G&SWR 6 Class

The Glasgow and South Western Railway (GSWR) 6 class were a class of twenty-two 4-4-0 steam locomotives built in 1873. They were designed by James Stirling to handle express passenger trains taken over from the Midland Railway at Carlisle between there and Glasgow on the newly opened Glasgow and Kilmarnock Joint Railway.

G&SWR 6 Class
Type and origin Power type Steam Designer James Stirling (1835–1917) Builder Kilmarnock Locomotive Works Build date 1873-1877 Total produced 22
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 4-4-0 Gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) Leading dia. 3 ft 7 in (1.09 m) Driver dia. 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) Wheelbase 4 ft 10 in (1.47 m) + 7 ft 2.75 in (2.2035 m) Loco weight 39 LT (40 t) Fuel type Coal Water cap. 1,800 imp gal (8,200 L; 2,200 US gal) Boiler pressure 140 psi (0.97 MPa) Cylinders two Cylinder size 18 in × 26 in (460 mm × 660 mm)
Career Withdrawn 1894-1901 Disposition 17 renewed as G&SWR 194 Class remainder scrapped

Development

The twenty-two examples of this class were designed by James Stirling for the GSWR and built at Kilmarnock Locomotive Works (Works Nos. between 95 and 127) between 1873 and 1877. They were numbered irregularly, and not in chronological order between 3 and 115, to fill gaps in the sequence of running numbers. The members of the class were fitted with domeless boilers and a cut away cab. The first locomotive (No. 6) was fitted with a spring balance type safety valve, but the remainder had those of Ramsbottom design over the centre of the boiler.

No. 106 was exhibited at the Darlington Exhibition in 1875.

Withdrawal

The bulk of the class, including all the rebuilds were 'renewed' (i.e. substantially rebuilt) as G&SWR 194 Class by James Manson between 1895 and 1900, but five were scrapped between 1894 and 1897.

References

• Baxter, Bertram (1984). British locomotive catalogue 1825-1923. Vol. 4. Buxton: Moorland Publishing.