Locomotives of the Glasgow and South Western Railway
Encyclopedia
The locomotives
of the Glasgow and South Western Railway
(G&SWR). The G&SWR had its headquarters in Glasgow
with its main locomotive works in Kilmarnock
.
(GPK&AR) and the Glasgow, Dumfries and Carlisle Railway
(GD&CR). A number of other companies were absorbed by the G&SWR or its predecessors, including the Ardrossan Railway
, the Paisley and Renfrew Railway
and the Kilmarnock and Troon Railway
.
. Until very late on in the company’s history these were used only when circumstances absolutely demanded it.
From 1851 new engines were given the numbers of older engines that had been withdrawn from service. Eventually new engines were being allocated the numbers of old engines that were intended for withdrawal but which were still running and so two engines would be running with the same number. In 1878 Hugh Smellie introduced an ‘R’ list to cater for older engines whose number had been allocated to a newer one. Later on Manson used an ‘A’ list system, where the older engine had an ‘A’ added to its number. By 1919 the system was so complicated that there was a complete renumbering of all engines.
Class numbers were the number of the first engine built in the class. Given the policy on numbering this meant that classes with lower numbers could frequently be newer than higher numbered classes.
See also LMS locomotive numbering and classification
policy of standardisation following the grouping. Within ten years nearly 80% had been withdrawn from service and only a single 1 Class Class 3F 0-6-4T engine remained by nationalisation in 1948.
Sold by the LMS in 1934 to a colliery in Denbighshire
, and subsequently passing into National Coal Board
ownership, it was from that location that it was acquired for preservation. It is now on display in the Glasgow Museum of Transport
.
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
of the Glasgow and South Western Railway
Glasgow and South Western Railway
The Glasgow and South Western Railway , one of the pre-grouping railway companies, served a triangular area of south-west Scotland, between Glasgow, Stranraer and Carlisle...
(G&SWR). The G&SWR had its headquarters in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
with its main locomotive works in Kilmarnock
Kilmarnock
Kilmarnock is a large burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland, with a population of 44,734. It is the second largest town in Ayrshire. The River Irvine runs through its eastern section, and the Kilmarnock Water passes through it, giving rise to the name 'Bank Street'...
.
Engines inherited from constituent companies
The G&SWR was formed in 1850 from a merger of the Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr RailwayGlasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway
The Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock and Ayr Railway was a railway in Scotland that provided train services between Glasgow, Kilmarnock and Ayr. For a short period, it also provided West Coast services between Glasgow and London. Opened in stages between 1839 and 1848, the line ran from Paisley in the...
(GPK&AR) and the Glasgow, Dumfries and Carlisle Railway
Glasgow, Dumfries and Carlisle Railway
The Glasgow, Dumfries and Carlisle Railway was a company in Scotland, which built and ran what is now known as the Glasgow South Western Line. The line was authorised on 13 August 1846 and was constructed between 1846 and 1850...
(GD&CR). A number of other companies were absorbed by the G&SWR or its predecessors, including the Ardrossan Railway
Ardrossan Railway
The Ardrossan Railway was a railway company in Scotland built in the mid 19th century that primarily ran services between Kilwinning and Ardrossan, as well as freight services to and from collieries between Kilwinning and Perceton...
, the Paisley and Renfrew Railway
Paisley and Renfrew Railway
The Paisley and Renfrew railway was a railway line from the town of Paisley to its neighbouring town Renfrew; and to the River Clyde at Renfrew wharf. The railway was built to the Scotch gauge of...
and the Kilmarnock and Troon Railway
Kilmarnock and Troon Railway
The Kilmarnock and Troon Railway was the first railway line in Scotland authorised by Act of Parliament, in 1808; the engineer was William Jessop. It was the first railway in Scotland to use a steam locomotive; and it was the only one in Scotland for fourteen years...
.
Engines built by the Glasgow and South Western Railway
One notable feature of the G&SWR’s locomotive stock was its aversion to tank enginesTank locomotive
A tank locomotive or tank engine is a steam locomotive that carries its water in one or more on-board water tanks, instead of pulling it behind it in a tender. It will most likely also have some kind of bunker to hold the fuel. There are several different types of tank locomotive dependent upon...
. Until very late on in the company’s history these were used only when circumstances absolutely demanded it.
Stirling (1853-1866)
See Patrick StirlingPatrick Stirling
Patrick Stirling was Locomotive Superintendent of the Great Northern Railway.His father Robert Stirling was also an engineer. His brother James Stirling was also a locomotive engineer...
- G&SWR 95 Class 2-2-2
- G&SWR 99 Class 0-2-x-2-0
- G&SWR 103 Class 0-6-0
- G&SWR 105 Class 0-4-2
- G&SWR 9 Class 0-4-2
- G&SWR 34 Class 0-4-2
- G&SWR 2 Class 2-2-2
- G&SWR 40 Class 2-2-2
- G&SWR 23 Class 0-4-2
- G&SWR 46 Class 0-6-0
- G&SWR 131 Class 0-4-2
- G&SWR 52 Class 0-4-0
- G&SWR 45 Class 2-2-2
- G&SWR 58 Class 0-6-0
- G&SWR 141 Class 0-4-2
Stirling (1866-1878)
See James StirlingJames Stirling (1835-1917)
James Stirling was a Scottish mechanical engineer. He was Locomotive Superintendent of the Glasgow and South Western Railway and later the South Eastern Railway.-Biography:...
