GWR 3800 Class
Encyclopedia
The Great Western Railway
County Class were a class of 4-4-0
steam locomotive
s for express passenger train work introduced in 1904 in a batch of ten. Two more batches followed in 1906 and 1912 with minor differences.
The biggest change was cosmetic with the straight footplate of the first thirty replaced with a graceful curved drop to each end, necessitating deeper cab sides, on the last ten in 1912.
This class were subject to the 1912 renumbering of GWR 4-4-0 locomotives, which saw the Bulldog class gathered together in the series 3300-3455, and other types renumbered out of that series. The County Class took numbers 3800-3839.
They were the last new GWR 4-4-0 design and by far the most modern, with inside frames and outside cylinders. They were designed as a part of Churchward's standardisation plan, but were found to have a front end too powerful for the wheel arrangement and all were withdrawn by the early 1930's. They were designed, in part, for the Hereford to Shrewsbury LNWR line over which the GWR had running powers, but on which they were expressly forbidden to use 4-6-0 locomotives. The 4-4-0 Counties were in effect a shortened GWR 2900 Class
, providing engines powerful enough for the trains but with the requisite four coupled wheels.
The key components were all proven but the combination was somewhat unhappy, and perhaps the least successful Churchward design. From the outset they were found to be rough riders but otherwise effective locos. All other GWR 4-4-0's were inside cylindered and none had a piston stroke greater than 26", whereas the 'County' had a 30" stroke driving a meagre 8' 6" wheelbase.
They were also the basis for the 'County Tank' design, a 4-4-2T using the same basic design as the County but with a smaller and lighter boiler, and the replacement of the tender by the addition of side tanks, bunker and trailing axle.
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
County Class were a class of 4-4-0
Whyte notation
The Whyte notation for classifying steam locomotives by wheel arrangement was devised by Frederick Methvan Whyte and came into use in the early twentieth century encouraged by an editorial in American Engineer and Railroad Journal...
steam locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
s for express passenger train work introduced in 1904 in a batch of ten. Two more batches followed in 1906 and 1912 with minor differences.
The biggest change was cosmetic with the straight footplate of the first thirty replaced with a graceful curved drop to each end, necessitating deeper cab sides, on the last ten in 1912.
This class were subject to the 1912 renumbering of GWR 4-4-0 locomotives, which saw the Bulldog class gathered together in the series 3300-3455, and other types renumbered out of that series. The County Class took numbers 3800-3839.
They were the last new GWR 4-4-0 design and by far the most modern, with inside frames and outside cylinders. They were designed as a part of Churchward's standardisation plan, but were found to have a front end too powerful for the wheel arrangement and all were withdrawn by the early 1930's. They were designed, in part, for the Hereford to Shrewsbury LNWR line over which the GWR had running powers, but on which they were expressly forbidden to use 4-6-0 locomotives. The 4-4-0 Counties were in effect a shortened GWR 2900 Class
GWR 2900 Class
The Great Western Railway 2900 or Saint Class were a class of 4-6-0 steam locomotives for passenger train work. Number 2925 Saint Martin was later rebuilt as the prototype Hall Class locomotive, and renumbered 4900.-Prototypes:...
, providing engines powerful enough for the trains but with the requisite four coupled wheels.
The key components were all proven but the combination was somewhat unhappy, and perhaps the least successful Churchward design. From the outset they were found to be rough riders but otherwise effective locos. All other GWR 4-4-0's were inside cylindered and none had a piston stroke greater than 26", whereas the 'County' had a 30" stroke driving a meagre 8' 6" wheelbase.
They were also the basis for the 'County Tank' design, a 4-4-2T using the same basic design as the County but with a smaller and lighter boiler, and the replacement of the tender by the addition of side tanks, bunker and trailing axle.
