Great Western locomotive types

Great Western locomotive types:
late Dean/Churchward and later
Star class
King
111
57xx
City
See also index of loco classes
Steamindex home page
See also Churchward, Collett & Hawksworth

Although it is possible to identify designs which were purely Joseph Armstrong, or William Dean, or Churchward, or even Collett, it is difficult to isolate these in the way that one can refer to a Gresley, or to a Stanier design. On the GWR design policy tended to merge and there is the protracted Dean/Churchward period prior to Churchward taking full command. Collett remained deeply wedded to the past and the improbable Earls emerged after the Gresley and Stanier streamlined Pacifics. One cannot imagine that Churchward would have approved of these anachronisms, or the 48XX 0-4-2Ts (the Churchward steam railcars were far more advanced with their outside valve gear).

Furthermore, the Great Western differed from the other post-1923 railways in that the grouping was achieved by a process of logical absorption, rather than by amalgamation. Thus, a great continuity was preserved, especially as Churchward had established a policy of standardization and this was maintained until 1947. For this reason, the locomotives will be considered as one unit, whether built under Churchward, Collett or Hawksworth. Dean will be partly considered in this section

A great wealth of published material exists about the railway and its locomotives. MacDermot's history is one of the major works of reference on railways, but it does not extend beyond 1921 nor is locomotive development considered in depth. C.R. Clinker revised MacDermot's work, which was published by Ian Allan in 1964. In the preface he advises readers to refer to the RCTS The locomotives of the Great Western Railway for further information on mechanical development. It should be noted that the revised edition does not credit A.C.W. Lowe for the section on locomotive and carriage development. O.S. Nock wrote a sequel to Clinker's revision, which surveys the post-1923 period. This third volume does not perpetuate MacDermot/Clinker's style and locomotive development receives greater emphasis, unfortunately at the expense of less detail about commercial activities.

General studies

Allen, C.J. Great Western. London, Ian Allan, [1962?] . 72 p. 41 illus.
Concise history.
Beale, Gerry, GWR locomotives between 1900 and 1910: Chapter V in John Norris et al's Edwardian enterprise
Fortunately, the author does not keep exactly to the stated period, but extends his survey to the retirement of Churchward. Thus the 47XX class is included. There some excellent photographs excellently reproduced. Some of the most interesting depict the steam railmotors and locomotives adapted for auto-train working complete with ersatz bodywork
Behrend, G. Gone with regret. Sidcup (Kent), Lambarde Press, 1964. 193 p. + 48 plates, 83 illus., 10 tables, maps on end papers. Bibliog.
A collection of personal reminiscences.
Brewer, F.W. Modern locomotive practice on the Great Western Railway. Rly Mag., 1928, 62, 104-13; 194-8; 283-9; 388-97; 450-4: 63, 27-33; 105-8; 204-12; 294-9; 351-5; 452-62: 1929, 64, 107-16; 197-202; 341-9; 439-49; 65, 33-42; 350-6; 1930, 66, 41-9; 425-31. 103 illus., 40 tables.
A very detailed survey of development and performance from the time when Churchward's influence began to permeate Dean's work.
Casserley, H.C. and Asher, L.L. Locomotives of British Railways, Great Western group; a pictorial record. London, Andrew Dakers, [19 ].114 p. 164 iIIus.
Casserley, H.C. and Johnston, S.W. Locomotives at the grouping. [v. 4]. Great Western Railway. London, Ian Allan, 1966. 144 p.+ 24 plates. 95 illus., 268 tables.
Cook, K.J. G.W.R.locomotives, 1901-1951. Rly Mag., 1952, 98, 157-61. 4 illus., 2 tables.
The policy of standardization.
Cook, K.J. The late G.J. Churchward's locomotive development on the Great Western Railway. J. Instn Loco. Engrs, 1950, 40, 131-71. Disc.: 171-210. (Paper No.492)
This is the most complete professional assessment of the core of Great Western locomotive development
G.W.R. locomotives, 1837-1935. Rly Gaz., 1935, 63, (Aug. 30) G.W.R. Centenary Supplement, 34-9. 12 illus., table.
[G.W.R. locomotives-stock total as at 31 st December, 1922. (including absorbed stock)]. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1923, 29, 188. table.
Great Western Railway: Swindon lots - standard gauge. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1946, 22, 128-9. table.
Chronological table.
Haresnape, Brian. Churchward locomotives. a pictorial history. Ian Allan, 1976.
Haresnape, Brian. Collett & Hawksworth locomotives. a pictorial history. Ian Allan, 1978. 128pp.
Holcroft, H. An outline of Great Western locomotive practice, 1837-1947. London, Locomotive Publishing Co., 1957. viii, 168 p. incl. 32 plates + col. front. (133 illus. incl. 37 line drawings: s. els.), 21 diagrs., 2 tables.
The author was trained at Swindon.
Knox, C. The un-beaten track. London, Cassell, 1944. 199 p. + front. + 6 plates. 8 illus.
A history of 1939-45 War activity.
Lowe, A.C.W. The Locomotive and Carriage Department [in :] MacDermot, E.T. History of the Great Western Railway. v. 2.1863-1921. London, G.W.R., 1931. xii, 654 p. + front. + 2 folding plates. 162 illus. (inc1. 24 ports.), 13 diagrs., 20 tables, 3 plans, 7 maps. Bibliog. (footnote references).
Pp.509-93 : This well assembled official record was superseded by the RCTS history.
Mountford, E.R. and Davies, F.K. The G.W.R. and the Railways Act, 1921. Rly Obsr, 1941, 13, 104-7.
Mainly its effect on numbering.
Nock, O.S. Fifty years of Western express running. Bristol, Edward Everard, 1954. xii, 353 p. + col. front + 60 plates, (incl. 7 folding & 7 col.) 89 illus., 15 diagrs. (incl. 12 s. els.), 144 tables.
A compendium of locomotive performance: this work receives detailed scrutiny elsewhere.
Nock, O.S. Great locomotives of the GWR. Wellingborough: Patrick Stevens, 1990. 231pp.
Nock, O.S. The Great Western Railway: an appreciation. Cambridge, Heffer, 1951. xii, 185 p. + front + 32 plates. 64 illus. (incl. 7 line drawings: s. els.), diagr., 7 tables, 12 maps.
Nock, O.S. The Great Western Railway in the twentieth century. London: Ian Allan, 1964. 212 p. + col. front. + 32 plates. 73 illus. (incl. 4 ports.), 23 diagrs., 24 tables, 3 plans, map. Bibliog.
Nock, O.S. History of the Great Western Railway. v. 3. 1923-1947. London, Ian Allan, 1967. 268 p.
Railway Correspondence & Travel Socieety. The locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 1. Preliminary survey.
Although this was a tremendous achievement at the time it now sometimes seems sketchy in comparison with the huge survey of LNER locomotives, especially when it is remembered that this attempts to survey all GWR locomotives, including broad gauge and all absorbed locomotives. Nevertheless, it remains the definitive source. It should be available in electronic form.
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives].
Smith, C. Centenary of the Great Western Railway: some notes on its locomotives. Rly Obsr, 1935, 7, 137-41; 145-8; 165-8; 204.7; 225-9: 1936, 8, 22-3; 73-7; 146-8; 228-30; 259-61; 269-71; 303-5: 1937, 8, 11-12; 37 -8; 89-91; 99; 131-2. 12 illus., 2 tables.
Part 2 and subsequent parts were entitled "G.W.R. locomotives, 1921-934" changed in 1936 by the addition of one year to the latter date. F.K. Davies added a further article: Rly Obsr, 1938, 10, 138.
Tuplin, W.A. Great Western steam. London, Allen & Unwin, 1958. xiv, 193 p. + front. + 16 plates. 35 illus., 12 diagrs. (incl. 6 s. els.), 6 tables.
Contains a critical assessment of locomotive development. plus notes on footplate journeys. The illustrations are accompanied by detailed captions. The following brief extract gives a succinct account of Churchward's key contributions:

excellence of basic design;
excellence of detail design;
excellence of materials used;
excellence of workmanship;
intelligence and enterprise in handling on the road;
high standard of maintenance in service.

Tuplin, W.A. Great Western steam. London, Allen & Unwin, 2nd ed. 1965. xiv, 194 p. + 16 plates. 35 i lIus., 26 diagrs., (incl. 14 s. els.), 6 tables.
This edition contains an extra paragraph and more diagrams.

Names

Coltas, Gordon. Names & nameplates of British steam locomotives. Part 2. G.W.R. & absorbed. Crosby: Heyday, 1985.
Ottley 17979

Boilers

Compton, J.N. Discussion on Cook, K.J. The late G.J. Churchward's locomotive development on the Great Western Railway. J. Instn Loco. Engrs, 1950, 40, pp. 203.
Criticised the short stumpy boilers (a result of Churchward's seeking the maximum degree of standardization in throat plates, etc.) which must have led to difficulties on tubing because the shortness of barrels in proportion to gas area must affect the A/S ratio or hydraulic effect. One must have an enormous number of tubes, and that would lead to too much gas area. Cook avoided the specific question and implied that Churchward was seeking the free circulation of water. Compton's observations on the combining valve received a crisp response:

Rutherford, Michael. The Great Western, boilers and The Great Bear. (Provocations) [Railway Reflections No. 15]. Backtrack, 1996, 10, 146-54.
Boiler development under Churchward culminating in that for The Great Bear set against the competitive position of the railway company at that time.

2-8-0

28XX: 1903: Churchward:
This was the first British 2-8-0 design (the Whale 2-8-0s which were merely an extension of an 0-8-0 design did not emerge until 1904). The prototype, No. 97, was vastly in advance of most other freight locomotives in use on Britain's railways at that time and was comparable to the prototype 4-6-0s being developed during the same period, which represented a similar quantum leap. A slightly modernized version, the 2884 class, was introduced by Collett in 1938. Robinson in 1911 and Gresley (with external valve gear) and Fowler (for the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway) followed with further 2-8-0 heavy freight locomotive, although in the interim Churchward had produced his 47XX freight locomotive with larger boiler (a design which his successor ignored). Like the not quite so original freight locomotives introduced on the North Eastern Railway within the same decade these designs were to remain the primary freight locomotives within their areas until the end of steam.

Number 97 (prototype)
No. 97, Great Western Railway. Rly Mag., 1903, 13, 259.
2-8-0: in original condition: Works photograph and leading dimensions.
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 34-5

28XX
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 77-8

38XX
Improved 2-8-0 freight engines, G.W.R. Loco. Rly Carr Wagon Rev., 1938, 44, 166. illus.
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 213-16

1945: Hawksworth: modifications for oil firing. (48XX series, briefly)

G.W.R. oil burning locomotives. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1945, 51, 178-9. 2 illus.
G.W.R. oil-burning locomotives. Rly Mag., 1946, 92, 91-2. 2 illus.
Mullay, A.J. and Neil Parkhouse. Oil for coal: the plan to convert British steam locomotives to oil fuel, 1945-48. Rly Arch., 2006 (12). 4-15; 62-8.
This includes a wealth of material missed from Jones from GWR Mag (1946 Sept) and from Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev, 1947, 53, March. Perhaps most interesting "new material" are the diagrams and observations by Hawksworth in the later reference in 1947.
Rutherford, Michael. Crisis? What Crisis? Coal, Oil and Austerity. Part 1.. (Railway Reflections No. 71) Backtrack, 2000, 14, 665-74.
Following a very brief analysis of the development of coal burning (from coke burning) and the problems of coal supply, especially during strikes and in the immediate Post WW2 period the author introduces oil-consuming traction on the GWR (i.e. the pre-WW2 railcars and post-WW2 steam locomotives) and the influence of Sir James Milne (a thumbnail biography is given). Illus.: No 3813 renumbered 4855 when converted to oil firing, Diagram of the GWR installed equipment in the engine, Diagram of the GWR installed equipment in the tender, Diagram of the firebox showing the extra brickwork and air inlets, The cab of 3904 aka 4972 showing the fireman's padded seat ? It also had electric light!, Col.: GWR no 3711 at one time oil fired in May 1963 (W. Potter), Oil-burning Castle no 100A1 Lloyds in April 1947 on express at Reading (H.N. James)
Rutherford, Michael. Crisis? What Crisis? Coal, Oil and Austerity part 2. (Railway Reflections No. 72) Backtrack, 2000, 14, 724-31.
Further consideration of replacement of coal by oil: including the Great Western/National Programme instigated in 1947. Illus.:GWR proposal for a wide firebox 2-8-0, GWR no 2839 as oil burner no 4808 in May 1948, Fig 1 Increased use of mechanisation in the coal industry, Hall class no 3904 [previously 4972] Saint Bride's Hall, Hall class no 3952 [ previously 6957] Norcliffe Hall at Birmingham on 16 April 1948 (John Edgington), Table 1 Steam locomotive Maintenance and running costs, See letter from L.A . Summers (15, 183) on "Hawksworth Pacific".

