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GWR Route: Birmingham and Henley in Arden Railway
Company
Lapworth to Henley in Arden Branch Line: gwrha2816
Ex-Great Western Railway 2-8-0 30xx (ROD) class No 3044
leaving the up loop line (adjacent to the bay platform line) at Henley-in-Arden
with a class F unfitted express freight train circa 1951. No 3044 was
originally ROD No 2156, built by the North British Locomotive Company Ltd at
their Atlas Works (Works No 22246) in 1919. It was purchased by the Great
Western Railway in May 1925 and taken into their stock in March 1927.
In the middle of the First World War a simple heavy haulage
standard gauge locomotive was identified as a priority by the Railway Operating
Division (ROD) of the British Army in France. The locomotive design selected
was a 2-8-0 variant of the Great Central Railways 8K class, designed by
their Chief Engineer JG Robinson. The UK Government ordered 518 locomotives of
this type to be built by five locomotive manufacturers; North British
Locomotive (NBL) Co Ltd (369), Robert Stephenson & Co Ltd (82), Nasmyth,
Wilson & Co Ltd (32), Kitson & Co Ltd (32) and Great Central Railway
(4). They were constructed between 1917 and 1919, but the war ended in November
1918 and by the end of March 1919 only 305 had cross the channel for service on
the continent. In 1919, the Government declared them surplus and they were
placed up for sale.
The Great Western Railway purchased twenty of the newly
built 2-8-0 locomotives in 1919 and hired a further eighty-four, but these
hired locomotives were returned after a few years. By 1924 the UK Government
had only sold fifty locomotives and desperate to recoup some of their
expenditure they brought in George Cohen & Armstrong Whitworth Disposal
Corporation to sell the remaining locomotives at the highest price possible. At
£1,500 each, the Great Western Railway purchased eighty locomotives in
May 1925 under their lot 240. Many had of these had been standing idle for the
last five years and it was decided, after placing them in traffic for about
four months, to identify the best thirty locomotives, which would then be
overhauled under lot 241, while the remainder would be patched up, painted
black and run into the ground. The overhaul at Swindon Works, included
replacing the steel firebox with a copper firebox, removing the Westinghouse
brake apparatus, providing standard Swindon fittings and painting green.
The 30xx boiler operated at 185 lb and the locomotive had a
tractive effort at 85% of 32,200 lb, which meant it was classified in power
group D. The maximum axle weight of 17 tons, 7 cwt restricted the locomotives
to all main lines and some branch lines (route colour Blue) see
Engine Map. The tenders
purchased at the same time as the locomotive were allocated to GWR tender lot
A115. They could hold 4,000 gallons of water and had a 6 ton coal capacity. The
30xx class had a steam brake making them unable to connect with fully fitted or
partial fitted vacuum braked rolling stock, but they found a role hauling heavy
unfitted goods trains. Many were allocated to South Wales sheds for the
frequent long distance coal trains of private owner wagons or to Banbury shed
for the iron ore traffic. For more details of No 3044 see image 'gwrha1415'.
Robert Ferris
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