John Hodge provides a detailed history of a very reliable class of Great Western freight locomotives and incorporates information on the duties they performed, particularly the 'Jellicoe Specials'. Also reviewed is the general heavy freight scene on the GWR and Western Region.
The fact that engines designed by the Great Western Railway in 1903 would be among the final Western Region engines to be withdrawn in the mid-1960s with the demise of steam on that region is surely the greatest tribute that can be paid to their designer - the great G. J. Churchward. Although we normally associate his fame principally with the 'Saints' and 'Stars' and The Great Bear, on the main-line freight side the '2800' was by far his most successful design, and was in fact the first engine with the 2-8-0 (Consolidation) wheel arrangement in the country. We must not, however, forget the almost equally-successful local freight engine built for South Wales - the '4200' class 2-8-0T, while the later '4700' class set a further very high standard for main-line mixed-traffic, which was unfortunately not carried forward.
Placed in perspective, the earliest engines of the '2800' class were being produced alongside the express passenger 4-4-0s - the 'Cities', 'Counties' and the like - all of which were withdrawn a generation before even the first of the '2800s' got anywhere near 'C' Shop at Swindon. The '2800' formed the backbone of the GWR and BR (WR) main-line heavy freight workings for well over fifty years, with assistance from the 'Aberdares', the 'ROD' 2-8-0s, the Stanier '8Fs' built for GWR use during the war but soon transferred to the LMS, and the ubiquitous 'WDs'. In total, 167 '2800' 2-8-0s were built in batches produced between 1903 and 1942 - an incredible tribute to a design that required little alteration over all those years - seeing the GWR through two world wars in the process.
The '2800' was conceived as one of Churchward's turn-of-the-century Standard Plan designs to cover the whole of the GWR requirement for motive power in the foreseeable future, and there is no better example of how significant this plan proved to be. With trainloads of coal from South Wales to all parts of the GWR proving a difficult task for the small 0-6-0s and their tank counterparts, the GWR realised, towards the end of the 19th century, that urgent work needed to be done on producing more-powerful goods engines alongside the larger passenger engines that were now being built.
... immediately set about designing a mainline heavy freight engine ... |
Whilst working under William Dean, Churchward had been involved with the production and performance of the experimental No 36 - a 4-6-0 design, nicknamed 'The Crocodile' - a monster machine, far bigger than anything so-far produced by Swindon, which could take thirty loaded coal wagons through the Severn tunnel in eleven minutes. This had been followed by the 'Krugers', of which the first was another 4-6-0, and the other nine 2-6-0s. These were again built for South Wales main-line coal traffic, but although good in theory and impressive to the eye, they were poor performers. Swindon carried forward their studies of the performance of this new breed of goods engine and developed the 'Aberdare' 2-6-0, developed from No 33 - a design based on the passenger 'Bulldogs' and 'Atbaras', and the most successful of the freight engines so-far produced.
Functional though the 'Aberdares' were, they were hardly powerful enough for the weight of the trains to be handled through the Severn tunnel and over the long routes involved to their final destinations in London, the west, south, and north of England, and Churchward, on taking office after Dean's retirement, immediately set about designing a mainline heavy freight engine as part of his conception of what was necessary within the Motive Power Plan for the GWR.
A visitor to 'A Shop at Swindon in the first half of 1903 would have seen the prototypes for both the 4-6-0 and 2-8-0 designs under construction, and in June of that year No 97, the prototype 2-8-0 (which in 1912 would become No 2800), was turned out in experimental black livery, lined-out in red - a more powerful engine than any of its predecessors. Its tractive effort worked out at 29,775lbs - an obvious target for the future. The two cylinders were 18ins x 30ins, with 8½in-diameter piston-valves, and she had a saturated steam boiler with a total heating surface of 2143.04sq ft, made up of a tube-heating surface of 1988.65sq ft and a firebox heating surface of 154.39sq ft - the grate area being 27.22sq.ft. Initial boiler pressure was set at 200lbs. The driving wheels were of 4ft 7½in diameter, the overall weight being 111tons 9cwt (engine 68ton 6cwt, tender 43ton 3cwt). The boiler was pitched low at 7ft 5½ins. The short-cone boiler was in two sections, the first ring being parallel, and the boiler clothing was in five sections. Like the early 'Saints', the smokebox was of shorter design than later, with the chimney well forward.
With her 4,000gallon tender No 97 was an impressive-looking engine and was aesthetically near perfect, lacking all the lumbering appearance of the early 4-6-0 freight engines and the 'Krugers', and a bigger, more-powerful machine all round than the 'Aberdare'. She had cost £2,608 for the engine and boiler, plus a further £473 for the new Churchward 4,000gallon tender, No 1561.