Performance and testing

Copsey, John. 28xxs in the north during the Great Western era. Gt Western Rly J., 1994, 2 (11), 459-70.
Brief history of the class in service, including specific tests, notably of 2806 on 11 February 1906 when it hauled 955 tons from from Severn Tunnel Junction to stoke Gifford; 1095 tons to Swindon, and 1630 tons from Swindon to Paddington. On 25 February 1906 No. 2808 on a similar working hauled 2012 tons on the Swindon to London section. In 1907 tests were conducted on the 1 in 50 Gowerton incline. On 2 March 1913 No. 2834 hauled 98 loaded coal wagons (approx 1390 tons) from Banbury to Acton.

Glenfarg tests (NBR)

Grassick, J.P. The locomotive from a footplate point of view. J. Instn Loco. Engrs., 1922, 12, 51-67. Disc. 67-104; 311- (Paper 114)
Grassick worked for the NBR, but in the manner of the time described the Glenfarg tests without actually specifying the railways concerned, but it is quite obvious where and what took place! A.C. Stamer (discussion page 99 et seq) was present at the Glenfarg tests and explains why the T3 out-performed the GWR 28XX due to its more even torque and its greater adhesive weight
Thomas, John. The North British Railway. Vol. 2. 1975
Maj Stemp, traffic superintendent of the NBR, was seaking an eight-coupled engine in 1920 and was particularly attracted by the performance of the GWR 'E Group' 2-8-0s on the heavy gradients in the West of England. The NB's most powerful goods engine had to be double-headed when its load reached 28 wagons. From charts supplied by his GWR opposite number, Mr Nicholls, Stemp saw that the GWR 2-8-0 regularly took 28 loaded wagons over the 9 miles 22 chains between Lostwithiel and Doublebois, where the ruling gradient was 1 in 58, in 29 minutes. The same class hauled Welsh coal trains of 38 wagons over 1 in 90 gradients with regularity and apparent ease. The NBR opened negotiations with the GWR on 14 December 1920. At first it seemed that there would be difficulty in obtaining a route between the engine's home territory and the Border because of gauge problems, but the difficulty was quickly overcome and on 19 December Charles Aldington, general manager of the GWR, informed Calder that he had given instructions for 2-8-0 No 2846 to be prepared for the journey to Scotland. He wrote again on 1 January 1921 to say that Churchward himself would accompany the engine.

The test was fixed for 12 January, the location being the 6 miles 53 chains between Bridge of Earn and Glenfarg where a NER 0-8-0 had been tested in 1916. The GWR engine was handed over to the NB at Berwick on 10 January and at 6.15 that evening was lodged in Haymarket shed. On the morning of the test Calder received the following letter from Aldington:

My chairman and I are keenly interested in the tests and hope they will be satisfactory in all respects. As you know Mr Nicholls and one or two other Great Western representatives will be present, but I am sorry that it is not possible for Mr Churchward or his deputy to visit Scotland just now.
Conditions could not have been worse when the special train conveying NB and GW officers and observers from other companies reached Bridge of Earn. The test stretch was blanketed in snow and a near blizzard was blowing. The NBR entrant was first at the post. With 23 loaded 16-tonners and two goods brake vans (437 ton 8cwt exclusive of the brake vans) the 0-6-0 set off but stuck only a short distance up the bank. The train had to be hauled back to Bridge of Earn. The NBR engine retired from the contest; it was quite unequal to the task allotted to it.

In the second test No 2846 in the charge of the GW crew and with a load of 29 wagons and two brake vans (552 ton 4cwt exclusive of the vans) started away easily and, without faltering, reached Glenfarg in its scheduled time of 25min. For the third test five wagons were added to the load bringing it up to 643ton 9cwt. Again the GW engine got away easily but about two miles from the start it encountered hard packed snow on the rails. It began to slip badly and was forced to a stand from which it failed to recover.

Three days after the tests Calder wrote to Aldington: Mr Nicholls will no doubt have informed you of the results of the tests. I may say that these were carried out under pretty extreme weather conditions, but they proved the superiority of your company's locomotive over ours, and will of no doubt be of great assistance to us in connection with designing engines in the future for the hauling of mineral traffic over heavy gradients. I should just like again to thank you very cordially for your kindness in giving us the loan of your locomotive.

On the following day the NB general manager called for a joint report on the tests from Stemp, Fraser (the civil engineer), Chalmers and Grassick, but it was not until 14 April that the report was forthcoming.

The NB officers generally had a high opinion of the visiting engine. They blamed its failure to complete the third test on the abnormal weather conditions and expressed their confidence in its ability to keep time with 30 loaded wagons on any NB main line under any weather conditions. They thought the GW engine could take 38 wagons of coal from Dunfermline to Aberdeen without assistance and in so doing save the company £7 6s 9d per train.

Fraser had reservations. He thought that NB track would not stand up to the regular running of such a heavy engine. He proposed a top speed limit of 25 mph with severe restrictions at many selected points. It would be impossible, he pointed out, to run the engine through the platform roads at Dundee and use would have to be made of the loops.

Chalmers, too, had reservations, particularly on the question of maintenance. He wrote:
There should be no particular difficulty in designing an engine of the power required within the limits specified but so far as repairs and renewals are concerned it is difficult to estimate such as a locomotive of the Great Western type with its enormously high boiler pressure might mean very heavy boiler repairs and consequently high maintenance cost. From the experience we have had on our own heavy engines we estimate that the increase would be not less than 30 per cent. If designing an engine however, of similar tractive power it would be feasible to considerably modify the boiler pressure without involving a greater loading effect than that produced by the engine on the test.
Stemp summed up:
From an operating point of view the adoption of a type of engine similar in tractive power to that of the Great Western engine making the test would certainly be most advantageous if, later on, the use of such an engine could be allowed on other important main lines as well as on the Aberdeen section. It would eliminate altogether the use of the banking pilots which, taken all over would mean a very considerable saving in engine power.

1948 locomotive trials:
The 28XX was the oldest design tested, but it performed well in the freight trials.

Allen, C.J. The locomotive exchanges, 1870-1948.
A retrospective assessment.

Retrospective and critical
Bodman, Martin. Coals to Newcastle? the 'Jellicoe specials'. Backtrack, 2006, 20, 498-503.
28XX used to haul coal trains from Pontypool Road to Warrington, or to Chester, for onward transmission by LNWR and either the CR or NBR to Grangemouth and thence to the Orkneys to service the British Fleet during WW1.
Bond, R.C. Organisation and control of locomotive repairs on British Railways. J. Instn. Loco. Engrs., 1953, 43, 175-265.(Paper No.520).
Includes mileage/overhaul statistics (86,981 average annual: more than 50% better than LMS 8F) for this class.
Copsey, John. 28xxs in the north during the Great Western era. Gt Western Rly J., 1994, 2 (11), 459-70.
Brief history of the class in service, Following WW1 28XX were allocated to Chester, but most were moved away and the ROD type tended to be used on the Northern Division. In the 1930s the 28XX class tended to displace the 43XX and an important source of traffic was iron ore from the Midlands to South Wales. General arrangement drawing 2884 class Lote 321, Swindon, February 1938 No. 109101.
Hall, Stanley. Railway milestones and millstones: triumphs and disasters in British railway history. 2006.
Milestone: noting that construction continued over a very long period he commented that this reflected the "excellence of the original design"
Le Fleming, H.M. G.W.R. 2-8-0's. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1953, 29, 61-2; 70-2; 87. 5 illus., table.
Railway Correspondence and Travel Society. The locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 9. Standard two-cylinder classes.

30XX: Robinson (G.C.R.): (1925):
In 1925 the G.W.R. purchased 80 surplus WW1 Surplus former Railway Operating Department (R.O.D.) 2-8-Os. These were subsequently slightly modified at Swindon and received the usual G.W.R. embellishments.

[80 R.O.D. type 2-8-0s purchased by the G.W.R. from George Cohen & Armstrong] . Rly Mag., 1925, 57, 95.
G.W.R. 2-8-0 chimneys. Rly Mag., 1939, 84, 226. illus.
No. 3026 received a T.V.R. "A,' class chimney and No. 3033 was fitted with a 47XX type.

Retrospective and critical
RAILWAY Correspondence and Travel Society. The locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 10. Absorbed engines, 1922-1947. 1966.
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 30; 31

47XX: 1919: Churchward:
The first locomotive was built with a No. 1 boiler, but this proved to be inadequate, so in 1921 a new boiler type (No. 7) was introduced for the remainder of the order. Apart from this, the class remained substantially in its original conditions throughout its life.

Atkins, Philip. New boilers for old.. Steam Wld, 2003, (194) 8-14.
Ten replacement No. 7 boilers were built in 1951/2, but some of the class were not fitted with new boilers until the 1960s. Number 4704 retained an original boiler until April 1961: a life of over forty years and 1½ million miles.
Gasson, Harold. Nostalgic days: further reminiscences of a Great Western fireman. 1980.
On page 67 it is noted that Driver Bert Edmond saidd that "they 'wouldn't half roll' down the other side of Savernake" on the 23.40 down express freight first stop Tiverton Junction from Paddington Goods.
Le Fleming, H.M. G.W.R. 2-8-0's. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1953, 29, 61-2; 70-2; 87. 5 illus., table.
Maidment, David. At the heart of Old Oak. Part 3. Steam Wld, 2001 (174) 20-4.
Footplate experience with 4704 on Paddington to Bordesley fast freight which climbed Hatton bank well in spite of being checked at foot, but critical of spartan cab and lever reverse, however.
Railway Correspondence and Travel Society. The locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 9. Standard two-cylinder classes.
Riley, R.C. The Great Western 47XX 2-8-0s. Rly Wld, 1966, 27, 16-21 +. 8 illus., table.
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 119-23
Tickle, C.F. (phot.) In close up.. Great Western Rly J., 5 (35) 177.
47xx cab showing reversing lever, regulator, injector, ATC bell, etc.

Names & other proposed modifications

Rutherford, Michael Great Western 4-6-0s at work. 1995. p. 177
Noted that Collett considered names which included Behemoth and Mammoth and the possible conversion of one to a four-clinder 4-8-0, but there was insufficient room for the inside cylinders.

4-6-2

No. 111 The Great Bear
Introduced by Churchward in February 1908, partly as an excuse to exploit a boiler with a wide firebox. In Railway Reflections No. 86 Michael Rutherford postulated that it may have been intended for non-stop running to Fishguard (where the Great Western investment was huge) and for non-stop running to Truro. At that time King Edward VII had given Royal approval to long non-stop runs and the wide firebox would have given considerable gains in reliability for the routine adoption of such practice.