- G&SWR 8 Class 2-4-0
- G&SWR 75 Class 2-4-0
- G&SWR 187 Class 0-4-2
- G&SWR 65 Class 0-4-0
- G&SWR 208 Class 0-4-2
- G&SWR 6 Class 4-4-0
- G&SWR 221 Class 0-4-2
- G&SWR 113 Class 0-4-0T
- G&SWR 13 Class 0-6-0
- G&SWR 1 Class 0-4-4T
Smellie (1878-1890)
See Hugh SmellieHugh Smellie
Hugh Smellie was a Scottish engineer. He was born in Ayr on 3rd March 1840 and died at Bridge of Allan on 19th April 1891.He was locomotive superintendent of the Maryport and Carlisle Railway from 1870-1878, the Glasgow and South Western Railway from 1878-1890 and the Caledonian Railway in...
- G&SWR 157 Class 2-4-0
- G&SWR 22 Class 0-6-0
- G&SWR 119 Class 4-4-0
- G&SWR 153 Class 4-4-0
Manson (1890-1911)
See James Manson- G&SWR 8 Class 4-4-0
- G&SWR 306 Class 0-6-0
- G&SWR 326 Class 0-4-4T
- G&SWR 336 Class 4-4-0
- G&SWR 14 Class 0-6-0T
- G&SWR No. 11 4-4-0
- G&SWR 160 Class 0-6-0
- G&SWR 361 Class 0-6-0
- G&SWR 381 Class 4-6-0
- G&SWR 240 Class 4-4-0
- G&SWR 266 Class 0-4-4T
- G&SWR 272 Class 0-4-0T
- G&SWR 18 Class 4-4-0
- G&SWR 17 Class 0-6-0
- G&SWR 128 ClassG&SWR 128 ClassThe Glasgow and South Western Railway 128 class is a class of two 4-6-0 steam locomotives designed by James Manson as a development of his 381 Class 4-6-0s, and were his final locomotive design before he retired...
4-6-0
Drummond (1911-1918)
See Peter Drummond- G&SWR 279 Class 0-6-0
- G&SWR 131 Class 4-4-0
- G&SWR 137 Class 4-4-0
- G&SWR 403 Class 2-6-0
- G&SWR 45 Class 0-6-2T
- G&SWR 5 Class 0-6-0T
R. H. Whitelegg (1918-1922)
See Robert Harben Whitelegg- Glasgow and South Western Railway 540 Class 4-6-4T
- Glasgow and South Western Railway 394 Class 4-4-0 "Lord Glenarthur" (rebuilt in 1922 from a Manson 4-4-0; this was the first 4-cylinder simple locomotive in the British Isles)
Numbering and classification
The very first engines of the GPK&AR were named but soon after received numbers. As the GD&CR was always intended to merge with the former its engines were allocated numbers following on from the GPK&AR sequence.From 1851 new engines were given the numbers of older engines that had been withdrawn from service. Eventually new engines were being allocated the numbers of old engines that were intended for withdrawal but which were still running and so two engines would be running with the same number. In 1878 Hugh Smellie introduced an ‘R’ list to cater for older engines whose number had been allocated to a newer one. Later on Manson used an ‘A’ list system, where the older engine had an ‘A’ added to its number. By 1919 the system was so complicated that there was a complete renumbering of all engines.
Class numbers were the number of the first engine built in the class. Given the policy on numbering this meant that classes with lower numbers could frequently be newer than higher numbered classes.
See also LMS locomotive numbering and classification
LMS locomotive numbering and classification
A number of different numbering and classification schemes were used for the locomotives owned by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway and its constituent companies; this page explains the principal systems that were used....
Liveries
Various shades of green provided the basic colour of the locomotives, with lining in black and white or black and yellow.Locomotives under LMS ownership
The G&SWR locomotive stock fell foul of the London, Midland and Scottish RailwayLondon, Midland and Scottish Railway
The London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
policy of standardisation following the grouping. Within ten years nearly 80% had been withdrawn from service and only a single 1 Class Class 3F 0-6-4T engine remained by nationalisation in 1948.
Preservation
Only one G&SWR locomotive has survived:- Glasgow and South Western Railway 5 Class 0-6-0T no. 9. In 1919 this became class 322, no. 324 and in the LMS was no. 16379.
Sold by the LMS in 1934 to a colliery in Denbighshire
Denbighshire
Denbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales. Pontnewydd Palaeolithic site has remains of Neanderthals from 225,000 years...
, and subsequently passing into National Coal Board
National Coal Board
The National Coal Board was the statutory corporation created to run the nationalised coal mining industry in the United Kingdom. Set up under the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946, it took over the mines on "vesting day", 1 January 1947...
ownership, it was from that location that it was acquired for preservation. It is now on display in the Glasgow Museum of Transport
Glasgow Museum of Transport
The Glasgow Museum of Transport in Glasgow, Scotland was established in 1964 and initially located at a former tram depot in Pollokshields. From 1987 the museum was relocated to the city's Kelvin Hall...
.
Sources
- Highet, Campbell (1965) The Glasgow & South-Western Railway, Lingfield: Oakwood Press
- Smith, David L. (1976) Locomotives of the Glasgow and South Western Railway, Newton Abbot: David & Charles