GWR Route: Banbury to Wolverhampton

GWR Route: North Warwickshire Line

Birmingham Snow Hill Station: gwrbsh1792

Great Western Railway 30xx (ROD) class 2-8-0 No 3033 on the down through main line with a class F - through fast freight (denoted by the red lamp on the smokebox and second lamp positioned in the centre of the buffer beam) on 4th October 1946. 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 Railway’s 8K class, designed by their Chief Engineer JG Robinson. The UK Government ordered 518 locomotives of this type to be built by three locomotive manufacturers. This particular locomotive was manufactured at the Hyde Park Works of the North British Locomotive (NBL) Co Ltd and given a makers works No 21829. It was amongst a batch of fifty locomotives ordered in June 1917 by the Ministry of Munitions under their lot L692, at a cost of £6,030 per locomotive. This included a profit of approximately 10% for NBL, but excluded the commission of £743 per locomotive, which the government paid to Walter Behrens for negotiating the deal. As JG Robinson held the two patents for the locomotive’s superheater and lubricator, he received £60 and £10 respectively per locomotive from NBL. This locomotive was built, given ROD No 1852 and shipped to France in 1918, but the war ended in November of that year and most of the 2-8-0 locomotives were repatriated back to England, where 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. One of the locomotives hired in September 1919, included ROD locomotive No 1830 and this was temporarily allocated No 3033, but was returned to the Government in September 1921and subsequently purchased by the LNER in 1924. 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. When purchased by the Great Western Railway, ROD No 1852 was originally given the number No 3057, but following the major overhaul at Swindon Works, which included replacing the steel firebox with a copper firebox, removing the Westinghouse brake apparatus, providing standard Swindon fittings and painting green, was renumbered No 3033 and taken on to the official stock in October 1926.

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). The original tenders could hold 4,000 gallons of water and had a 6 ton coal capacity. In 1934, No 3033 was known to have been paired with tender No 2463, which was one of the 4,000 gallon tenders purchased at the same time as the locomotive, being allocated GWR tender lot A115.

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 for the iron ore traffic. In October 1926, No 3033 was known to have been allocated to Exeter shed (EXE), but in January 1934, was at Oxley shed (OXY) north of Wolverhampton. In January 1938, No3033 was known to have been allocated to Stourbridge shed (STB), but in December 1947 prior to nationalisation, was again allocated at Oxley shed. In April 1949, No 3033 was rebuilt on the frames of locomotive No 3005, which had been withdrawn in August 1948. The rebuilt No 3033 was known to have been allocated to Oxley shed (84B) in 1950, but was withdrawn from Shrewsbury shed (84G) in May 1953.

Robert Ferris

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