SECR P Class
Encyclopedia
The South Eastern and Chatham Railway
(SECR) P Class is a class of 0-6-0
T steam locomotive
designed by Harry Wainwright
.
They were inspired by, and loosely based on, the more successful LB&SCR A1 Class
"Terriers" and eight were built in 1909 and 1910. They were originally intended for lightweight passenger trains, to replace underpowered steam railmotor
s. Certain cost-saving design compromises had been made, compared to the Terrier design, and the P class were found to be underpowered, having only 73% of the Terrier's tractive effort
. The P class were later re-allocated to shunting and station pilot duties.
All eight locomotives passed into Southern Railway
ownership at The Grouping in 1923, and into British Railways ownership at Nationalisation in 1948. Withdrawals took place between 1955 and 1961, but four examples have been preserved.
, arriving in France in May 1915. They were used to shunt the docks at Boulogne
, but they proved to have insufficient power, and were returned in October 1916.
All eight passed to the Southern Railway upon its formation in 1923, and were given an 'A' prefix to their SECR numbers. in 1925, A753 and A754 were renumbered A556 and A557. In 1923, the Southern abolished the number prefixes, and increased the P class numbers by 1000. Upon Nationalisation in 1948, British Railways added 30000 to their SR number.
, Nos. 323 and 27 were featured as engines that Stepney was talking about when he visited the Island of Sodor
. No. 323 was named 'Bluebell', the name it currently carries and No. 27 was named 'Primrose'. Both engines were seen without faces. Bluebell was also released as a die-cast model by ERTL, although, curiously, this used the same bodyshell as Thomas
– a much larger tank locomotive – rather than that of Stepney – a 'Terrier' similar to Bluebell – who was already in the ERTL range.
South Eastern and Chatham Railway
The South Eastern and Chatham Railway Companies Joint Management Committee , known by its shorter name of the South Eastern and Chatham Railway was a working union of two neighbouring rival railways, the South Eastern Railway and London, Chatham and Dover Railway , that operated services between...
(SECR) P Class is a class of 0-6-0
0-6-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-6-0 represents the wheel arrangement of no leading wheels, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and no trailing wheels...
T steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
designed by Harry Wainwright
Harry Wainwright
Harry Smith Wainwright was the Locomotive, Carriage and Wagon Superintendent of the South Eastern and Chatham Railway from 1899 to 1913. He is best known for a series of simple but competent locomotives produced under his direction at the company's Ashford railway works in the early years of the...
.
They were inspired by, and loosely based on, the more successful LB&SCR A1 Class
LB&SCR A1 Class
The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway A1 Class is an English class of 0-6-0T steam locomotive. Designed by William Stroudley, 50 members of the class were built in 1872 and between 1874 and 1880, all at Brighton Works. The class have received several nicknames, initially being known as...
"Terriers" and eight were built in 1909 and 1910. They were originally intended for lightweight passenger trains, to replace underpowered steam railmotor
Railmotor
Railmotor is a term which was used by several British railway companies for a steam railcar.-Overview:William Bridges Adams started building railmotors as early as 1848, but only in small numbers...
s. Certain cost-saving design compromises had been made, compared to the Terrier design, and the P class were found to be underpowered, having only 73% of the Terrier's tractive effort
Tractive effort
As used in mechanical engineering, the term tractive force is the pulling or pushing force exerted by a vehicle on another vehicle or object. The term tractive effort is synonymous with tractive force, and is often used in railway engineering to describe the pulling or pushing capability of a...
. The P class were later re-allocated to shunting and station pilot duties.
All eight locomotives passed into Southern Railway
Southern Railway (Great Britain)
The Southern Railway was a British railway company established in the 1923 Grouping. It linked London with the Channel ports, South West England, South coast resorts and Kent...
ownership at The Grouping in 1923, and into British Railways ownership at Nationalisation in 1948. Withdrawals took place between 1955 and 1961, but four examples have been preserved.
Numbering
The first two locomotives, built in 1909, were numbered 753 and 754. The 1910-built locomotives re-used numbers of withdrawn locomotives and were numbered 27, 178, 323, 325, 555 and 558. In 1915, Two locomotives (27 and 753, known by the ROD as numbers 5027 and 5753 ) were transferred to the Government and used by the Railway Operating DivisionRailway Operating Division
The Railway Operating Division was a division of the Royal Engineers formed in 1915 to operate railways in the many theatres of the First World War...
, arriving in France in May 1915. They were used to shunt the docks at Boulogne
Boulogne-sur-Mer
-Road:* Metropolitan bus services are operated by the TCRB* Coach services to Calais and Dunkerque* A16 motorway-Rail:* The main railway station is Gare de Boulogne-Ville and located in the south of the city....
, but they proved to have insufficient power, and were returned in October 1916.
All eight passed to the Southern Railway upon its formation in 1923, and were given an 'A' prefix to their SECR numbers. in 1925, A753 and A754 were renumbered A556 and A557. In 1923, the Southern abolished the number prefixes, and increased the P class numbers by 1000. Upon Nationalisation in 1948, British Railways added 30000 to their SR number.
Withdrawal
The class survived intact until 1955, when 31555 became the first locomotive to be withdrawn; 31557 followed in 1957. In 1958, 31178 was sold to Bowaters; and three locomotives were withdrawn in 1960: 31323, 31325 and 31558. The last two, 31027 and 31556, were withdrawn the following year.Preservation
No less than four (i.e. half the class!) have been preserved:- No. 27, Known as "Primrose" during early years in preservation, on the Bluebell RailwayBluebell RailwayThe Bluebell Railway is a heritage line running for nine miles along the border between East and West Sussex, England. Steam trains are operated between and , with an intermediate station at .The railway is managed and run largely by volunteers...
(Overhaul commenced [August 2011]) - No. 178, Known in industrial service as 'Pioneer II', on the Bluebell Railway (Operational)
- No. 323, "Bluebell"SECR P Class 323 BluebellSouth Eastern and Chatham Railway P Class number 323 Bluebell is a preserved British steam locomotive based on the Bluebell Railway in Sussex. It holds the distinction of being one of the two engines which worked passenger trains during the first year of the Bluebell Railway Preservation Society...
, on the Bluebell Railway (Operational) - No. 753,(known in industrial service as 'Pride of Sussex') on the Kent & East Sussex Railway (Operational)
In fiction
In Stepney the "Bluebell" Engine, a book by the Rev. W. Awdry from The Railway SeriesThe Railway Series
The Railway Series is a set of story books about a railway system located on the fictional Island of Sodor. There are 42 books in the series, the first being published in 1945. Twenty-six were written by the Rev. W. Awdry, up to 1972. A further 16 were written by his son, Christopher Awdry; 14...
, Nos. 323 and 27 were featured as engines that Stepney was talking about when he visited the Island of Sodor
Sodor (fictional island)
Sodor is a fictional island in the Irish Sea used as the setting for The Railway Series books by the Rev. W. Awdry, and later used in the Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends television series.-Inspiration and creation:...
. No. 323 was named 'Bluebell', the name it currently carries and No. 27 was named 'Primrose'. Both engines were seen without faces. Bluebell was also released as a die-cast model by ERTL, although, curiously, this used the same bodyshell as Thomas
Thomas the Tank Engine
Thomas the Tank Engine is a fictional steam locomotive in The Railway Series books by the Reverend Wilbert Awdry and his son, Christopher. He became the most popular character in the series, and the accompanying television spin-off series, Thomas and Friends.Thomas is a tank engine, painted blue...
– a much larger tank locomotive – rather than that of Stepney – a 'Terrier' similar to Bluebell – who was already in the ERTL range.