Retrospective & critical

Allen, C.J. British Pacific locomotives.1962.
Chapter 1 may be devoted to The Great Bear, but Allen was far from enthusiastic: "The Great Bear was one of the very few locomotive types that Swindon has produced, and in particular among Churchward designs, to which the word 'failure' could be applied.".
Arman, Brian. The 'Bear' at Bath. Rly Arch., 2007, (17) 39-43.
No. 111 The Great Bear: six photogrphs with Star class No. 4017 Knight of the Black Eagle in two of them. Views probably taken in 1908. The feature was followed by correspondence from David Patrick and Peter Treloar which related to the front footsteps and the longer lasting front handrail formerly associated with them..
Coakham, D.O. George Jackson Churchward. Br, Rly. J., 1993 (47), 352
See Brian Arman's article on the Dean/Churchward partnership (BRJ 36) there seems to have been nothing but the odd anecdote to reveal the Churchward personality. G.J.C. is mentioned both as a religious man and a considerable mathematician. Does this dispose of one legend?
On page 111 (!) of his Pictorial Record of GW Architecture (OPC 1977), Adrian Vaughan illustrates The Great Bear at Paddington. The caption relates a yarn about Churchward's interest in astrology [sic] leading him to give the 'Bear' a number which 'ancient peoples believed was associated with the Evil Eye'. This was supposed to be a means of getting his own back on the GWR directorate who allegedly insisted on him building a 4-6-2.
It looks as if Churchward's mild relaxation was the study of numerology or gematria. From what one can gather, the significance of the number 111 is in being a multiple of the 'powerful' Solar number 37, along with 666 which, in spite of its unfortunate association with the beast of Revelations, had great potency among the Gnostic Christians. A jocular remark by 'the Chief' might have been seized on and misinterpreted as it passed down the ranks.
Davis, Peter. The Great Bear. Backtrack, 2008, 22, 702
See Wrottesley below: this letter makes it clear that Collett did not like the locomotive as it might out-perform his Castle class. Also argues that Webb radial truck used rather than a Cartazzi or Bissel truck as these were to hand being used on 36XX and 31XX types
Holcroft, H. Outline of Great Western locomotive practice, 1837-1947. (1957). pp. 120-1
It could be inferred from this that the large boiler with wide firebox and large grate area in conjunction with relatively small cylinders was a reversion to the broad-gauge practice of having a large reserve of boiler power. The "Star" class could handle the longest trains that the Paddington platforms would accommodate at that time, and therefore more tractive effort through larger cylinders was not really called for. The big boiler would, however, enable higher average speed to be attained through faster running on up gradients, due to the reserve of power. In accordance with the policy of braking all wheels, blocks were required for the trailing radial truck, and I was called on to produce a scheme. As the box had 4½ in. side play each way and the blocks had to follow, use of the ordinary fixed brake hanger was out of the question, nor could any attachment be made to the sliding box. The problem had therefore to be solved on original lines. After an acceptable brake gear operated by a separate 18 in. vacuum cylinder bad been produced it was worked into the general arrangement, but it came as a disappointment when the plan had to be jettisoned because the back end of the engine was coming out too heavy.
The appearance of The Great Bear brought much prestige to the G.W.R. and the resulting publicity was a great asset. In service, however, the engine did nothing very remarkable. Its axle load of 20 tons 9 cwt.. per coupled axle restricted its running to the operation of passenger and brake-fitted freight trains between London and Bristol only. The radial truck proved to be the" Achilles heel," for it frequently overheated. Side thrust on this box had to be taken up by the back of the wheel boss on each side, and as this was a point difficult to lubricate efficiently and the surfaces were in a position where ashpan dust and .grit thrown up in the four-foot could reach them, the boxes were liable to overheat on the least provocation.
[He] came upon the same sort of thing many years later, on the Southern Railway when riding with "King Arthur" class engines. Some of these had Drummond bogie tenders in which the axleboxes were on the inside of the wheels while others had the Urie bogie tender with outside bearings. The boxes of the former invariably ran at "blood heat," whereas the latter ran almost cold, due to better thrust conditions and being in a position where air cooling was more effective. If, instead of tenaciously clinging to a radial axlebox common to several classes, The Great Bear had been fitted with the modern type of radial truck with outside bearings, more might have been heard of the engine. It was also handicapped by the great length of the boiler barrel, as in the absence of a combustion chamber the tubes were unduly long in relation to their diameter and so steaming was not as free as it should have been.
It is often asked: "Why was The Great Bear built?" No official reason has ever been stated, but it seems probable that the fine performance of the" Star" class prompted the directors to seek to raise the running standards even higher, and they called upon Churchward to see what could be done in the matter. With an eye to future development, the Chief Civil Engineer had for some years been replacing the older bridges by new construction capable of taking axle loadings of 22½ tons. This had been completed only on the London-Bristol section, though the renewals were being made elsewhere with stronger bridges as a matter of routine, but this was a long-term affair and could not be completed for a number of years.
Under the very restricted route availability at the time, The Great Bear became a "white elephant" to the running department, for it was difficult to fit it into more than a few set jobs. It is said of Churchward that when he was told of the appearance of H. N. Gresley's Pacific on the Great Northern Railway in 1922, he remarked: "What did that young man want to build one for: we could have sold him ours." Two years later, after Churchward's retirement, The Great Bear was converted into the 4-6-0 type, in September, 1924, as its boiler required very heavy repairs
Kirby, George. Leamington. Gt Western Rly J., 2006, 8, 238 (letter).
Claimed that his father saw The Great Bear stuck on the curves at Leamington.
Lowe, James W. British steam locomotive builders. 1975.
Lowe considered that in-service performance was disappointing and noted thet the bearings on the rear trailing truck frequently overheated.
RCTS. Locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 8. Modern passenger classes. 1960.
Includes provocative statement that [Churchard's] dislike of "The Bear" was well known. Includes three photographs: original condition, as in 1910 (photographed J.N. Maskelyne) and in final condition with top feed and cat iron chimney.
Rogers, H.C.B. G.J. Churchward. 1975.
Rogers, H.C.B. Express steam: locomotive development in Great Britain & France. 1990.
The end of this famous and fascinating engine is stated in the following extraordinary minute of a meeting of the Locomotive Committee on 1st May 1924, which is recorded in the British Transport Historical Records

(GEN 3-62-6):

"Engine 111 The Great Bear Reconstruction.

The above engine was built at Swindon in February 1908, and had a tractive effort of 27,8001b and weighed l42tons l5cwt. Owing to its extreme weight, it was necessary for the Hanwell Viaduct (a pencilled correction in the margin says: "the old iron skew bridge over the Uxbridge Road Allen, C.J. The locomotive exchanges, 1870-1948. A retrospective assessment.151; not the viaduct) to be rebuilt before the engine could be allowed to work between London and Bristol, to which route it has been limited the whole 16 years on account of the enormous expenditure that would be necessary to strengthen the bridges to carry it on other main line routes. Mr Grierson has estimated the cost of doing so at over £500,000. The 'Castle' class of four-cylinder engine has now been produced and proved successful, the engines of which have a greater tractive effort than The Great Bear by 13¼% viz 31,6251b, and as they weigh only 119 tons l7cwt, or 22 tons l8cwt less than The Great Bear, no alterations are necessary to any of the bridges. There is, therefore, no longer any reason for the continued existence of The Great Bear and as it recently came into the shops for general repair and needed new cylinders and a new boiler, advantage has been taken of the occasion to reconstruct it, so that it will be similar to one of the 'Castle' type.

"In the past, reconstructions of engines have been dealt with in the same way as repairs and have not been reported to the Directors, but it is thought desirable to do so in this case owing to the notoriety of the engine and to the fact that several British railways followed our example in adopting the Pacific type and are still building them. They have not produced a more powerful engine of less weight."

Collett must bear ultimate responsibility for this misleading and inaccurate document. No competent engineer would assess the relative power of express engines on the basis of their starting tractive effort. The statement that several British railways were building Pacific locomotives was quite untrue. Only the Great Northern and the North Eastern had built them, and of these only the Great Northern type was still being built (for the LNER) at the date the minute was written. Finally, as three years later the main lines of the GWR could take the 'King" class, with a 22+ ton axle load, it is clear that the statement about the enormous expenditure necessary to strengthen bridges was false, and that Grierson, the Chief Engineer, must either have been withholding information or had been incorrectly briefed by his own department.
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 86-91
Rutherford, Michael Great Western 4-6-0s at work. 1995.
Originally published as two separate books: Castles & Kings at work. Ian Allan, 1982 and Granges and Manors at work. Ian Allan, 1985. The reprint is in effect two separate books (with indexes, etc) under one cover. See page 19.
Rutherford, M.. Railway reflections No. 15. Backtrack, 10, 146.
Great Western boilers and The Great Bear set against competitive pressures at theat time envisaging non-stop running to Truro and Fishguard.
Rutherford, M.. Railway reflections No. 86. Backtrack, 16, 64.
A Century of Pacific Locomotives. Part 2
Wheeler, Geoffrey. Fired by steam. London: John Murray, 1987.
Includes coloured plate, based on water colour side elevations of The Great Bear.
Wrottesley, Michael. 'The Great Bear'. Backtrack, 2008, 22, 547-52.
Sources listed (sadly fails to record superb photographs of locomotive at Bath and notes by Brian Arman in Railway Archive, 2008 (17) 39-43). Notes that the cab was very restricted in dimensions which must have made the locomotive both difficult to drive and to fire. Steaming was believed to be difficult, and the Author attributes this to inexperience, and the same problem was encountered with the very similar Princess Royal class until firemen developed skills. The trailing axleboxes were a major source of trouble due to overheating, and the Author cannot understand why outside boxes were not fitted as this would have alleviated the problem: the Raven Pacifics suffered in the same way. Performance is restricted to a tale related by Tuplin (source not stated) of an illicit footplate journey made by E.K. Harrison when the fireman on the 18.30 did all the stoking before leaving Paddington and let this burn through on the way west. Alan Wild considers that this was an improbable story. The colour illustrations include two "F. Moore" postcards (both with the leading footsteps removed very soon after entering service, and one with the doctored livery, i.e. crimson lake rather than chocolate and cream as in the photograph on which the painting was based; the other of the Bear leaving Parsons Tunnel was presumably pure fiction). The black & white illus. include one of the boiler with original superheater; The Great Bear (without leading footsteps) about to leave Paddington in 1909; with four cone ejectors in Old Oak Common shed in early 1914; leaving Paddington with 18.30 for Bristol in 1920; rear view in 1923; on 10.45 Paddington to Cheltenham passing Twyford c1922; smokebox being cleaned at Old Oak Common in 1923; passing Kensal Green gasworks in 1921 on 10.45 to Cheltenham (which it worked as far as Swindon) and official photograph of as rebuilt as No. 111 Viscount Churchill...

4-6-0

Dean/Churchward designs

Rutherford (Railway Reflections: Backtrack, 1998, 12, 387) writes: "Churchward's purchasing of the French compound 'Atlantics' and the almost complete copying of Brooks Locomotive Works (USA) in his 4-6-0 No. 98 that makes him so unique."

Armin, Brian. The Dean—Churchward transition. Br Rly J., 1994 (36), 267.
Two types are considered: No. 2601 an experimental heavy freight locomotive fitted with piston valves and a combustion chamber and a boiler-mounted sandbox, and the more successful No. 100 fitted with a prototype No. 1 boiler and a steel firebox.

29XX "Saint": 1902: Churchward:
This was the first, modern 4-6-0 design to be introduced in Britain, and this and the 28XX 2-8-0 introduced at about the same time, displayed considerable American influence. In 1924, No. 2925 was rebuilt as the prototype for the 49XX class and in 1931, one locomotive was fitted with Lentz valve gear. Interestingly, Gibson (Great Western locomotive design) considers that the Hall class was less successful than the better-proportioned original design. Perhaps the most amazing aspect of the 29XX series was that so many vastly inferior 4-6-0 designs were produced on other railways (LSWR, GCR, CR, NER, and Wilson Worsdell was a great friend of Churchward, and LNWR) after this epoch-making advance. The four-cylinder Saints were a logical development for higher speeds and greater power. Tuplin gave a long analysis of the 120 mile/h escapade..

No. 98

No. 98, Great Western Railway. Rly Mag., 1903, 13, 366.
Official photograph and leading dimensions

Hammer blow

Gribble, C. Particulars of locomotives employed in the tests and of others examined for the Committee. Appendix D. Department of Scientific & Industrial Reserch. Report of the Bridge Stress Committee. London: HMSO, 1928.

Balancing of 4-cylinder Engines
"An interesting comparison can be made between the balancing of the GWR 4-cylinder simple (Star class) and the LMS Claughton engine Series 5900. Whereas in the GWR engine the inside and outside connecting rods drive different axles, in the LMS engine they all drive the same axle. In the former engine an appreciable proportion of reciprocating parts was balanced separately for the outside and inside cylinders respectively, with the result that the hammer-blow of each driving axle was considerable, but that on the front axle was opposed to that on the second axle. In the Claughton engine the reciprocating parts of the four cylinders mutually balance each other, without the addition of any balance weights apart from those required to balance rotating masses, with the result that the engine has no hammer-blow whatever. The system of balancing which was adopted in the GWR 4-cylinder engine did not give an advantageous result from the bridge engineer's point of view, since although the total hammer-blow was small, the hammer-blow on the driving axle exceeded that of the corresponding 2-cylinder engine (Saint No. 2906). The balancing of these engines also, has now, we are informed, been adjusted, and a different system adopted.

Data presented for the whole engine at 5 revolutions per second were 12.40 and 4.50, 4.82 and 4.50 for each of the coupled axles.