The trials with No 97 had obviously proved successful ... |
For the remainder of 1903 No 97 was allocated to Swindon for trial purposes, doubtless working mainly to Severn Tunnel junction in order to test her performance on the heavy coal trains through the tunnel, on which she would have been banked or piloted, but also on the long climb through Cattybrook and on to Badminton over the newly-opened cutoff route. She would also have been tested via Sapperton on the route via Gloucester, and on Filton bank, as well as on many of the other main freight routes of the company. In January 1904 she was moved from the Swindon trials, not, as one might have assumed, to Severn Tunnel junction shed, but to Westbourne Park.
The trials with No 97 had obviously proved successful, as during the second half of 1905 construction began of the first production batch of the class, Nos 2801-20. They showed the value of working with a prototype, as there were several fundamental changes to the design. First the boiler was pitched 8½ins higher, which meant you could now see straight underneath, above the frames. The boiler pressure was raised to 225lbs, and the piston-valves increased from 8½in to 10in diameter. The same short-cone boiler and short smokebox were retained with the chimney as before. Although the engine weight remained as before, it was spread more evenly, and the smaller 3,000gallon tender was used instead of the 4,000gallon version, reducing the weight by 6tons 8cwt to an overall 105tons 1cwt, the engine weight remaining the same at 68tons 6cwt The previous tractive effort of No 97 of 29,775lbs was increased by 12.5% to 33,495lbs - a significant improvement.
They were turned out in fully linedgreen livery, although No 2803 was reported as being in black with red & white lining in 1906, and there is a story that she was first painted in experimental blue. Cost as usual fell a little from the prototype, at £2,442 for the engine and boiler, while the 3,000gallon Churchward tenders (arguably Dean-type tenders as introduced in 1884) levelled out at £459.
It sounds incredible to anyone who knows the freight flow pattern of the Great Western Railway that of the first twenty production engines built between November 1905 and January 1906 no fewer than eighteen went new to Westbourne Park, with only two sent to Severn Tunnel junction, and one moved quickly from London to Newport to Severn Tunnel Junction. No doubt all the London main-line freight trains from Paddington Goods and Acton received the new engines before anyone else, although hopefully many would have worked empties to Severn Tunnel Junction, to return with loaded coal, as well as working loaded to Newport, Cardiff, Bristol, Exeter, Newton Abbot, Plymouth and Birmingham.
There must have been a great deal of disgruntled drivers and shed foremen at provincial depots, seeing the London turns all powered by new powerful engines while they had to struggle with their 'Aberdares' and ancient 0-6-0s! Tests were still being made with the class, and on 11 February 1906 No 2806 of Westbourne Park depot hauled a coal train of 955tons from Severn Tunnel Junction to Stoke Gifford (no doubt assisted from Severn Tunnel junction to Patchway), 1,095tons from Stoke Gifford to Swindon, and 1,630tons from there to London. No 2807 did far better, and on 25 February 1906 took 109 wagons weighing 2,012tons from Swindon to Acton, achieving a maximum of 32mph.
A new batch of ten engines (Nos 2821-30) appeared between February and June 1907. On these, the cylinder diameter was increased from 18 inches to 183/8 inches, increasing the tractive effort to 34,905lbs - a further 4.2%. Nos 2822-25 were fitted with long-cone boilers and longer smokeboxes, producing a more modem effect, although the remainder of the batch retained the former appearance. A wider copper-cap chimney, sometimes painted over, was used, replacing the narrower copper-cap version on the earlier engines, and this remained in use until the development of the tapering cast-iron chimney, which became standard on the class from the 1920s. Cost rose slightly to £2,458, plus £473 for the 3,000gallon tender. After the London bias of the first production engines, all the second batch went to the Provinces - three to Severn Tunnel junction, three to Landore, two to Aberdare, and one each to Laira and Bristol. Also, by now the Paddington allocation was starting to be slightly eroded with engines moved to Salisbury, Aberdare, and Pontypool Road, there being strong indications of through working to London from the last two places.
In March 1909 No 2808 received a Standard No 1 boiler, with 275sq ft of superheating and hydrostatic lubricators feeding oil to the piston valves and cylinders. A new batch of only five engines (Nos 2831-35) was produced in early 1911, the remaining five having been cancelled. These took advantage of the several changes made in the previous years, and also ran with 3,500gallon tenders rather than the previous 3,000gallon version. The book-cost of this new batch was £2,522 and £482. The cylinder-diameter was again increased, this time to 18½ inches, producing 35,380lbs, which became the final maximum, 18.8% above the prototype, until this too was so fitted. As engines went through Swindon they now received the long-cone boilers with extended smokeboxes. The total heating surface grew to 1,873.12sq ft, made up of the tubes at 1,608.14sq ft, the firebox 150.37sq ft, and the superheater at 264.98sq ft - a decrease of 12.5%on the prototype, indicating the increase in thermal efficiency. As the principle of superheating became more advanced, modifications were effected to its application to the class in the years ahead. Four of the new batch went to Tyseley and one to Old Oak Common, which had replaced Westbourne Park as the London depot in 1906.