| Numbers | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| First | Second (1912) | |
| 3473 | 3800 | County of Middlesex Middlesex Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time... |
| 3801 | 3801 | County Carlow County Carlow County Carlow is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Carlow, which lies on the River Barrow. Carlow County Council is the local authority for the county... |
| 3802 | 3802 | County Clare County Clare -History:There was a Neolithic civilisation in the Clare area — the name of the peoples is unknown, but the Prehistoric peoples left evidence behind in the form of ancient dolmen; single-chamber megalithic tombs, usually consisting of three or more upright stones... |
| 3803 | 3803 | County Cork County Cork County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county... |
| 3804 | 3804 | County Dublin County Dublin County Dublin is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Dublin Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the city of Dublin which is the capital of Ireland. County Dublin was one of the first of the parts of Ireland to be shired by King John of England following the... |
| 3805 | 3805 | County Kerry County Kerry Kerry means the "people of Ciar" which was the name of the pre-Gaelic tribe who lived in part of the present county. The legendary founder of the tribe was Ciar, son of Fergus mac Róich. In Old Irish "Ciar" meant black or dark brown, and the word continues in use in modern Irish as an adjective... |
| 3806 | 3806 | County Kildare County Kildare County Kildare is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county... |
| 3807 | 3807 | County Kilkenny County Kilkenny County Kilkenny is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the city of Kilkenny. The territory of the county was the core part of the ancient Irish Kingdom of Osraige which in turn was the core of the Diocese of... |
| 3808 | 3808 | County Limerick County Limerick It is thought that humans had established themselves in the Lough Gur area of the county as early as 3000 BC, while megalithic remains found at Duntryleague date back further to 3500 BC... |
| 3809 | 3809 | County Wexford County Wexford County Wexford is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wexford. In pre-Norman times it was part of the Kingdom of Uí Cheinnselaig, whose capital was at Ferns. Wexford County Council is the local... |
| 3810 | 3810 | County Wicklow County Wicklow County Wicklow is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wicklow, which derives from the Old Norse name Víkingalág or Wykynlo. Wicklow County Council is the local authority for the county... |
| 3811 | 3811 | County of Bucks Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan home county in South East England. The county town is Aylesbury, the largest town in the ceremonial county is Milton Keynes and largest town in the non-metropolitan county is High Wycombe.... |
| 3812 | 3812 | County of Cardigan Ceredigion Ceredigion is a county and former kingdom in mid-west Wales. As Cardiganshire , it was created in 1282, and was reconstituted as a county under that name in 1996, reverting to Ceredigion a day later... |
| 3813 | 3813 | County of Carmarthen Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire is a unitary authority in the south west of Wales and one of thirteen historic counties. It is the 3rd largest in Wales. Its three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford... |
| 3814 | 3814 | County of Chester |
| 3815 | 3815 | County of Hants Hampshire Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force... |
| 3816 | 3816 | County of Leicester Leicestershire Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire... |
| 3817 | 3817 | County of Monmouth Monmouthshire (historic) Monmouthshire , also known as the County of Monmouth , is one of thirteen ancient counties of Wales and a former administrative county.... |
| 3818 | 3818 | County of Radnor Radnorshire Radnorshire is one of thirteen historic and former administrative counties of Wales. It is represented by the Radnorshire area of Powys, which according to the 2001 census, had a population of 24,805... |
| 3819 | 3819 | County of Salop Shropshire Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west... |
| 3820 | 3820 | County of Worcester |
| 3821 | 3821 | County of Bedford |
| 3822 | 3822 | County of Brecon Brecknockshire Brecknockshire , also known as the County of Brecknock, Breconshire, or the County of Brecon is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales, and a former administrative county.-Geography:... |
| 3823 | 3823 | County of Carnarvon Caernarfonshire Caernarfonshire , historically spelled as Caernarvonshire or Carnarvonshire in English during its existence, was one of the thirteen historic counties, a vice-county and a former administrative county of Wales.... |
| 3824 | 3824 | County of Cornwall Cornwall Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of... |
| 3825 | 3825 | County of Denbigh Denbighshire (historic) Historic Denbighshire is one of thirteen traditional counties in Wales, a vice-county and a former administrative county, which covers an area in north east Wales... |
| 3826 | 3826 | County of Flint Flintshire (historic) Flintshire , also known as the County of Flint, is one of thirteen historic counties, a vice-county and a former administrative county, which mostly lies on the north east coast of Wales.... |
| 3827 | 3827 | County of Gloucester |
| 3828 | 3828 | County of Hereford |
| 3829 | 3829 | County of Merioneth Merionethshire Merionethshire is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales, a vice county and a former administrative county.The administrative county of Merioneth, created under the Local Government Act 1888, was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 on April 1, 1974... |
| 3830 | 3830 | County of Oxford |
| 3474 | 3831 | County of Berks Berkshire Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and... |
| 3475 | 3832 | County of Wilts Wiltshire Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers... |
| 3476 | 3833 | County of Dorset Dorset Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974... |
| 3477 | 3834 | County of Somerset Somerset The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the... |
| 3478 | 3835 | County of Devon Devon Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with... |
| 3479 | 3836 | County of Warwick Warwickshire Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare... |
| 3480 | 3837 | County of Stafford |
| 3481 | 3838 | County of Glamorgan |
| 3482 | 3839 | County of Pembroke Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire is a county in the south west of Wales. It borders Carmarthenshire to the east and Ceredigion to the north east. The county town is Haverfordwest where Pembrokeshire County Council is headquartered.... |
External links
- http://www.greatwestern.org.uk/m_in_440_county.htm