Working into Cornwall

Farr, Keith. The Great Western and Westinghouse brakes.. Steam Wld, 2002 (176), 51.
For the arrival of Saints in Cornwall writer cites Nock's Great Western 'Saint' class 4-6-0 (1983) which Farr calls "definitive" (Ossie's knowledge was baed on family holidays in Penzance).
Treloar, Peter. The Great Western and Westinghouse brakes. Peter Treloar. Steam Wld, 2002 (176), 51.
Guesses that Saints arrived as far west as Truro when Saltash to St Germans deviation was opened in 1908, but they may not have reached Penzance until 1921 when the timber viaduct was replaced. Cites Nock painting and includes photographic illus. (which may have been taken by Nock) of 2937 Clevedon Court leaving Penzance on up postal.

1931: Collett: No. 2935 was rebuilt with Lentz R.C. valve gear.

EXPRESS locomotive with poppet valve gear, G.W.R. Rly Engr, 1931, 52, 258, 267. illus.
4-6-0 passenger engine, Great Western Ry., with rotary cam poppet valve gear. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1931, 37, 183. illus.

Otway, Francis O.J. The Great Western and Westinghouse brakes. Steam Wld, 2002 (176), 51.
Notes a journey made behind 2935 Caynham Court (with rotary cam valve gear) between Swindon and Shrivenham on 4 September 1943 when the performance was considered to be "inferior"

1932: No. 2914 was coupled to the bogie tender from The Great Bear Pacific

[8-wheel tender from The Great Bear 4-6-2 coupled to a Saint class locomotive] . Rly Mag., 1932, 71, 390.

1937: Collett: Speedometers
Programme extended to Saint and Star classes.
MORE speedometers for G.W.R. locomotives. Rly Gaz., 1937. 67, 996.
SPEEDOMETERS for Great Western Railway locomotives. Engineering, 1937, 144, 661.
Speedometers on the G.W.R. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1937, 43, 399.

Retrospective and critical

Allcock, J.N. The Great Western Railway "Saints". Railways, 1952, 13, 180-1. illus.
Davies, F.K. The 2900 class 4-6-0's, G.W.R. Rly Obsr, 1937, 9, 163-5; 199. 4 illus.
Farr, Keith. A Centenary of Saints. Backtrack, 2002, 16,. 186-95.
Written to celebrate the centenary of the inception of what the author regards as the first "true twentieth century express passenger lcomotives" with their taper boilers, high running plates, long-lap/long-travel valve gear and generous steam ports". They also formed the basis for the "Hall" class. Includes the various series, such as the "Courts", the evaluation of the Atlantic form, one experiment with rotary cam valve gear on 2935. There is also description of performance, mainly in general terms, including the alleged 120 mile/h with Collett on the footplate. Their final demise is also covered.. See page 354 for possible plans to preserve two of class withdrawn in 1951 and "late" high speed exploit by another member of class. See letter by Barker (page 415) stating that 115 mile/h was achieved by Star in bridge testing [KPJ: pity Horne did not sound] Illus.:The second Saint and true prototype no 98 at Paddington, No 100 at Old Oak Common, A postcard of No 2949 Stanford Court near Ruislip, A post card of No 2977 passing Twyford, No 2934 at Swindon, No 178 Kirkland, No 186 as an Atlantic at Bristol, No 186 in its later form as a Pacific, No 100 William Dean leaving Paddington, No 2902 Lady of the Lake at Paddington, No 2907 Lady Distain in original condition at Paddington, No 2930 St Vincent with a very mixed train, No 2949 Stanford Court passing West Drayton, No 2902 Lady of the Lake in its later form in 1930 at Paddington, No 2917 St Bernard passing Langley, No 2935 Caynham Court with a mixed train leaving Bristol, Table 1 Saints nos 100, 98, 171 principle dimensions as built, Table 2 Saints nos 172/79-90 principle dimensions as built as Atlantics and as Pacifics, Table 3 Saints/Ladies/Courts principle dimensions as built, No 2977 Robertson passing Dawlish, Table 4 The naming of the 'Saints',
GREAT Western Railway: the 4-6-0 2-cylinder passenger engines. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1944, 20, 138-41. 6 illus.
Hall, Stanley. Railway milestones and millstones: triumphs and disasters in British railway history. 2006.
Milestone: "tecnically in advance of any such [express passenger] locomitive in the country"
Leech, K.H. The passing of the "Saints". J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1954, 30, 30; 55-6. illus.
Nock, O.S. Fifty years of Western express running. 1954.
Performance.
Nock, O.S. 4-6-0 locomotives of the G.W.R.: their inception and development. Rly pict., 1947, (2), 70-83. 14 illus., 5 tables.
Development and performance.
Nock, O.S. Great locomotives of the GWR. 1990.
Author quotes results from Bridge Stress Committee for Saint class: max. axle load 18.4 tons; hammer blow at 6 rps (86 mile/h) for whole engine 17.9 tons; on axle 6.9 tons and maximum combined 25.3 tons.
Railway Correspondence and Travel Society. The locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 8. Modem passenger classes. 1960..
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 33; 34; 41; 42; 44; 48; 49-50.
Rutherford, Michael Great Western 4-6-0s at work. London: Promotional Reprint Co., 1995.
Originally published as two separate books: Castles & Kings at work. Ian Allan, 1982 and Granges and Manors at work. Ian Allan, 1985. The reprint is in effect two separate books (with indexes, etc) under one cover.
Tuplin, W.A. Great Western Saints and Sinners. 1971.
Tuplin included details of the "120 mile/h episode" on which Collett was on the footplate: The following is a precis: it was regular practice to give engines newly-built at Swindon a running-in trip from there to Stoke Gifford and back, a total distance of about 70 miles. It includes a straight descent of 9 miles at 1 in 300 to Little Somerford, followed by a rise of 6 miles at I in 300 leaving plenty of room for stopping. It was usual for every engine that behaved normally on the outward journey to be run pretty fast on the way back. The 1906 incident started a rumour of 'two miles a minute' and this became so persistent a legend that eventually someone persuaded Collett to admit that a group of 'high-ups' at Swindon had indulged in a bit of horseplay. The Railway Magazine for April 1932 states on p. 305 that, on the evidence of Mr Collett, 'The purpose of the run was to demonstrate that an engine taken straight from the shops could be run at over 100 miles per hour. Those on the footplate included Mr Collett, who was then Assistant Manager of the Locomotive Works, Mr G. H. Flewellen, who was Locomotive Inspector, and the Foreman of the Erecting Shop, Mr Evans. (The driver was Mr H. J. Robinson.) The timing for some distance by the mileposts with a stop-watch was given as 120 miles per hour, and the clocking between the signal-boxes of Lime Somerford and Hullavington was booked as two minutes for the 4½ miles. 'Mr Collett points out that; while the object of running a new engine on its first trip at over 100 miles per hour was achieved, the timing could not be regarded as accurate and that the 102.3 m.p.h. record of the City of Truro in 1904, made under the personal observation of one of the most careful recorders of his time the late Charles Rous-Marten — with the aid of a chronograph reading to one-fifth parts of a second, must remain the best duly authenticated railway speed record that this country has. yet witnessed.' As G W engines at that time were never required to exceed 90 m.p.h. in ordinary service and were put on fast jobs only after running for a week or two on slow ones, there was no technical need to know whether a newly built engine could reach 100 m.p.h. So why was it desired to kriow it? Had anyone worked out at what speed the balance weights of a Lady would lift her driving wheels off the rails in every revolution?
They wanted to know whether the Lady could run at over 100 m.p.h. on her maiden excursion. But if that was all, why go up to 120 m.p.h. where out-of-balance forces were nearly half as big again? Had they developed a kind of mob-hysteria that led them to urge the driver to go 'all out' regardless of everything? By the time they had run more sedately on to Swindon and the disciplined serenity of the Works they probably agreed that not a word of this sporting venture should be whispered to anyone. No intention of this kind is ever more than a pious hope and every student of the steam locomotive must be glad that an official statement was eventually made.
It was most imprudent to allow so many officials to participate. in what was undoubtedly a risky exploit, and these sporty souls would naturally pick a day when Churchward was away from Swindon. Had he gained any hint of such intention he would have forbidden it for one obvious reason in some such terms, as 'If you go and get yourselves all killed, where the bloody hell am I?' What really did happen on this extraordinary occasion? No one concerned would say a word while the incident was fresh in anyone's mind although it was admitted that a speed of about two miles a minute was reached. One is justified in resorting to conjecture and the fact that the engine had pole reversing gear, which is not safely adjustable at speed, makes one wonder whether this was a factor.
It is possible that the driver had found that his original pole-setting was not producing 100 m.p.h., and was thereupon persuaded by one of the officials to try a little later cut-off. If he were rash enough to attempt this (or if someone else said 'Here, let me do it') the engine might well drop into full gear and accelerate like mad. Everyone might then be so appalled by the exhaust noise of such running as to do nothing at first to neutralize it, until by the time the driver had recovered from the shock of having the pole pulled out of his hand and had got round to turning the blower on and shutting the regulator, some unabashed spirit said, 'No! leave her at that. Let's see what she'll do.'
Or did the driver try to close the regulator and find that he couldn't? A big flow of steam from the boiler will sometimes cause such a pressure drop from one side of the regulator-valve to the other that the valve becomes very hard to move and if an engine without a train is running very fast downhill with steam urging it on, its brakes won't stop it quickly, if at all.
If anything of this sort happened on Lady of Lyons, already doing nearly 100 m.p.h. down 1 in 300, there could have been plenty of lively apprehension on the footplate. With driving wheels leaving the rails eight times per second, with the engine using water so fast that the fusible plugs were at risk and with the impossibility of stopping in any distance less than about six miles, someone' had to do something. There were plenty of people there, and so two could pull at the reversing pole and two at the regulator handle while someone else made sure that both injectors were working and then, still remembering what they had come for, took some mile-post-passing times.
Evidently they did get things under control at last, with 100 m.p.h. well and truly exceeded and everybody on board still shaking; The sensible ones would realize that they'd only had what they'd asked for and had been lucky to get away with it. After the white faces there would be metaphorical red ones, and no desire to admit to anyone what danger they had produced for themselves and the engine.! This is only a guess. What a pity that they didn't have anything like the black box that aircraft now carry to take a record of what went on during alarming last moments! The nearest equivalent to it was provided by the signalmen at Hullavmgton and Little Somerford. Their evidence of roughly 135 m.p.h. tended to show that Collett's report of about 120 m.p.h. was not an exaggerated one but, he himself admitted it and disclaimed it in the same sentence. An interpretation of this is that the speed, was attained but in circumstances that did not do much credit to those,responsible for the exploit.
Tuplin, W.A. Swindon's "Saints" and "Stars". Trains ill., 1953, 6, 10-15. 5 illus.,9 tables.
Two miles a minute. Rly Mag., 1932, 70, 305-6.
A statement was made by H.J. Robinson, which was confirmed by Collett, that he had driven a Saint (Jones Steam locomotive development stated a "Star class" ) at 120 mile/h.

40XX "Star": 1906: Churchward:
This 4-cylinder design was the foundation for the Castle and King classes. Several were rebuilt as Castles and others were modernized to some extent. It is amazing that the design precepts encapsulated in the Saint, Star and 28XX classes were ignored elsewhere, sometimes until the late 1920s.

No. 40 North Star: 1910 conversion from 4-4-2 to 4-6-0 and fitted with Swindon superheater.

Great Western Railway. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1910, 16, 22.

Original descriptions

Engineer, 1907, 22 February.
Cited by Poultney British express locomotive development. Chapter 9: The 'North Star' — Swindon, 1906.
4-6-0 express locomotive No. 4021 "King Edward", Great Western Railway. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1910, 16, 122.
As used to haul Royal Funeral train from Paddington to Windsor on 20 May 1910.

Hammer blow

Data presented for the whole engine at 5 revolutions per second were 2.57 and 5.13, 2.64 and 0 for each of the coupled axles (the high hammer blow on the leading coupled axle should be noted).

Speedometers
Programme extended to Saint and Star classes.
MORE speedometers for G.W.R. locomotives. Rly Gaz., 1937, 67, 996.
SPEEDOMETERS for Great Western Railway Locomotives. Engineering, 1937,144, 661.
SPEEDOMETERS on the G.W.R. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1937, 43, 399.

Performance
27 July 1946: Snow Hill to Cardiff service hauled by 4058 Princess Augusta with a train load of 15 coaches or about 450 tons. Departed Birmingham 14 min late and arrived 62 min late.An overloaded 'Star', John Copsey. Great Western Railway J.,2, 519-20.