March 1911 saw the first of the class equipped with top feed, No 2802, with the clack-valves fitted ahead of the safety-valve, but by July the position had been changed to being either side of the safety-valve cover, which of course became the standard position henceforth. The following batch of twenty (Nos 2836-55) were turned out from October 1912 to March 1913, the only difference being alterations to improve weight distribution by the addition of heavier castings to the frames. The earlier part of the batch cost £2,495 plus £479, and the latter part £2,531 and £485. The original square front-ends were now replaced by curved features, and the short smokeboxes with narrow chimneys were replaced with longer smokeboxes with wider chimneys. By now many changes in allocation had taken place, and it is no longer relative to record where the new engines went. From 1915 the fully lined-out green livery was replaced by one of plain green.
Much of the new build during the war years was taken up with the mixed-traffic '4300' class 2-6-0s, which performed good work on both passenger services and goods trains. The only pure freight engines built were the '4200' class 2-8-0Ts for South Wales. The next main event to affect the class has nothing to do with new builds, Swindon, or Churchward, but centres around World War I. From the outbreak of war in August 1914, South Wales steam coal from the Rhondda and Aberdare areas was required for use to supply the Grand Fleet, mainly based at Scapa Flow in the Orkneys, although supplies had to be made to the fleet at other parts an the Clyde, Tyne, Thames, on the East Coast, Holyhead, Birkenhead, Southampton, Gosport, Devonport, and Chatham.
... known as 'Jellicoe Specials' after the Admiral-in-Chief of the Grand Fleet. |
The flow which made the headlines and has come down in most detail in railway history was that from South Wales to Grangemouth, where the coal was transferred to colliers for the final part of the journey by sea to Scapa, the trains being known as 'Jellicoe Specials' after the Admiral-in-Chief of the Grand Fleet. The best account existing of this huge enterprise is in E. A. Pratt's British Railways and the Great War, which is commended to those wishing to study the period in more detail. Most northbound trains from the Rhondda and Aberdare valleys were routed via Pontypool Road. Pratt says that 'practically the whole of the company's heaviest 2-8-0 type of freight engine were required to work it', while others say that the whole (or almost the whole) of the fleet of '2800s' (the 56 engines) were based at Pontypool Road. In addition to the main routes to Warrington via Shrewsbury, Crewe, and Chester, some traffic passed over the Brecon & Merthyr line and Cambrian Railways to Gobowen where the GWR took over to work on to Warrington via Chester. At Warrington, trains were handed over to the L&NWR to work on to Carlisle, from where the North British Railway worked them on to Grangemouth, with large tonnages also taken to Glasgow by the Caledonian Railway on from Carlisle. The L&NWR were not blessed with goods engines as capable as the '2800s' and, due to congestion caused by the number of trains to be handled and the power to do so, trains had to be routed additionally over the L&YR, Midland, and NER routes to Carlisle and Glasgow. At the peak, some 114 loaded trains per week (16 / 17 trains per day) were run, day and night.
I have analysed the full allocation position for the '2800s' between 1914 and 1918, and the official allocation position found is that if the whole (or almost the whole) of the fleet was engaged on the 'Jellicoe Specials', then many other depots, in addition to Pontypool Road, were involved in the working. The end-of-year allocation at Pontypool Road for '2800s' between 1915 and 1918 was 24, 24, 29, and 32 - far short of 'the whole fleet', and just about capable of handling the maximum of 16/17 trains per day being run on many occasions, especially if one or two were run via the Brecon & Merthyr line. If the Aberdare allocation is entered into the equation, a further 9, 11, 11, and 7 engines could have been committed, giving a total of 33, 35, 40 and 39, which, with some traffic being taken via the B&M/Cambrian Railways, using their power as far as Gobowen, brings the position more into proportion to include allowance for periodic exams. This then left the '2800s' still based at Cardiff (Canton), Severn Tunnel Junction, St Philip's Marsh and Salisbury to work those trains routed via Gloucester and Birmingham to Scotland and other northern destinations, and the trains to the south and south-west coasts. However, Pontypool Road engines were recorded working through Llangollen in 1915, presumably with trains for Holyhead, so the depot's commitment did not end with the Scottish flow. I am left with the feeling that probably as much remains to be unearthed about this whole period as has been already!
The allocation registers contain a mass of re-allocations between Pontypool Road and Aberdare between 1914 and 1918, which, if they are indeed allocations rather than repairs, shows the vast complexity of the operation to an even greater extent. Pontypool Road and, presumably, Aberdare men worked through to Warrington via Crewe and Chester, but in order to keep these northbound routes open for the coal specials as well as the ordinary services (over which the coal trains had precedence), the returning empties ran additionally via alternative routes.
