Steam locomotives of British Railways
Overview
Big Four British railway companies
The Big Four was a name used to describe the four largest railway companies in the United Kingdom in the period 1923-1947. The name was coined by the Railway Magazine in its issue of February 1923: "The Big Four of the New Railway Era".The Big Four were:...
".
In addition, BR built 2537 steam locomotives in the period 1948–1960, 1538 to pre-nationalisation designs and 999 to its own standard designs. These locomotives had short lives, some as little as five years against a design life of over 30 years, because of the decision to end the use of steam traction by 1968.
British Railways was created on 1 January 1948 principally by the merger of the "Big Four
Big Four British railway companies
The Big Four was a name used to describe the four largest railway companies in the United Kingdom in the period 1923-1947. The name was coined by the Railway Magazine in its issue of February 1923: "The Big Four of the New Railway Era".The Big Four were:...
" grouped railway companies: the Great Western Railway
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...
(GWR), the London, Midland and Scottish Railway
London, Midland and Scottish Railway
The London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
(LMS), the London and North Eastern Railway
London and North Eastern Railway
The London and North Eastern Railway was the second-largest of the "Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain...
(LNER) and the Southern Railway (SR).
Unanswered Questions