Retrospective and critical

Copsey, John. Lode Star. Br Rly J. 1991 (37), 323-8.
The central focus of this feature is the official engine history card (1928 onwards) for No. 4003 Lode Star (reproduced). The text also notes some of the workings (from its construction in 1907) on which the locomotive participated. Illus.: (all 4003): approaching Pilning on up South Wales express c1935; on shed at Shrewsbury? c1932; at Gloucester station? c1947; nameplate; passing Kennington Junction, Oxford with train of LNER stock c1950; at Swindon with 2301 class No. 2516 which was also preserved; in Swindon stock shed with name and number plates removed.
Copsey, John 'Stars' in Traffic Part 2. Gt Western Rly J., 2000 (34) 89-97.
Frame plan (and side elevation dated April 1919, also cross sections dated September 1906. Tables show workings.
G.W.R. Star class: outside steam pipes. Rly Obsr, 1950, 20, 74.
Holcroft, H. (Paper No. 65) Three-cylinder locomotives. J. Instn Loco. Engrs., 1918, 8. 355-68. Disc.: 368-95; 476-91.
"They [the Stars] exerted considerable influence, and their lead is due to the fact that they appeared at the proper moment in the development of the locomotive, and also because definite mechanical advantages were cheaply bought with the minimum of added parts."
Maskelyne, J.N. Churchward's 4-cylinder locomotives. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1947, 23, 30-5; 206-1 2. 9 illus. (line drawings: s. els.)
Nock, O.S.. The G.W.R. Stars, Castles & Kings. Part 1:1906-1930. 1967. .
Nock. O.S. Fifty years of Western express running. 1954.
Nock. O.S. 4-6-0 locomotives of the G.W.R.: their inception and development. Rly pict., 1947, (2), 70-83. 14 illus, 5 tables.
Nock, O.S. Great locomotives of the GWR. 1990.
Author quotes results from Bridge Stress Committee for Star class: max. axle load 18.6 tons; hammer blow at 6 rps (86 mile/h) for whole engine 3.7 tons; on axle 3.7 tons and maximum combined 21.3 tons.
Nock, O.S. Historical steam locomotives. 1959. Chapter 14. Churchward's masterpiece.
Book based on preserved locomotives, but Nock fails to make any reference to the one actual preserved Star.
Patrick, David. The Great Bear [letter]. Rly Arch., 2008 (19), 52.
Note on the front footsteps and handrail fitted to Nos. 4002/8/9/4011-16 and 4018 and subsequently removed.
Railway Correspondence and Travel Society. The locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 8. Modem passenger classes. 1960.
Reed, Brian. Great Western 4-cylinder 4-6-0s. Locomotive Profile No. 3.
pp.49-72: centre coloured artwork drawn by David Warner (restricted to King & Castle types: Star not covered).
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 81-5; 149.
Rutherford, Michael Great Western 4-6-0s at work. London: Promotional Reprint Co., 1995.
Originally published as two separate books: Castles & Kings at work. Ian Allan, 1982 and Granges and Manors at work. Ian Allan, 1985. The reprint is in effect two separate books (with indexes, etc) under one cover.
Tuplin, W.A. Hot work on a "Star". Rly Mag., 1956, 102, 86-90. 2 illus.
Written in narrative form: it describes a 1924 "Cornish Riviera" footplate journey.
Tuplin, W.A. No more "Stars". Rly Wld, 1957, 18, 323-4. illus.
An appreciation.
Tuplin, W.A. Swindon's "Saints" and "Stars". Trains ill., 1953, 6, 10-15. 5 illus. 9 tables.
A history of these classes.
Wheeler, Geoffrey. Fired by steam. London: John Murray, 1987.
Includes coloured plate, based on water colour side elevation of Star class locomotive: 4041 Prince of Wales as built in 1913.

Names

Early G.W.R. Chairman commemorated. Rly Gaz., 1937, 66, 1097.
No.4007 Rising Star re-named as Swallowfield Park.

4073 "Castle": 1923: Collett:
Churchward had planned to incorporate the No. 7 boiler, which had been introduced for the 47XX class, into a new 4-6-0. This would have been based on the Star chassis. The project had to be abandoned as it would have been too heavy. Therefore, Collett had to break with some of the principles of standardization achieve greater power. The four-cylinder layout of the "Stars" was retained in e new design, but the cylinders were enlarged to 16 in x 26 in. The grate was also larger (29.36 ft²) and a modern, side-window cab was fitted. The new design achieved a 14% increase in tractive effort over the Stars, at the expense of a 5% weight increase. The class was highly successful in service and locomotives continued to be built until the 1950's. Some Stars and The Great Bear (the Churchward 4-6-2) were reconstructed as Castles. Return to beginning.

Short cuts: exchange trials with LNER A1 pacific

EMPIRE Exhibition — Great Western locomotive "Caerphilly Castle". Engineer, 1924, 137, plate f.p. 540. diagr. (s. el.), plan
Sectionalized diagram.
FOUR-CYLINDER express locomotive, "Caerphilly Castle", Great Western Railway. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1923, 29, 254-6. 2 illus., diagr. (s. el.)
FOUR-CYLINDER 4-6-0 type, Great Western Railway. Engineering, 1923, 116, 236; 742-3 + folding plate. 2 illus., 6 diagrs. (mcI. s. el.), plan.
Includes sectionalized diagrams.
G.W.R.four-cylinder locomotive: Caerphilly Castle. Engineer, 1923, 136, 197; 202.3 illus.,diagr. (s. el.)
NEW four-cylinder 4-6-0 locomotives, Great Western Railway. Rly Mag, 1923, 53, 311 + plate f.p. 253. illus.
NEW four-cylinder 4-6-0 type express locomotives, Great Western Railway. Rly Engr, 1923, 44, 394-6. 2 illus., 3 diagrs. (s. els.)
The Castle design is compared with the L.N.E.R. Al and A2 Pacifics.

1924: No. 111,
The Churchward Pacific, was "rebuilt" to the Castle specification.

GREAT Western Railway—reconstruction of "The Great Bear" No. 111. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1924, 30, 328. illus.

1926: 4,000 gallon standard tender.

GREAT Western Ry.: "Castle" class locomotive with new pattern tender. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1926, 32, 341-2. 3 illus., diagr. (s. & els.)
NEW type of locomotive tender, Great Western Railway: a self-trimming tender of new design, built at the Swindon works for use with the "Castle" class engines. Rly Engr. 1927, 48, 24-6. 6 illus., 4 diagrs., plan.
Includes sectionalized diagrams.

1930: No. 4000:
This was a rebuilt locomotive: the original being the prototype for the Star class.

An INTERESTING G.W.R. rebuilt locomotive. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1930, 36, 274-6. 2 diagrs., plan.

1931: Rigid eight-wheel tender (experimental).

G.W.R.8-wheel tender. Rly Mag., 1939, 85,154.
Note on transfer from No. 5001 to No. 5032.

1935: Streamlining
No.5005 was fitted with a domed smokebox and other aids to streamlining. Part was removed in the same year.

STREAMLINED casing removed from around the cylinders and motion of the streamlined "King" and "Castle" locomotives due to overheating, Rly Mag., 1935, 77, 385.

1937: No. 5005:
Most of the remainder of the streamlining was removed due to increased oil consumption and bearing over-heating.
G.W.R. 4-6-0 locomotive "Manorbier Castle". Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1937, 43, 376. illus.
Illustration shows streamlined locomotive: paragraph noted why it was removed.

1946: 5098 series;
Hawksworth: this series incorporated three-row superheaters and mechanical lubricators.

The SWINDON "Castle" class locomotives. Rly Gaz., 1949, 90, 12-13. illus., diagr. (s. & f. els.)

Oil fuel conversion: 1946

5083 Bath Abbey and four other Castle class were converted to oil-burning

Mullay, A.J. and Neil Parkhouse. Oil for coal: the plan to convert British steam locomotives to oil fuel, 1945-48. Rly Arch., 2006 (12). 4-15; 62-8.
This includes a wealth of material missed from Jones from GWR Mag (1946 Sept) and from Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev, 1947, 53, March.
Nock. O.S. Fifty years of Western express running. 1954.
pp 286-295 cover running, mainly in Cornwall, with both Castle and Hall classes fitted for oil burning: most of the running was of a high standard.
Rutherford, Michael. Crisis? What Crisis? Coal, Oil and Austerity. Part 1.. (Railway Reflections No. 71) Backtrack, 2000, 14, 665-74.
Following a very brief analysis of the development of coal burning (from coke burning) and the problems of coal supply, especially during strikes and in the immediate Post WW2 period the author introduces oil-consuming traction on the GWR (i.e. the pre-WW2 railcars and post-WW2 steam locomotives) and the influence of Sir James Milne (a thumbnail biography is given). Illus.: No 3813 renumbered 4855 when converted to oil firing, Diagram of the GWR installed equipment in the engine, Diagram of the GWR installed equipment in the tender, Diagram of the firebox showing the extra brickwork and air inlets, The cab of 3904 aka 4972 showing the fireman's padded seat ? It also had electric light!, Col.: GWR no 3711 at one time oil fired in May 1963 (W. Potter), Oil-burning Castle no 100A1 Lloyds in April 1947 on express at Reading (H.N. James)
Rutherford, Michael. Crisis? What Crisis? Coal, Oil and Austerity part 2. (Railway Reflections No. 72) Backtrack, 2000, 14, 724-31.
Further consideration of replacement of coal by oil: including the Great Western/National Programme instigated in 1947. Illus.:GWR proposal for a wide firebox 2-8-0, GWR no 2839 as oil burner no 4808 in May 1948, Fig 1 Increased use of mechanisation in the coal industry, Hall class no 3904 [previously 4972] Saint Bride's Hall, Hall class no 3952 [ previously 6957] Norcliffe Hall at Birmingham on 16 April 1948 (John Edgington), Table 1 Steam locomotive Maintenance and running costs, See letter from L.A . Summers (15, 183) on "Hawksworth Pacific".

Oil fuel conversion: 1960
According to Atkins' Dropping the fire detailed planes were drawn up in 1960 for converting some of the class to oil-burning due to the increasing cost of coal.

Performance and testing;
On the basis of fuel consumption for power output the Castle class was in advance of other contemporary British locomotives. This was due to the use of long-travel valves and to the type of boiler. This superiority was clearly shown when the Gresley Al and Castle classes were evaluated in a series of comparative road trials. Good performance was repeated when one locomotive was lent to the L.M.S. The modified Al (later A3) and Royal Scot classes were both produced as a result of these locomotive exchanges.
Later, the class was involved in high-speed running when hauling the Cheltenham Flyer express. Reference should also be made to the retrospective material (especially to Nock's and Collett's works).

1925: Al /"Castle" exchange trials.

Allen, C.J. British locomotive practice and performance. Rly Mag., 1925, 57, 47-57; 151-63.
Performance of both types of locomotive is described.
Allen, C.J. The locomotive exchanges, 1870-1948.
A retrospective assessment.
The EXCHANGE trials of locomotives. Engineer, 1925, 139,627-8.
Editorial comment on the G.W.R. report on the results of the tests.
INTERCHANGE trials of passenger locomotives on the Great Western and London and North Eastern Railways. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1925, 31, 142. illus.
General details of the test runs. Results are not included.
The LOCOMOTIVE exchange. Rly Engr, 1925, 46, 199-200.
The LOCOMOTIVE trials. Engineer, 1925, 139, 492. Erratum p.519.
Editorial comment.
OFFICIAL statements as to results [by the Companies concerned]. Rly Mag., 1925, 57, 57-9.
RESULTS of interchange locomotive trials, London and North Eastern and Great Western Rlys. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1925, 31, 196.
The journalistic conclusions ars of interest in that one reason given for the efficiency of the Castle locomotive is that it was fitted with a vacuum pump in place of an ejector!
Voyageur, pseud. The locomotive exchange: London & North Eastern "Pacific" v Great Western "Castle". Rly Mag., 1925, 56, 478-82. 4 illus.

1926: high speed Plymouth – Paddington runs.

G.W.R. record journeys from Plymouth to London. Rly Mag., 1926, 58, 408- 9. table.

1926/27: Euston-Carlisle test runs.

Allen, C.J. British locomotive practice and performance. Rly Mag., 1927, 60,185-96.
Allen, C.J. The locomotive exchanges, 1870-1948.
Nock, O.S. British locomotive practice and performance. Rly Mag., 1964, 110, 289-95.
Comparative tables ("Castle"/"Claughton) are quoted for fuel and water consumption during the Crewe-Carlisle tests. The material originated from R.C. Bond's records.