The end of the war saw the '2800s' return to their previous spread of depots in order to resume their normal operations. Nos 2856-65 were produced between April and June 1918, following which there was a gap until production resumed in October 1918 until March 1919 when the build stopped at No 2883 - a strange number to have stopped at, and the reason for which does not appear to have been recorded. What is of note is the level of inflation brought about by the war. Engines which had cost £2,531 in 1913 rose to £4,992, and tenders at £485 were now £834. During 1919 the power group and route restriction colours were painted on the cab sides. The '2800s' had an 'E' classification for power, and their maximum axle-loading of l7tons 5cwt brought them within the 'Blue' range for route availability (16tons-17tons 12cwt.). The 1920s saw the class fitted out with the smaller cast-iron chimneys, and during 1930 / 31 all engines were fitted with ATC.
During the 1920s there were plans at Swindon to refit 'Saints', 'Stars' and '2800s' with the new Standard No 7 boiler as on the '4700s', which would also have meant increasing the cylinder size. Collett chose to introduce his new 'Castle' class, instead of developing the 'Saints' and 'Stars', and the plans for the '2800s' were dropped, probably both on account of the problems caused in route restriction from the use of the larger boiler on the '4700s' and by the fact that 4-6-0s with the No 7 boiler would have been too heavy for the Civil Engineer.
In 1919 an interesting development took place when the GWR acquired twenty 2-8-0s from the Railway Operating Division of the Ministry of Munitions (Nos 3000-19). Between 1919 and 1922 a further 84 were loaned (Nos 3020-99 and 6000-03). However, most of the latter batch never entered service, and in October 1925 were sorted into two groups; the best of the engines were put into traffic during 1926/27, and renumbered Nos 3021-49. The remainder, renumbered as Nos 3050-99, were all scrapped between September 1928 and July 1930. The engines retained proved themselves to be very useful and ran very reliably over a long period. They had all been built with steel fireboxes and it was primarily the cost of converting all to copper fireboxes which led to fifty being condemned.
In January 1921 No 2804 went for tests on the North British Railway at the Glenfarg incline, hauling trains of up to 590tons without assistance on the 1 in 75 climb over 6¾miles. The tests were undertaken in very adverse weather conditions and the GWR gravity sanding equipment was not shown to good advantage, as the engine slipped to a standstill and failed to restart the train on one of the trials, and thus the opportunity was lost for the '2800' to stamp its authority on heavy goods working north of the Border.
By the mid-1930s the 'Aberdares' were coming to the end of their useful lives, coupled to the reduction in freight movement during that period, and the years 1934-36 saw 45 members of the class taken out of service, much of their work being taken up by the new '7200' class 2-8-2Ts (which were of course rebuilt '4200' class 2-8-0Ts) with increased coal and water capacity which enabled them to work through from South Wales to Salisbury and Birmingham.
With some '2800s' requiring new cylinders by the mid-1930s, Collett in 1934 fitted three engines with new-style cylinders with outside steam supply pipes to the valve chests, giving greater accessibility to all joints in the event of leakage, etc. This was followed in June 1935 by No 2819 being provided with a completely new front-end, featuring the new cylinders with outside steampipes, extension bar frames, and curved drop ends, and this became the standard for most of the rest of the class, the alterations continuing to be made until 1959, although some engines did remain with inside steam pipes and square front ends until withdrawal.
With further inroads being made into the 'Aberdares', and the '7200s' and 'RODs' not really being suitable for highprofile main-line freight over long distances, Collett decided that the depleted main-line heavy freight fleet needed to be strengthened as the country pulled out of the trade depression of the early and mid-1930s and, with another war looming, in 1938 he set about constructing a further batch of '2800s', 35 years after the first member of the class had been designed by Churchward.
The new build was slightly heavier than the original, at 76tons 5cwt, and were fitted with the more modern side-windowed cabs, outside steampipes, and the other modifications made to the earlier fleet from 1934. March/April 1938 saw the entry into service of the first ten of the new batch (Nos 2884-93), all except one being allocated to South Wales depots. November 1938 to January 1939 saw another batch of ten (Nos 2894-99, and 3800-03), then ten more during August/September 1939 (Nos 3804-13). Comparative costs with the final engines built in 1919 show some surprises, as the new engines cost only £4,285 as against £4,992. The book-cost of tenders for this new batch is misleading as these were actually 4,000gallon tenders destined for 4-6-0s which the Directors were not prepared to authorise, the new '2800s' being coupled to old 3,500gallon tenders.
