Bristol and Exeter Railway 4-4-0ST locomotives

B&ER 4-4-0ST
Type and origin Power type Steam Builder various
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 4-4-0ST Gauge 7 feet 0+1⁄4 inch (2.140 m) Leading dia. 3 feet 6 inches (1.07 m) Driver dia. 5 feet 6 inches (1.68 m) Wheelbase 18 feet 4 inches (5.59 m) Cylinder size 17 inches (430 mm) dia × 24 inches (610 mm) stroke

The 26 Bristol and Exeter Railway 4-4-0ST locomotives were broad gauge 4-4-0ST steam locomotives. They first entered service in 1855 and the last was withdrawn in 1892. The Bristol and Exeter Railway was amalgamated into the Great Western Railway on 1 January 1876.

The locomotives were built in four batches, each by a different builder, with variations between them, noticeably in the size of the saddle tank.

List of locomotives

1859 Rothwell locomotives

Five locomotives built by Rothwell and Company with 1,100-imperial-gallon (5,000 L; 1,300 US gal) gallon saddle tanks and 18-foot-4-inch (5.59 m) wheelbase.

• 47 (1855–1879) GWR No. 2028
• 48 (1855–1879) GWR No. 2029
• 49 (1855–1884) GWR No. 2030
• 50 (1855–1884) GWR No. 2031
• 51 (1855–1882) GWR No. 2032
• 52 (1855–1880) GWR No. 2033

1862 Beyer, Peacock locomotives

Four locomotives built by Beyer Peacock with 1,280-imperial-gallon (5,800 L; 1,540 US gal) saddle tanks and 19-foot-5+1⁄2-inch (5.931 m) wheelbase.

• 61 (1862–1884) GWR No. 2034
• 62 (1862–1886) GWR No. 2035
• 63 (1862–1880) GWR No. 2036
• 64 (1862–1886) GWR No. 2037

1867 Vulcan Foundry locomotives

Ten locomotives built by the Vulcan Foundry with 1,280-imperial-gallon (5,800 L; 1,540 US gal) saddle tanks and 19-foot-5+1⁄2-inch (5.931 m) wheelbase, the same as the Beyer, Peacock locomotives built five years earlier.

• 65 (1867–1880) GWR No. 2038
• 66 (1867–1892) GWR No. 2039
• 67 (1867–1888) GWR No. 2040
• 68 (1867–1880) GWR No. 2041
• 69 (1867–1892) GWR No. 2042
• 70 (1867–1888) GWR No. 2043
• 71 (1867–1882) GWR No. 2044
• 72 (1867–1892) GWR No. 2045
• 73 (1867–1889) GWR No, 2046
• 74 (1867–1892) GWR No. 2047

1872 Avonside locomotives

Six locomotives built by the Avonside Engine Company with 1,440-imperial-gallon (6,500 L; 1,730 US gal) saddle tanks and 18-foot-4-inch (5.59 m) wheelbase.

• 85 (1872–1892) GWR No. 2048
• 86 (1872–1892) GWR No. 2049
• 87 (1873–1892) GWR No. 2050
• 88 (1873–1890) GWR No. 2051
• 89 (1873–1892) GWR No. 2052
• 90 (1873–1892) GWR No. 2053

No. 2051 was withdrawn following a fatal collision at Norton Fitzwarren railway station in Somerset while working a special ocean mail train from Plymouth on 11 November 1890.

References

• The Locomotives of the Great Western Railway, Part 2: Broad Gauge. The Railway Correspondence and Travel Society. 1952. ISBN 0-901115-32-0.
• Waters, Laurence (1999). The Great Western Broad Gauge. Hersham: Ian Allan Publishing. ISBN 0-7110-2634-3.