16 September 1931: Cheltenham Flyer: No.5000 Launceston Castle: Swindon Paddington average speed 79.6 mile/h.

Mercury, pseud. A new "record of records". Rly Mag., 1931, 69, 313-17.2 illus.,diagr., table.

5 June 1932: Cheltenham Flyer: No. 5006 Tregenna Castle: Swindon Paddington average speed 81.68 mile/h.

Allen, C.J. The Great Western world-speed record. Rly Mag., 1932, 71, 99-103. diagr., table.
Allen, C.J. A super-speed record. Rly Mag., 1932, 71, 10-12.3 tables.
Baker, H. The Great Western record. Engineer, 1932, 153, 638. tables.

Descents towards Honeybourne

Allen, Cecil J. British locomotive practice and performance. Rly Mag., 1940, 86, 82-92.
This article included details of 100 mile/h achieved when descending from the Cotswolds on 1 in 100 bank between Camden and Honeybourne with Castle class on light trains, notably 5063 Earl Baldwin, 5049 Earl of Plymouth and 4086 Builth Castle.

1956 Controlled road tests with high-degree-superheat Castle

Nock, O.S.British locomotive practice and performance. Rly Mag., 1959, 105, 260- Comparison with "King" and No. 71000.
Nock, O.S. Further W.R. locomotive developments. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1956, 62, 170-1. illus., table.

Retrospective and critical

Atkins, Philip. New boilers for old... Steam Wld, 2003, (194) 8-14.
7019 Fowey Castle received new boilers in January 1953, October 1954 and July 1956; yet 7020 Gloucester Castle never received a new boiler.
Bond, R.C. Organisation and control of locomotive repairs on British Railways. J. Instn. Loco. Engrs., 1953, 43, 175-265.(Paper No.520).
Includes mileage/overhaul statistics (87,424 average annual) for this class.
Bullock, William. Swindon apprentice. Rly Wld, 1992 (62). 30-3.
Application of "streamlined" casing to 5005 Manorbier Castle and its test when 100 mile/h was achieved when approaching Swindon which was overshot. Train was met by Collett and Pole whilst Inspector 'Daddy' Dew was on footplate at controls (amazing how LNER always managed to stop unlike GWR & LMS).
Carpenter, G.W. Discussion on Cook, K.J. The late G.J. Churchward's locomotive development on the Great Western Railway. J. Instn Loco. Engrs, 1950, 40, pp. 202-3
Asked whether it was originally intended to fit the 47xx class No.7 boiler to the "Castle" class engines, as this had the same length between tubeplates and a larger diameter? It had occurred to him that the increased weight of the No.7 boiler as compared with that actually fitted to the " Castle" class engines, and consequently increased axle loading, might have been the principal objection to doing this. Cook agreed that this was so.
CASTLES and Kings : a pictorial tribute. Hatch End (Middlesex), Roundhouse Books, 1964. [96 p.] 122 illus.
Entirely pictorial.
Chapman, W.G. "Caerphilly Castle" : a book of railway locomotives for boys of all ages. 1924.
Good publicity material. Shows a "Castle" being built.
Collett, C.B. Testing locomotives on the Great Western Railway. Trans. 1st.Wld Pwr Conf., London, 1924, 4, 882-94. 8 diagrs.
Includes the results of dynamometer car tests with special reference to fuel consumption.
Cook, A.F. Raising steam on the LMS: the evolution of LMS locomotive boilers. Huntingdon: RCTS, 1999. 233pp.
Table 50 (page 217) quotes the cost of classified boiler repairs on a comparitive basis in pence per mile in 1954: 2.7 pence/mile for a Duchess as against 0.8 for an A4 and 0.6 for a Merchant Navy: the Castles did not perform well on this basis: 1.8 pence per mile.
Gasson, Harold. Nostalgic days: further reminiscences of a Great Western fireman. 1980.
Chapter 2 includes a run with Driver Burt Edmonds with No. 5027 Farleigh Castle which was far from being in prime condition on an up express fromm Swansea. When the train reached Newport two coaches were added to accommodate a Royal party and Inspector George Price joined the footplate. The train was now slightly over-weight, but Edmonds declined assistance and even with careful management of the fire three minutes were lost on the the climb to Badminton, but by very fast running subsequently all of this was regained and a surplus was gained to accommodate a permanent way slowing at Hanwell.
Gibson, John C. Great Western locomotive design. 1984.
Highly critical of the design, especially its inaccessible valve gear,its boiler proprtions and its lack of adequate superheating (see especially 108 et seq)
Grime, T. Steam locomotive performance (theoretical and actual). J. Instn. Loco. Engrs, 1926, 16, 588-652. (Paper No. 200).
Analysis of "Castle" tests.
Harding, B.J. The G.W.R."Castle" class—additional details. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1965, 41, 72-3; 222.
See Leech "The Castles..." (below)
Harding, B.J. 'Castle' class engines with longer smoke boxes. Backtrack, 8, 166.
See letter from David Maidment on page 50: there was a second engine No.4093 Dunster Castle with a smokebox four inches longer than standard and this was the third 'Castle' to be equipped with a double chimney. Like No.4090 Dorchester Castle, it was fitted with a four-row superheater boiler (HC6688) and when they were rebuilt Nos.4090 (April 1957) and 4093 (December 1957) were both given new front ends incorporating new front half frames, cylinders, &c, and mechanical lubricators, making them virtually new engines. All Castles fitted with double chimneys after No.4093 (with the exception of No.5068 mentioned below) retained their standard length smokeboxes. In March 1960 No.4093 reverted to a standard length smokebox whilst retaining a four-row superheater boiler and double chimney and it was condemned in that condition in September 1964. In November 1960 No.4090 was fitted with the boiler from No.4093, which had the longer smokebox and double chimney, and ran in that condition until withdrawal in June 1963. The boiler HC7671 new to No.4090 in April 1957 was fitted to No.5068 Beverston Castle in March 1961, retaining the larger smokebox and double chimney, and this engine ran in that condition until condemned in September 1962. Boiler HC7671 was built new in 1957, whilst boiler HC6688 was one of the two-row superheater type HA built new in 1940 and converted to four-row superheater type HC in 1957.
Holcroft, H. "Castles", "Lord Nelsons" and "Royal Scots". Rly Mag., 1947, 93, 13-15; 27.3 illus.
The relationship of the three designs, with emphasis on the last named.
Kelway-Bamber, H. Modern British railway express passenger engines. J. Instn. Loco. Engrs., 1926, 16, 1004-17.
A detailed analysis of Castle locomotive work (including on the LNER) plus a comparative study of this design, the Al and "Lord Nelson" classes.
Leech, K.H. The "Castles" of the Great Western Railway. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1963, 39, Supplement (September). 28 p.28illus., table.
A history.
Leech, K.H. "Kings" and "Castles" today. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1957, 33, 364-8. illus., 2 tables.
British Railways modifications to draughting and superheating.
Matthewson-Dick, T. Address by the President. How they run. J. Instn Loco. Engrs, 1967, 57, 155-96.
Comparison of King, Castle, D1000 and D833 running times on Paddington to Plymouth toute.
Nock, O.S.. The G.W.R. Stars, Castles & Kings. Part 1:1906-1930. 1967.
Nock. O.S. Fifty years of Western express running. 1954.
Nock, O.S. Great locomotives of the GWR. 1990.
Author quotes results from Bridge Stress Committee for Castle class: max. axle load 19.7 tons; hammer blow at 6 rps (86 mile/h) for whole engine 3.5 tons; on axle3.5 tons and maximum combined 23.1 tons.
Nock. O.S. The "Kings" and "Castles" of the Great Western Railway. [1949].
A concise account with accent on performance.
Nock. O.S. Post-war development at Swindon. Trains A., 1958, 5-12. 4 illus., 4 tables. Includes modifications made to Castle boilers and draughting.
Railway Correspondence and Travel Society. The locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 8. Modem passenger classes. 1960.
Reed, Brian. Great Western 4-cylinder 4-6-0s. Locomotive Profile No. 3.
pp.49-72: centre coloured artwork drawn by David Warner (restricted to King & Castle types).
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 149-54; 187
Tuplin, W.A. Draught in the locomotive boiler. Engineer, 1958, 205, 1223. diagr.
Includes draughting modifications to this class.
Webber, A.F. The proportions of locomotive boilers. J. Instn Loco. Engrs, 1937, 27, 688-725. (Paper No. 378).
Includes Castle on a comparative basis.
Wheeler, Geoffrey. Fired by steam. London: John Murray, 1987.
Includes two coloured plates (based on water colour side elevations) of Castle class locomotives: 4079 Pendennis Castle and 5069 Isambard Kingdom Brunel

Names

[Castle class locomotives re-named with names of War-time aircraft]. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1940, 46, 273. illus.
Nos.5071-5082 : new names Spitfire, etc.
[Castle class locomotives re-named with names of War-time aircraft]. Rly Gaz., 1940, 73, 336. illus.
[Castle class locomotives re-named with names of War-time aircraft]. Rly Mag., 1940, 86, 608. illus.
G.W.R. "Al at Lloyd's". Rly Gaz., 1936, 64, 356. illus.
Naming ceremony. Pike's Locomotive names (2000) makes it clear that this locomotive was always cited as No. 100 and not as 100 A1 which creates a difficulty was the locomotive Lloyds as listed by Pike or A1 Lloyds. A retospective piece (Rly Wld, 1978, 39, 110-111) written to mark the formation of the Lloyd's Railway Society shows two photographs of the locomotive in service (which clearly show the separate 100 and A1 numberplates on the cabside and the name Lloyd's: members of Lloyd's are also shown with a nameplate from, the locomotive.
G.W.R.engine "Al at Lloyds". Rly Mag., 1936,78, 209.
G.W.R.engines named after Brunel and Gooch. Engineer, 1938, 165, 706.
Nos. 5069 and 5070.
G.W.R. locomotive named "Viscount Portal". Rly Gaz., 1946, 85, 55. illus.
No.7000.
LOCOMOTIVE named after G.J. Churchward. Railways, 1948, 9, 187. illus.
No. 7017.
LOCOMOTIVE names "The Gloucestershire Regiment". Rly Gaz., 1954, 100, 502; 534. 2 illus.
No.5017 (formerly St. Donats Castle).
LOCOMOTIVE naming ceremony at Paddington. Rly Gaz., 1938, 68, 392.
No.4016 The Somerset Light Infantry (Prince Albert's).
LOCOMOTIVE naming ceremony at Paddington. Rly Mag., 1938, 82, 304.
NAMING formality at Paddington. Rly Gaz., 1937, 66, 769; 820. illus.
No. 4037 The South Wales Borderer.
NAMING formality at Paddington. Rly Mag., 1937, 80, 462.
NAMING of locomotive "G.J.Churchward". Rly Gaz., 1948, 89, 530. 2 illus.
No.7017.

Individual locomotives

No. 5069 Isambard Kingdom Brunel
Ballantyne, Hugh. IKB: engineer extraordinaire. Steam Wld, 2006, (232) 24-5.
Black & white photograph of Castle No. 5069 Isambard Kingdom Brunel passing through Sydney Gardens Bath at head of 13.15 Paddington to Weston-super-Mare with two of GWR special saloons at front of train and headboard on locomotive on 15 September 1959 conveying members of Institution of Civil Engineers to Bristol for unveiling ceremony near Clifton Suspension Bridge to mark centenary of engineer's death.

49XX Hall class: 1924: Collett:
The prototype was rebuilt from the Saint class. The main changes were a reduction in the driving wheel diameter (to 6ft 0 in) and the addition of a side-window cab. Eventually 330 engines were built from new. See also 6959 Modified Hall series.

1924: No.2925 Saint Martin:
Rebuilt 29XX and prototype for the class.

Great Western Rly. rebuilt 4-6-0 passenger engine No.2925 "Saint Martin". Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1925, 31, 101-2. illus., diagr. (s. & f.els.)
Rebuilt 4-6-0 locomotive, G.W.R. Rly Mag., 1925, 56, 316 + plate f.p. 253. illus.
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 159-60

1928 : production series

4-6-0 type locomotives for the Great Western Railway. Engineering, 1929, 127, 23. illus.
NEW 4-6-0 "Hall" class locomotives, Great Western Ry.. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1929, 35, 1-2. illus., diagr. (s. & f. els.)
NEW 4-6-0 mixed traffic locomotive, Great Western Railway. Rly Mag., 1929, 64, plate f.p. 85. illus.