... the '2800s' were among the main Great Western classes to be involved. |
As with other engines, the early war years saw the covering-in of cab-side windows in order to reduce the light from the fire which might help enemy aircraft, and all the final batches (Nos 3814-66) were built without them, but were fitted after the war when all GWR engines which had been 'blacked-out' had the side windows restored. Nos 3814-23 appeared from March to May 1940, Nos 3824-33 between September 1940 and January 1941, and the final Nos 3834-66 progressively between January and December 1942. During 1942 it was decided that the livery for all except express passenger engines would be in plain black, and this applied to No 3845 onwards. Many of this final batch were allocated in groups to depots in the London area, with five to Oxford, seven to Reading, three to Old Oak Common, and seven to Southall. As if to underline the strong association of the class with South Wales, the final engine (No 3866) was allocated new to Cardiff (Canton). In 1945, Swindon reverted to plain green for the class, this lasting until late 1948 when black was applied nationally to freight engines.
The reduced availability of best-quality Welsh steam coal in the immediate post-war years led the Government to sponsor a move towards use of oilburning by the railways, and the '2800s' were among the main Great Western classes to be involved. In an experimental initiative which began late in 1945, twenty members of the class were progressively fitted out for oil-burning (the first being No 2872 in October), and were once again painted green, the intention being that certain parts of the system such as Cornwall would become completely turned over to that method of combustion. However, the Ministry of Transport had not checked with the Treasury before committing itself to the use of oil, and the Treasury were embarrassingly forced to tell them that the Balance of Payments position precluded the purchase of sufficient oil for the venture to go ahead. The conversions to oil began in the latter part of 1945, but by mid-1948 the project started to be wound down and was quietly shelved without all that much publicity.
The twenty engines of the '2800' and '2884' classes were selected for oil-burning purely on which engines actually went through Swindon Works for Intermediate or Heavy Repair, and this accounts for the random set of individual engines which were involved, details of which are shown in Table One. Twelve of the original '2800' class engines were selected, and eight of the '2884' class. The engines were mainly allocated to South Wales depots, Severn Tunnel Junction, Llanelly, Cardiff (Canton) and Newport, with Llanelly being the main one, possibly on account of its proximity to Llandarcy Oil Refinery. There were also allocations to Old Oak Common, St Philip's Marsh, Laira, Banbury, and Swindon. All the main depots were provided with oil storage tanks and refuelling facilities. Towards the end of the experiment, several '2800s' had to be placed in store due to supplies of oil running out. Although, overall, oil-burning appeared to have been a success, the project was not without difficulties. Problems were experienced by some crews in very cold weather with the flow of oil from the tank into the firebox, and some crews had nasty experiences due to faulty mechanism on some engines. Housewives whose houses backed on to the lineside did not appreciate the black smoke which blackened their washing when an oil-burner went past!
| Table One | ||||
| Oil-burning Locomotives | ||||
| Engine No | New No | Date Converted | Allocation | Date Back to Coal |
| 2872 | 4800 | 10/45 | BAN, LLY, SDN, OOC, LLY | 09/48 |
| 2854 | 4801 | 11/45 | STJ | 02/49 |
| 2862 | 4802 | 02/46 | STJ, LLY | 09/48 |
| 2849 | 4803 | 05/46 | STJ | 04/49 |
| 2839 | 4804 | 05/46 | LLY | 10/48 |
| 2863 | 4805 | 05/46 | LLY | 05/49 |
| 2832 | 4806 | 05/46 | LLY | 04/49 |
| 2848 | 4807 | 06/47 | LA, SPM | 07/49 |
| 2834 | 4808 | 07/47 | LA | 01/50 |
| 2845 | 4809 | 08/47 | OOC | 12/49 |
| 2853 | 4810* | 08/47 | SPM | 06/49 |
| 2847 | 4811* | 09/47 | LA | 06/49 |
| 2888 | 4850 | 11/45 | LLY | 09/48 |
| 3865 | 4851 | 12/45 | STJ | 04/49 |
| 3818 | 4852 | 01/46 | STJ, SDN, STJ, LA, STJ | 09/48 |
| 3839 | 4853* | 05/47 | OOC | 11/49 |
| 3837 | 4854* | 06/47 | OOC, BAN | 08/49 |
| 3813 | 4855* | 07/47 | SDN | 06/49 |
| 3820 | 4856* | 07/47 | BAN | 06/49 |
| 3831 | 4857* | 08/47 | NPT | 05/49 |
| * Renumbered from conversion. Remainder renumbered later. | ||||
The Locomotive Exchanges of 1948 saw No 3803 selected to represent the former GWR design against the ex-LMS Stanier '8F, the ex-LNER Thompson '01', and the 'WD' 2-8-0 and 2-10-0. The routes selected were Acton to Severn Tunnel Junction, from Ferme Park to Peterborough, and Eastleigh to Bristol, all runs using hard Yorkshire coal, which gave an immediate advantage to the '01' 2-8-0 which took first place for coal and water consumption, but was only fourth for boiler efficiency. No 3803 took second place, and when a further test was made on the Western Region using Welsh steam coal to which the '2800' was far more suited, No 3864 took first place in all three categories.
