royal Scot 4-6-0s. The four surviving 903s were withdrawn in 1927–30, whilst the two 49s lasted until 1933. All were scrapped.
| CR no. | CR name | LMS no. | Delivered | Works | Withdrawn | Class | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 49 | 14750 | March 1903 | St. Rollox | March 1933 | 49 Class | ||
| 50 | Sir James Thompson | 14751 | April 1903 | St. Rollox | December 1933 | 49 Class | Last to be withdrawn |
| 903 | Cardean | 14752 | May 1906 | St. Rollox | December 1930 | 903 Class | |
| 904 | 14753 | June 1906 | St. Rollox | May 1929 | 903 Class | ||
| 905 | 14754 | June 1906 | St. Rollox | September 1927 | 903 Class | First non-accident withdrawal | |
| 906 | 14755 | June 1906 | St. Rollox | February 1928 | 903 Class | ||
| 907 | July 1906 | St. Rollox | May 1915 | 903 Class | Accident write-off | ||
The London, Midland and Scottish Railway had the largest stock of steam locomotives of any of the 'Big Four' Grouping, i.e. pre-Nationalisation railway companies in the UK. Despite early troubles arising from factions within the new company, the LMS went on to build some very successful designs; many lasted until the end of steam traction on British Railways in 1968. For an explanation of numbering and classification, see British Rail locomotive and multiple unit numbering and classification.
The Caledonian Railway 60 Class were 4-6-0 passenger engines designed by William Pickersgill and introduced in 1916. Six were built by the Caledonian Railway at its own St. Rollox works in 1916–17, and all of them passed into LMS ownership in 1923. A further twenty locomotives of a slightly modified design were built by the LMS under the auspices of George Hughes in the period of 1925–1926.
The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) Royal Scot Class is a class of 4-6-0 express passenger locomotive introduced in 1927. Originally having parallel boilers, all members were later rebuilt with tapered type 2A boilers, and were in effect two classes.
The Patriot Class was a class of 52 express passenger steam locomotives built for the London Midland and Scottish Railway. The first locomotive of the class was built in 1930 and the last in 1934. The class was based on the chassis of the Royal Scot combined with the boiler from Large Claughtons earning them the nickname Baby Scots. A total of 18 were rebuilt to create the LMS Rebuilt Patriot Class between 1946 and 1948; thereafter those not subjected to rebuilding were often referred to as the Unrebuilt Patriot Class. These remaining 34 unrebuilt engines were withdrawn between 1960 and 1962.
The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) Hughes Crab or Horwich Mogul is a class of mixed-traffic 2-6-0 steam locomotive built between 1926 and 1932. They are noted for their appearance with large steeply-angled cylinders to accommodate a restricted loading gauge.
The London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) Fowler Class 4F is a class of 0-6-0 steam locomotive designed for medium freight work. They represent the ultimate development of Midland Railway's six coupled tender engines. Many trainspotters knew them as "Duck Sixes", a nickname derived from their wheel arrangement.
Caledonian Railway Single No. 123 is a preserved Scottish steam locomotive. The unique 4-2-2 was built by Neilson and Company in 1886, works No. 3553, as an exhibition locomotive. In 1914 it was placed on the Caledonian Railway duplicate list, and renumbered 1123. It entered London, Midland and Scottish Railway service in 1923 and the LMS renumbered it 14010 and gave it the power classification 1P. During the 1920s it was allocated to working the directors' saloon, but it was returned to ordinary service in 1930. The locomotive was withdrawn in 1935, by which time it was the last single-wheeled express engine running in Britain, and set aside for preservation.
The Glasgow and South Western Railway (G&SWR) 403 Class was a class of 2-6-0 (mogul) steam locomotive designed by Peter Drummond, of which 11 were built in 1915 by the North British Locomotive Company at its Queens Park works. Originally built as the 403 class, as a result of renumbering they became known as the 33 Class in 1916 and then 51 Class in 1919, before passing to the London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) on its formation in 1923, where they were given power classification 4F.
The London and North Western Railway (LNWR) Claughton Class was a class of 4-cylinder express passenger 4-6-0 steam locomotives.
The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) Rebuilt Royal Scot Class is a class of 4-6-0 steam locomotives. 70 members of this class were rebuilt by the LMS and its successor British Railways (BR) from LMS Royal Scot Class engines by the replacement of their life expired parallel boilers with a type 2A boiler over the period 1943–1955.. They were the second class to be rebuilt with type-2 boilers, after the rebuilding of British Legion and the Jubilee Class.
Locomotives of the Caledonian Railway. The Caledonian Railway Locomotive Works were originally at Greenock but moved to St. Rollox, Glasgow, in 1856. The locomotive classes are listed under the names of the railway's Chief Mechanical Engineers.
The Caledonian Railway 721 Class was a class of 4-4-0 steam locomotives designed by John F. McIntosh for the Caledonian Railway (CR) and introduced in 1896. All survived to be absorbed by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) in 1923 and a few survived into British Railways (BR) ownership in 1948.
The Caledonian Railway 191 Class were 4-6-0 passenger engines designed by William Pickersgill and built in 1922 by the North British Locomotive Company. The class was intended for use on the Callander and Oban line, to augment the 55 Class 4-6-0s and replace elderly 179 Class 4-4-0s, and they were thus known as the New Oban Bogies, however, they were also used on other Caledonian lines.
The Caledonian Railway 179 Class and 184 Class were 4-6-0 mixed-traffic locomotives designed by John F. McIntosh and built in two batches in 1913-14 and 1914-15 respectively, at the Caledonian Railway's own St. Rollox Works. The differences between the two batches were minor, and they are often considered to be a single class.
The Caledonian Railway 55 Class were 4-6-0 mixed-traffic locomotives designed by John F. McIntosh and built at the railway’s St. Rollox works in Glasgow in 1902-1905. The class was intended for use on the Callander and Oban line and were sometimes known as Oban Bogies, a nickname they shared with the earlier Brittain 179 Class 4-4-0s and the subsequent Pickersgill 191 Class 4-6-0s, all of which were built for use on the same route.
The Caledonian Railway 908 Class were 4-6-0 mixed traffic locomotives designed by John F. McIntosh and built in 1906, at the Caledonian Railway's own St. Rollox Works.
The Caledonian Railway 918 Class were 4-6-0 steam tender locomotives designed by John F. McIntosh and built in 1906, at the Caledonian Railway's own St. Rollox Works.
The Glasgow and South Western Railway 540 Class were 4-6-4T steam tank locomotives designed by Robert Whitelegg and built in 1922, shortly before the G&SWR was absorbed into the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS). They were referred to in official G&SWR publicity as the Baltic Class, although they were also known more prosaically to enginemen as the 'Big Pugs'.
The Caledonian Railway 944 Class were 4-6-2T passenger tank locomotives designed by William Pickersgill and built in 1917, at the North British Locomotive Company's Hyde Park Works in Glasgow. They were the Caledonian Railway's only pacific-type.
The Glasgow and South Western Railway (G&SWR) 131 Class and 137 Class were two closely related classes of 4-4-0 steam locomotives designed by Peter Drummond. A total of 12 locomotives were built between 1913 and 1915, with some constructed by the North British Locomotive Company (NBL) at its Queens Park works and others by the G&SWR at its Kilmarnock works. Originally designated as the 131 and 137 classes, the locomotives were later renumbered and became known as the 331 and 325 classes, respectively, in 1919. Following the formation of the London Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) in 1923, the locomotives were transferred to the LMS, where they were classified as 3P in terms of power rating.