GWR Route: Banbury to Wolverhampton

Rowington Junction & Troughs: gwrrj1480

Great Western Railway double framed 0-6-0 2361 class No 2378 picking up water at Rowington troughs with a down class H 'through freight' train circa 1930. Though numbered in midst of the ‘Dean Goods’ 2301 class these locomotives were double framed locomotives, built as part of an early standardisation scheme by the Great Western Railway's Chief Mechanical Engineer - William Dean. Four classes of engines were involved including Tender and Tank engines of both Passenger and Goods types. All the engines had identical cylinders and motions, but the boilers varied. No 2378 was built at Swindon Works in April 1886 as part of lot 67 and despite the fact that only twenty locomotives of this class were ever constructed, they had long and useful careers. Most were withdrawn in the 1930s but the Second World War postponed the withdrawal of the last three engines and thirteen of the class had operated over 1,000,000 miles before being withdrawn. No 2378 had a Belpaire boiler fitted in May 1912 and was known to be allocated to Banbury shed (BAN) in January 1921. In August 1929 this locomotive was superheated and within the following two years was also fitted with Automatic Train Control (ATC). In January 1934 No 2378 was known to be allocated to Stourbridge shed (STB). No 2378 was withdrawn from Reading shed (RDG) in March 1945 and scrapped at Swindon Works in April 1946.

Robert Ferris

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