Much of the heavy main-line freight on which the '2800s' were employed was long-distance, and many depot turns were lodging turns. All the longer-distance runs between Severn Tunnel Junction, Rogerstone, Newport (Alexandra Dock Junction), Aberdare, Llandilo Junction, Cardiff Yards, Margam, Bristol, Salisbury, Exeter, Hackney, Tavistock, Moreton Cutting (Didcot), Hinksey (Oxford), Reading, Acton, Old Oak Common, Banbury, Bordesley, Chester, and Shrewsbury, etc were handled by '2800s', and all classes of train from the faster Class 'C' down to the slowest heavy crawler. Generally speaking, their main use was on coal traffic from South Wales to all the main yards on the GWR, on goods traffic from each of the main goods sheds (eg; Paddington, Bristol, Cardiff, etc), and on the generality of wagon-load traffic which was the bread & butter of marshalling yards - especially animal feeding stuffs which passed between main suppliers and mileage yard warehouses. The allocation of '2800s' to Banbury was especially for use on the iron-ore trains to South Wales steelworks. Oxley always had a strong allocation and used the class extensively on its workings from the Birmingham area to all the main yards throughout the system.
The '2800s' always maintained excellent reliability figures, and results for 1955/56 showed an average availability of 79%. Average annual mileage ranged from 27,000-32,500 in sample years between 1950 and 1960, which compared well with a figure of almost 32,000 in 1937. The 1960 figure of only approximately 27,500, though fairly low for the '2800s', was higher than for the 'WDs', '8Fs', and '9Fs' working on the Western Region. Only the GWR '4700s' consistently exceeded the '2800' level of mileage. This was perhaps predictable as the '2800s' normally did just one long freight journey per day - eg; Cardiff (Pengam) to Saltney, Acton, Hackney, etc, and then returned the next day. Much of their work was 'SX', and very few ever turned a wheel on Sundays.
Because of the general nature of freight traffic, it was often impossible to return engines to their home depots for periodic exams, and the '2800s' had a small container attached to the valance above the left-hand cylinder to hold a card showing the boiler wash-out dates so that the engine could either be returned to its home depot or have the work carried out elsewhere.
On Summer Saturdays it was not uncommon to find them pressed into service on cross-country trains, in which they were the forerunners of the BR Standard '9Fs', and they often performed honourably on such, which were slowly timed and undemanding in terms of speed. At the other end of the spectrum they were often used on Engineer's specials, ballast trains, and breakdown trains, having a wide Route Availability of 'E' (Blue).
The 2-8-0 fleet had always been assisted by the mixed-traffic classes ... |
At the start of the war the Ministry of Defence had stated a requirement for sixty new '2800s' to be built for overseas service, but after the fall of France in 1940 this was cancelled. In fact, Nos 3815-23, completed between March and May 1940, were stored at Swindon until June, presumably as part of this project, but then went into normal service. Because of the heavy wartime commitment on the GWR which dealt inter alia with all the traffic to and from the South Wales ports which it owned, the 2-8-0 fleet was increased in 1940 by 25 LMS '8F' 2-8-0s which were all allocated to South Wales between October 1940 and October 1941. At the same time, 30 LNER '04' 2-8-0s were allocated, mainly to English depots, especially Oxley, between November 1940 and February 1943. Fifteen Southern Railway engines, mainly 'S15' and 'N15X' ('Remembrance') classes, were also allocated to Old Oak Common, Southall, Bristol (Bath Road), Gloucester, Swindon, Exeter and Newton Abbot, with two dock shunters at Fishguard, between November 1941 and mid-1943. Following the completion of the build of the '2884' class (No 3866) in 1942, Swindon built eighty LMS-designed Stanier Class '8F' 2-8-0s on the understanding that these would be used on the GWR during the wartime heavy-commitment years. These engines were completed between May 1943 and July 1945, and worked from all the main freight depots until they were progressively sent to the LMS during 1946/47.
During 1944/45, 89 heavy freight 2-8-0s were on loan from the War Department, and were again allocated right across the system, and these were replaced on return by a further fleet of 89 which remained on the GWR and BR (Western Region) to become its allocation, being renumbered from the previous 708XX, 77XXX, 78XXX and 79XXX series to the 90XXX series. Finally, the Great Western Railway benefitted from the acquisition of 175 American 2-8-0s en route from America for use in the liberation of Europe. These arrived at South Wales ports throughout 1943, and were allocated right across the company before finally being shipped to Europe during August and September (with a few in October) 1944. Prior to shipment, they were stored at various sites in South Wales close to the ports.