6959:1944: Hawksworth:
Changes in construction methods required modifications to the frame and cylinder layouts. At the same time slightly larger superheaters were incorporated

GREAT Western Railway: further noteson the "6959" class. J.Stephenson Loco.Soc., 1945, 21, 103. illus. (line drawing: sel.)
MODIFICATIONS to G.W.R. "Hall" class mixed traffic locomotives. Rly Gaz., 1944, 81, 456-7. 2 illus., 2 diagrs. (s. els.)
MODIFIED 4-6-0 "Hall"-class engine. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1944, 50,114. illus.,diagr. (s.el.)
MODIFIED G.W.R. "Hall" class locomotives. Rly Mag., 1944, 90, 350-1. illus., diagr. (s. el.), table.

1946: Hawksworth : conversion to oil fuel.

FIRST G.W.R. oil-burning passenger locomotive. Rly Gaz., 1946, 85, 29. illus.
OIL-BURNING locomotives, Great Western Railway. Engineering, 1946, 162,
416. 8 diagrs.
Mullay, A.J. and Neil Parkhouse. Oil for coal: the plan to convert British steam locomotives to oil fuel, 1945-48. Rly Arch., 2006 (12). 4-15; 62-8.
This includes a wealth of material mised from Jones from GWR Mag (1946 Sept) and from Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev, 1947, 53, March. Perhaps most interesting "new material" (from GWR Mag) is a picture of Viscount Portal with Hawksworth waiting departure of 5955 Garth Hall from Paddington..
Nock. O.S. Fifty years of Western express running. 1954.
pp 286-295 cover running, mainly in Cornwall, with both Castle and Hall classes fitted for oil burning: most of the running was of a high standard.

1947 : Hawksworth : electric lighting on two locomotives.

AIR-DRIVEN alternator for G.W.R. locomotive lighting. Rly Gaz., 1947, 87, 408; 410-11. 4 illus.
ELECTRIC lighting on G.W.R.engine. Railways, 1948, 9, 73-4. 4 illus.

Testing

1948 : Inter-regional exchanges:
No.6990 worked between Marylebone and Manchester, but was prohibited as out-of-gauge from the other routes.

Allen, C.J. The locomotive exchanges, 1870-1948.
A relatively close in time assessment, but the King class was limited to the London to Leeds route.

c. 1950 : One of the class was subjected to the full scale test methods developed by S.O. Ell of the Western Region.

BRITISH Railways. Western Region "Hall" class 2 cyl.4-6-0 mixed traffic locomotive. London, British Transport Commission, 1951. [1],14, [35] sheets. 2 illus., 46 diagrs (incl. s. & f. els.) (Performance and efficiency tests with exhaust steam injector. Bulletin No.1).
Metcalfe (page 127) noted that exhaust steam injector produced savings in coal expressed in lbs coal per ft² of grate area of 9-12%

Retrospective and critical
Bond, R.C. Organisation and control of locomotive repairs on British Railways. J. Instn. Loco. Engrs., 1953, 43, 175-265.(Paper No.520).
Includes mileage/overhaul statistics (87,942 average annual) for this class.
Cook, K.J. Machining a locomotive valve gear: operations involved in the production of Stephenson link motion for G.W.R. "Hall" class express engines. Rly Gaz., 1936, 65, 264-8; 296-300. 10 illus., 4 diagrs.
Copsey, John. Cornish 'Halls' in the 1930s. Great Western Rly J. Special Cornish Issue. 35-9.
Workings in Cornwall in 1925 by prototype 2925 included the Cornish Riviera, allocated to Penzance in 1927. Once the Hall class proper was introduced they were allocated to Penzance, Truro and Laira (for working into Cornwall) and were used for express trains. Load limits are quoted.
Copsey, John. 'Halls' on goods in the Midlands and the North. Great Western Rly J. 5, (39), 398-403.
Allocations and workings during period prior to WW2: Illus.: 4900 Saint Martin at Tyseley on 17 May 1936; Halls under construction at Swindon in 1929; 4996 Eden Hall at Tyseley in 1932; 4976 Warfield Hall at Chester in 1936?; 4955 Plaspower Hall; Hall on class H freight passing Milton on 26 June 1938.
Nock. O.S. Fifty years of Western express running. 1954.
Nock, O.S. 4-6-0 locomotives of the G.W.R.: their inception and development. Rly pict., 1947, (2), 70-83. 14 illus., 5 tables.
Development and performance.
Poultney, E.G. Locomotive valve gears. Engineer, 1953, 196, 762-3. 2 diagrs., 3 tables.
A comparison of the Stephenson gear fitted to the "Hall" class with that of the Walschaerts gear fitted to the B.R.class 4 4-6-0.
Railway Correspondence and Travel Society. The locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 8. Modem passenger classes. 1960.
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 161; 220; 224

Liveries

Hancock, J. Painting of Great Western locos. Br Rly J., 1989 (28) 396.
Criticism of preseerved and model tank locomotives for painting bunker side green: it was always black. Writer joined GWR in 1927.
Mullinger, C. Bertram. Liveries. [letter] Br Rly J., 1991 (36) 307.
From 1937 the Hall class locomotives had much of their brass work painted over in green.

King class (60XX): 1927: Collett:
The "King" class was perhaps Collett's greatest achievement as it represented the ultimate in British 4-6-0 development in regard to size and power. The axle load was 22½ tons and Holcroft explains how a locomotive of this size came to be acceptable to the Chief Civil Engineer. To some extent the design seems to have been developed for prestige reasons since the Castle class was capable of operating most of the services. Further, a modest increase in power could have been achieved by using the 47XX boiler on the Castle class. However, many other famous classes were prestige designs. King George V was one of the few British locomotives ever exhibited in the United States. Return to beginning..

FOUR-CYLINDER 4-6-0 express locomotive, Great Western Ry. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev.. 1927, 33, 206-7.3 illus.
G.W.R.new 4-cylinder express locomotive. Engineer, 1927, 144, 8-9.3 illus., diagr. (s. & f.els.)
NEW 4-6-0 type express passenger locomotives — Great Western Railway. Rly Engr. 1927, 48, 251-60. 20 illus., 3 diagrs. (incl. s. & f. els.)
NEW "Super-Castle" locomotive, Great Western Railway. Rly Mag., 1927, 61, 126-8 + plate f.p.89. illus., diagr.
RECENT express locomotives. Engineer, 1927, 144, 180.
Editorial comment on the Lord Nelson, Royal Scot and King designs.

1935; streamlining:
No. 60l4 was partially streamlined, but parts of the casing were removed in the same year.

EXPERIMENTAL streamlining of G.W.R. locomotives. Rly Gaz., 1935, 62, 518. 3 illus.
STREAMLINED locomotive, G.W.R.. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1935, 41, 104. illus.

1935 : Partial removal of partial streamlining.

[STREAMLINED casing removed from round the cylinders and motion of the G.W.R. streamlined King and Castle locomotives due to overheating] - Rly Mag., 1935, 77, 385.

1928: United States visit: No.6000 King George V was sent to the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad's Centenary Fair of the Iron Horse

G.W.R. locomotive "King George V" in America. Rly Mag., 1928, 62,135-8. 4 illus., diagr.

Farr, Keith. The Great Western and Westinghouse brakes. Steam Wld, 2002 (176), 51..
6332 was not the only locomotive to be fitted with the Westinghouse brake: it was fitted to No. 6000 King George V for its North American tour.

Performance and testing

1927 : Paddington-Plymouth trial run.

TRIAL run to Plymouth of Great Western locomotive, No.6000. Loco. Rly Carr.Wagon Rev., 1927,33,251-2.

1932 : A rather vague statement referring to tests at 100 to 110 mile/h. ["KING" class tests at 100-110 mile/h. Rly Mag., 1932, 71, 76.

1948 : the inter-regional exchanges

Allen, C.J. The locomotive exchanges, 1870-1948.
King class was limited to the London to Leeds route.

Ell, Samuel O. Developments in locomotive testing. J. Instn Loco. Engrs., 1953, 43, 561-633; 729-34. (Paper No. 527)
Based on tests with King class 6001.
Ell, S.O. discussion on Tuplin, W.A. Some questions about the steam locomotive. J. Instn Loco. Engrs., 1953, 43, 671-4. (Paper No. 528).
Nock. O.S. Locomotive trials on the Western. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1955, 31, 307-9.
Nock. O.S. W.R.modified "King" locomotive trials. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1956, 62, 152-4. illus., 2 diagrs.

Retrospective and critical

Allen, C.J. The Western "Kings" — a valediction. Trains Ann., 1964, 5-16. 12 illus.
Assessment of the class, based on performance in service.
Atkins, Philip. New boilers for old.. Steam Wld, 2003, (194) 8-14.
A 1956 plan to rebuild eight Kings with new frames and roller bearings was abandoned although the bearings were ordered. Nevertheless, new front ends, frames and cylinders were fitted to most of the class by 1958.
Bond, R.C. Organisation and control of locomotive repairs on British Railways. J. Instn. Loco. Engrs., 1953, 43, 175-265.(Paper No.520).
Includes mileage/overhaul (78,987 average annual) statistics for this class.
Bradley, D.L. Locomotives of the Southern Railway. Part 2. RCTS, 1975.
Quotes locomotive repair costs per mile (excluding boiler) 3.43p and boiler repair costs (0.91p) and coal consumption per train mile (43.8 lb) for 1953/4. Original source not quoted.
Castles and Kings: a pictorial tribute. Hatch End (Middlesex), Roundhouse Books, 1964. [96] p. 122 illus.
No text.
Chapman, W.G. The "King" of railway locomotives : the book of Britain's mightiest passenger locomotive, for boys of all ages. London, G.W.R., 1928. [vi], 149 p. 95 illus, 8 diagrs., 3 tables.
Publicity material.
Cook, A.F. Raising steam on the LMS: the evolution of LMS locomotive boilers. Huntingdon: RCTS, 1999. 233pp.
Table 50 (page 217) quotes the cost of classified boiler repairs on a comparitive basis in pence per mile in 1954: 2.7 pence/mile for a Duchess as against 0.8 for an A4 and 0.6 for a Merchant Navy: the King class boilers cost 1.3 pence/mile, which was far better than the Castles (1.8)
Copsey, John. 'Kings' on the Northern Line.Great Western Rly J., 1992, 1, 109.
Pattern of workings: also includes detailed working drawings (82100, Swindon 1927).
Detail alterations — "King class" 4-6-0's. Rly Obsr., 1936, 8, 140.
Gibson, John C. Great Western locomotive design. 1984.
Critical of the design, although argues that a more logical progression from the Star class than the Castle, but greater power led to trouble with broken engine and bogie frames. Furthermore, "there is little doubt that the Kings were significantly overweight" (page 111).
Gregson, W. discussion on Gresley, H.N. High-pressure locomotives. Proc. Instn mech. Engrs., 1931, 120, 101-35. Disc.:135-206
queried "how did No. 10,000 compare with the 250 lb per sq in in four-cylinder simple engines of the G.W.R. which had always been noted for their economical running" (Gresley did not respond!).
Hills, Richard L. Power from steam. 1989.
Here it is interesting to note that the Great Western Railway, which used Welsh coal in its locomotives, retained a narrow firebox for its most powerful 4-6-0 King class engines in 1927 whereas the London & North Eastern Railway employed a wide firebox for the 4-6-2 Flying Scotsman in 1923 because the calorific value of its coal was not so high.
Holcroft, H. The Great Western Railway and its personnel. Part 3. Engineer, 1960, 209, 634-7. 6 illus. (incl. 3 ports.)
This article includes some notes made from Sir Felix Pole's "Pole's Book" (then only available as privately circulated). This explains how Collett was unaware of the Civil Engineer's policy of bridge strengthening to take 22½ ton axle-loadings. Further the idea for this large locomotive would seem to have originated from one of the directors, namely Sir Aubrey Brocklebank.
Justin, R. "King" boilers. J.Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1955, 31, 33; 118.
In service in June, 1954.
'Kings' in a Welsh Valley. Trains Ill. Ann., 1961, 38.
In 1938 Nos. 6004 King Geoge III and 6015 King Richard III tests were made between Newport and Ebbw Vale with loads which eventually reached 1350 tons with a King class at each end of the trains. This feature states that the GWR was contemplating a four-cylinder design: Robin Barnes Locomotives that never were states (and shows) that a 2-10-2T was contemplated using the King class boiler (but with two cylinders).
Leech, K.H. "Kings" and "Castles" today. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1957, 33, 364-8. illus., 2 tables.
British Railways modifications to draughting and superheating.
Leech, K.H. The "Kings" of the Great Western Railway. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1962, 38, Supplement (November). [8 p.] 7 illus., 2 tables.
A history of the class.
Matthewson-Dick, T. Address by the President. How they run. J. Instn Loco. Engrs, 1967, 57, 155-96.
Comparison of King, Castle, D1000 and D833 running times on Paddington to Plymouth toute.
Nock, O.S.. The G.W.R. Stars, Castles & Kings. Part 1:1906-1930. 1967.
Nock. O.S. Fifty years of Western express running. 1954.
Nock. O.S. The "Kings" and "Castles" of the Great Western Railway. [1949].
A concise account with accent on performance.
Nock. O.S. Post-war development at Swindon. Trains Ann., 1958, 5-12. 4 illus., 4 tables. Includes modifications made to Castle boilers and draughting.
Poultney, E.C. Some notes on locomotive power. Engineer, 1961, 211, 205-7 2 diagrs., table. (Rly Engng Abs 14221).
Evaluation of the controlled road tests in the light of subsequent diesel testing.
Railway Correspondence and Travel Society. The locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 8. Modem passenger classes. 1960.
Reed, Brian. Great Western 4-cylinder 4-6-0s. Locomotive Profile No. 3.
pp.49-72: centre coloured artwork drawn by David Warner (restricted to King & Castle types).
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 168-70; 188; 189
Rutherford, Michael Great Western 4-6-0s at work. 1995.
Originally published as two separate books: Castles & Kings at work. Ian Allan, 1982 and Granges and Manors at work. Ian Allan, 1985. The reprint is in effect two separate books (with indexes, etc) under one cover. See page 19.
Topham, W.L. The running man's ideal locomotive. J. Instn Loco. Engrs., 1946, 36, 3-29. Disc.: 29-91. (Paper No. 456)
Topham admired the external axleboxes fitted to the bogie.
Tritton, Julian S. Locomotive limitations. J. Instn Loco. Engrs., 1946, 36, 283-323. (First Sir Seymour Biscoe Tritton Lecture)
On p. 296 it was claimed that the King class had exceeded the maximum dimensions for a narrow grate.
Tuplin, W.A. Draught in the locomotive boiler. Engineer, 1958, 205, 122-3. diagr.
Draughting experiments.
Wheeler, Geoffrey. Fired by steam. London: John Murray, 1987.
Includes coloured plate, based on water colour side elevations of King class locomotive: 6000 King George V: associated text notes bogie problems and original intension to name class after Cathedrals.