The end of the war saw the Great Western back to its basic allocation of 2-8-0s, with its complete fleet of 167 '2800s', 31 'Aberdares', 50 'RODs', 89 'WDs', and not forgetting the nine '4700' class engines used on fast freight between London and the west, Bristol and the north, but totally absent from South Wales. The 2-8-0 fleet had always been assisted by the mixed-traffic classes - 'Bulldogs' primarily until the arrival of the 'Hall' and 'Grange' class 4-6-0s during the 1930s. The ageing 'Aberdares' were one of the first classes to go after the war. With only running repairs made to many classes during the war years only a dozen survived into BR days, and the last was withdrawn in October 1949, so that more freights now found themselves worked by the 4-6-0 mixed-traffic engines.
Heavy inroads had been made into the 'ROD' fleet by the mid-1950s, and at the start of 1955 the fleet of '2800s' was down to around two dozen. October 1958 saw the final three '2800s' withdrawn, and this was the signal for the arrival of the superb BR Standard '9F' double-chimneyed 2-10-0s to be supplied to the Western Region, the only previous examples allocated having been the first eight of the class for the Newport Docks to RTB Ebbw Vale iron-ore working - all allocated to Newport (Ebbw Junction). The new 2-10-0s, with their ability to handle the heaviest of freights with apparent ease, plus those Summer Saturday passenger services which could not find 4-6-0 power, were a huge asset to the Western Region, although drivers often said they would still prefer to handle a '2800' than the new product.
It was the imminent arrival of the fleet of 2-10-0s which caused the withdrawal of the first of the '2800s', and it was appropriately No 2800, the former No 97, which was first to go in April 1958, having run 1.3million miles. Five more followed by the end of 1958, and by the end of 1959 a further 29 had gone. The final example of the original '2800' class was No 2876, which lasted at Newport (Ebbw junction) until January 1965, and of the '2884' class No 2895 at Cardiff East Dock until April 1965. The oldest example was No 2822, which went in November 1964. There were 31 members of the '2884' class which lasted into 1965, all but one being gone by the end of August - the last one, No 3836, withdrawn from Neath in November. Nos 3830 and 3833 spent the whole of their working life based at Newport (Ebbw Junction). Thirteen of the class were sold for preservation, No 2818 being at the National Railway Museum, while one was sold for spare parts.
Many of the older '2800s' covered between 1.4 million and 1.5 million miles, largely related to their number of years lifespan, but the highest mileage seems to belong to No 2818 which covered 1,584,890miles, having the benefit of lasting until October 1963, which lifted her above other pre-1908 engines. Possibly on account of this she was selected for preservation at the National Railway Museum. The highest mileage of any of the '2884' class engines was just over three-quarters of a million miles.
A drawhook on a GLM wagon broke ... |
Tender details are imprecise until about 1920, and it is not known how long the prototype remained with its 4,000gallon Churchward tender. Nos 2801-20 were paired with 3,000gallon tenders from new, and it seems likely that from No 2821, 3,500gallon tenders were used. Those engines built with 3,000gallon tenders may have retained them until possibly the 1920s, although one would have thought that the working of the 'Jellicoe Specials' during World War I may well have seen the '2800s' involved running with 3,500gallon tenders. Of engines paired from new with 3,500gallon tenders, only No 2828 appears to have run subsequently with a 3,000gallon version, from 1921 until 1930. Churchward 4,000gallon tenders and intermediate tenders appeared from time to time on the members of the class. Although the RCTS states that no larger tender was ever paired with a '2800', the Swindon Engine History Sheets show that between May 1943 and February 1944 No 2816 ran with a Collett 4,000gallon tender while based at Banbury, and the photograph seen below shows Croes Newydd's No 2871 also running with a 4,000gallon tender, although no record appears on the Swindon History Sheet, which suggests that the tender details were not fully accurate after 1920 either!
The '2800s' had an uneventful life as far as serious accidents were concerned. Although they had their fair share of derailments on points, and shed bumps due to poor look-outs, the worst situation involving one of them was the Shrivenham accident of 15 January 1936 when No 2802 of Severn Tunnel junction shed was hauling the 10.30am coal train from Aberdare to Old Oak Common, although neither the engine nor its driver was implicated. A drawhook on a GLM wagon broke west of Shrivenham box, and the train parted. The signalman failed to examine the train when it passed by for being complete with tail lamp, and five wagons and the brakevan were left on the up main line, while the guard failed to ascertain why his train had stopped for several minutes. A following up express was given a clear road and 'King' No 6007 King William III ran into the wagons, killing the driver and a passenger.
A detailed study of the allocation of the class over the 63 years of its existence shows that two of the most interesting and important periods were during the two world wars. By the start of World War I the class totalled 56 engines, the last of the previous batch having been completed during 1913. As mentioned previously, some commentators say that the whole of the class was committed at Pontypool Road to the 'Jellicoe Specials', but my analysis of the Peto Registers based on the official GWR records for each engine shows that this was not so. The allocation of Aberdare during this period is also important, but it has not been possible to ascertain whether that depot was involved in the working to Warrington, or simply in the more conventional working to Salisbury, Plymouth and London. Within South Wales, small allocations were maintained during the 1915-18 period at Cardiff (Canton) and Severn Tunnel Junction, doubtless for through working of coal to the Fleet at other parts. Small allocations were also maintained at several English depots, and these could have been involved in reciprocal empties working from the other end, returning with loaded trains viz; Banbury, Old Oak Common, Salisbury, St Philip's Marsh, and Tyseley, with Chester and Swindon having an allocation for part of the period. The split between South Wales and English depots during the period was 39/13, 44/12, 43/11 and 49/18, the difference between the first three totals and the full class of 56 being due to engines in Works at year-end, while the greater number in 1918 reflects the new build in that year.
During World War II the allocation between 1942 and 1945 is also very interesting and has, as far as I am aware, never before been studied as such. Almost all small allocations at the variety of depots possessing the class until 1941 were abandoned, and the class was concentrated at nine key depots, the year-end position being as in Table Two.
| Table Two | ||||
| 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | |
| Cardiff (Canton) | 32 | 32 | 31 | 29 |
| Newport (Ebbw Jet) | 22 | 23 | 18 | 18 |
| Aberdare | 15 | 14 | 20 | 19 |
| Severn Tunnel Jct | 15 | 15 | 15 | 16 |
| Banbury | 25 | 25 | 25 | 23 |
| Old Oak Common | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 |
| St Philip's Marsh | 12 | 13 | 13 | 13 |
| Southall | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| Reading | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Oxford | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
Other than this, the only other depots allowed an allocation were Laira (2), Swindon (1), and Pontypool Road (1), reflecting the total change in priorities since World War I. The large allocations to Cardiff and Newport reflected the level of imports through the respective docks, with St Philip's Marsh handling those through Bristol and Old Oak London Docks. Cross-country movement was reflected in the allocations to Banbury and Oxford (ex-LNER) and Reading (ex-SR), while Aberdare, Severn Tunnel junction, and probably Southall dealt largely with the continued coal movement.
Prior to World War I the main allocation of the class was to Old Oak Common, Salisbury, St Philip's Marsh, Tyseley, Aberdare, Severn Tunnel Junction and Landore. Between 1918 and 1942 the largest continuous allocations were to Severn Tunnel junction (maximum 17), Aberdare (maximum 17), Old Oak Common and Oxley (maximum 13), with smaller numbers at Laira (maximum 5), Swindon (5), Southall (4), St Philip's Marsh (10), Tyseley (7), Llanelly (8) and Pontypool Road (16). Between 1928 and 1935 Cardiff (Canton) lost its allocation of the class completely, while Newport's allocation only took off after 1939, having previously been only one to four, with none in some years.
With the new build of the '2884' class between March 1938 and December 1942, adding a further 83 engines to the class, the post-war allocations to the main using depots increased considerably. Severn Tunnel Junction became the dominant depot with 41 allocated at the end of 1955. Cardiff (Canton) had 25 at the end of 1957, Newport (Ebbw junction) 25 at the end of 1951, and Banbury 21 at the end of 1949, with the Canton and Banbury allocations much employed on the iron-ore trains from Banbury to the South Wales Steelworks. With coal traffic much reduced from its peak levels in the early decades of the century, Pontypool Road and Aberdare, by the mid-1950s, found themselves with only half their previous fleets, although Pontypool Road recovered in the late 1950s when there was a surplus of power available on the region with the building of the BR Standard '9Fs', and again saw up to thirteen based there. Old Oak Common's long association with the class ended completely in 1952 when the last eight were transferred away.
Even during the 1950s some depots saw their allocation of the class eliminated due to traffic flows, allocation of other classes for freight work ('Halls', 'Granges,' BR '9Fs'), depot availability and utilisation, and concentration, and even St Philip's Marsh was without '2800s' from 1957 to 1959, and after 1963. The last ten years of the class from 1955 onwards saw '2800s' at the following depots - Southall, Reading, Didcot, Oxford, St Philip's Marsh, Swindon, Westbury, Oxley, Banbury, Tyseley, Stourbridge Jct, Croes Newydd, Chester, Worcester, Gloucester, Newton Abbot, Taunton, Laira, Ebbw Jct, Canton, Severn Tunnel Jct, Neath, Landore, and Llanelly.
The '2800' 2-8-0 was a superb goods (later 'freight') engine. There was hardly ever a word of criticism of the class from GWR and Western Region drivers who invariably said they were engines that would never let you down. They steamed beautifully and were masters of the heaviest loads. Their huge lifespan is a glowing testimony to the design, which was never superseded as far as most old drivers were concerned.