68XX "Granges": Collett :1936 :
Parts of scrapped 43XX 2-6-0s (mainly the wheels and motion) were incorporated into this new class which was intended to replace the 43XX type.

4-6-0 mixed traffic locomotives, "Grange" class, Great Western Railway. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1936, 42, 304-5. illus., diagr. (s. & f. els.)
[INTRODUCTION of the "Grange" class, G.W.R.]. Rly Mag., 1936, 79, 384-5. illus., diagr. (s.el.)
NEW mixed traffic locomotives, G.W.R.. Rly Gaz., 1936, 65, 490-1. illus., diagr. (s. el.)

Retrospective & critical

Copsey, John 'Granges' at Work. . Great Western Rly J., 4, 147-64.
Allocations and workings. cross section drawings, Swindon November 1937; 6810 Blakemere Grange Swindon factory 15 November 1936; general arrangement drawing and frame plan Swindon August 1936, Number 106700 Lot 308.
Gibson, John C. Great Western locomotive design: a critical appreciation. 1984.
Gibson noted a letter by John A. Trounson in Steam Railway (March 1981) which noted that the Grange class incorporated improved cylinders as compared with the Hall class. The centre line of the pistons and valves were 2½in further apart and level with the axle centres rather than 2½in above. Gibson doubted the authenticity of this statement, but it was verified by A.C. Sterndale and this would give the class a greater steamchest volume than the Hall class.
Nock, O.S. 4-6-0 locomotives of the G.W.R.: their inception and development. Rly pict., 1947, (2), 70-83. 14 illus., 2 tables.
Railway Corrspondence and Travel Society. The locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 8. Modern passenger classes.
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 210
Rutherford, Michael Great Western 4-6-0s at work. 1995.
Originally published as two separate books: Castles & Kings at work. Ian Allan, 1982 and Granges and Manors at work. Ian Allan, 1985. The reprint is in effect two separate books (with indexes, etc) under one cover. See page 179 where Rutherford states that Grange class incorporated a new design of cylinder..

Preservation

Hill, R.F. 'Granges' [Letter]. Gt Western Rly J., 2001, 39, 417.
Writer notes that 6815 Frilford Grange had been selected for preservation as it was in good condition, but that 6998 Burton Agnes Hall was selected as it was cheaper (it contained less non-ferrous metal).

New build: 6880 Bretton Grange

Website: 6880.co.uk
The "edge" that the "Granges" had is undisputed but can only partly be explained in rational engineering terms. The critical difference between the "Granges" and the "Halls" lay in the dimensions of two chambers at the front end of the locomotive's steam circuit, namely the steam chest and the steam ports. Both were larger on the "Granges" than the "Halls". The greater steam port volume is said to give better cushioning of the piston at the end of each power stroke. It is believed that this accounted for the marked absence of fore-and-aft surging on the "Granges", but which is very apparent when riding behind a "Hall" to this day! Despite great efforts to make steam locomotive development a more theoretical and less empirical discipline, it always relied heavily on experimental observation as a means of proving a design. The truth is that while the characteristics of a locomotive could be observed and measured in great detail, it was not always possible to explain why they performed as they did. The legendary free steaming of the "Granges" was just such an enigma. They were fitted with exactly the same boilers as the "Halls" (in fact, boilers were frequently swapped between the two types). The draughting arrangements in the smokebox, critical to a locomotive's steaming characteristics, were identical. Yet the truth is that time and time again the "Granges" steamed noticeably more freely, a quality much appreciated by hard pressed footplate crews. It is hardly surprising that the "Granges" came to be regarded as "The Enginemen's Engine".

78XX Manors: Collett
This was a lighter version of the Grange class. It also incorporated the wheels and valve gear from scrapped 43XX locomotives. To reduce weight, a new boiler (Standard No. 14) was used in place of the Hall type boiler used in the Grange design.

G.W.R. "Manor" class, 4-6-0 mixed traffic engines. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1938, 44, 66-7. illus., diagr. (s. & f. els.)
4-6-0 mixed-traffic locomotive; Great Western Railway. Engineering, 1938, 145, 189. illus.
"MANOR" class locomotives, G.W.R.. Rly Mag., 1938, 82, 268-9. illus., diagr. (s. el.)
MIXED traffic locomotives for the Great Western Railway. Rly Gaz., 1938, 68, 273. illus., diagr. (s. el.)
NEW G.W.R.4-6-0 locomotives. Engineer, 1938, 165, 191. illus.

Retrospective and critical

Copsey, John. '78xxs' in Traffic. Great Western Rly J., 2,(15) 637-48.
Includes general arrangement drawings and notes changes in names from as originally proposed. Illus.: 7810 Draycott Manor at Leamington Spa in 1947 H.J. Stretton-Ward); 7810 on Banbury to Paddington train in July 1946 (M.W. Earley); 7810 on Swansea service formed of LNER stock near Cheltenham on 24 July 1939; 7813 Freshford Manor assisting 6010 King Charles 1 on Rattery Bank in 1954 (MWE); 7814 Ilford Manor at Cheltenham in December 1950; 7802 Bradley Manor at Shrewsbiry c1952; 7816 Frilsham Manor on Reading shed on 26 June 1964.
Gibson, John C. Great Western locomotive design: a critical appreciation. 1984.
Gibson noted that they were very poor steamers, at least by GWR standards, only capable of producing a good power output for brief periods. It was only at the end of their lives that expert modifications to blastpipe and chimney by Sam Ell produced a remarkable improvement. A shorter, more compact chassis with lighter details would have saved some of the weight, and allowed a smaller reduction of heating surface and grate area. But the groove into which design had subsided was too rigid to allow anything so logical. 'The mixture as before' seemed to be the rule in the drawing office under Collet, so the Manors were virtually the standard 4-6-0 chassis with a consider ably smaller boiler, a case of standardisation carried too far.
A recent inspection of No 7808 Cookham Manor at Didcot, where it is preserved, showed that the Manors used the Grange cylinder castings. They also had the lowered centre line, though bored out to l8in diameter instead of the 18½in. In their case though the trouble was an inadequate boiler, so they would have been unlikely to benefit in the same way. It is a great pity that although about half a dozen of the rather feeble Manors have been preserved, not one of the excellent and well-loved Granges has survived.
Nock, O.S. 4-6-0 locomotives of the G.W.R.: their inception and development. Rly pict., 1947, (2), 70-83. 14 illus., 5 tables.
Railway Corrspondence and Travel Society. The locomotives of the Great Western Railway. Part 8. Modern passenger classes.
Russell, J.H. A pictorial record of Great Western engines. Volume 2. [The Churchward, Collett and Hawksworth locomotives]. pp. 217-19; 224
Rutherford, Michael Great Western 4-6-0s at work. 1995.
Originally published as two separate books: Castles & Kings at work. Ian Allan, 1982 and Granges and Manors at work. Ian Allan, 1985. The reprint is in effect two separate books (with indexes, etc) under one cover. See page 19.

10XX "County": 1945: Hawksworth:
This design introduced many breaks with Churchward's traditions. Neither the boiler nor the driving wheels came within the standard range. The former was somewhat similar to the Stanier 8F type, but was pressed to 280 lb/in². The driving wheels were 6 ft 3 in in diameter. The class was intended for mixed traffic work. The initial locomotive was fitted with a double chimney. Return to beginning.

4-6-0 tender locomotive, Great Western Railway. Engineering, 1945, 160, 147. illus., diagr. (s. el.)
GREAT Western Railway ["County" class 4-6-0] - Railways, 1945, 6, 171. illus.
G.W.R. 4-6-0 locomotive. Engineer, 1945, 180, 109. illus.
GREAT Western Railway: the "1000" class 2-cyl. 4-6-0 locomotives. J. Stephenson Loco. Soc., 1945, 21, 134-6.
The NEW G.W.R. 4-6-0 No.1,000. Rly Gaz., 1945, 83, 1S9.
Editorial comment.
NEW, G.W.R. 4-6-0 locomotive, "1000" class. Rly Gaz., 1945, 83, 168-9. 4 illus., diagr. (s. el.), table.
NEW, G.W.R. 4-6-0 locomotive, "1000" class. Rly Mag., 1945, 91. 342-4. 2 illus., diagr. (s. el.)
NEW, G.W.R. 4-6-0 "1000" class engine. Loco. Rly Carr. Wagon Rev., 1945, 51, 128-9.3 illus., diagr. (s. & f. els.)

Retrospective and critical

Bond, R.C. Organisation and control of locomotive repairs on British Railways. J. Instn. Loco. Engrs., 1953, 43, 175-265.(Paper No.520).
Includes mileage/overhaul (87,588 average annual) statistics for this class.
Bulleid, O.V.S. Railway rolling stock and tendencies in design. Engineering, 1949, 167, 68-71; 94-5; 60. 13 illus., 4 diagrs. (s. els.), 5 tables.
Bulleid showed how little the County design was in advance of Churchward's Star class.
Cook, A.F. Raising steam on the LMS: the evolution of LMS locomotive boilers. Huntingdon: RCTS, 1999. 233pp.
Table 50 (page 217) quotes the cost of classified boiler repairs on a comparitive basis in pence per mile in 1954: 2.7 pence/mile for a Duchess as against 0.8 for an A4 and 0.6 for a Merchant Navy: County boiler repairs cost 4.9 pence per mile and were nearly twice as expensive as the majority of the classes listed.
Copsey, John. The Hawksworth 'Counties' at work. Part 1. — The Company days. Great Western Rly J., 2004, (52), 223-35.
Brief technical dsecription and specification, including a note on the non-standard boiler and driving wheel size, and the double chimney fitted to No. 1000. Originally envisaged as being 99XX series. Initial allocations and workings, mainly into Cornwall.
Copsey, John. Hawksworth 'Counties' at work. Part 2. Great Western Rly J., 2005, (53), 267-84.
Part 1 see Number 52 page 223 et seq. General arrangement drawings of locomotive and te