“In 1866 ten powerful locomotives, of the four-coupled passenger class, were delivered to the railway by Messrs. Sharp, Stewart & Co., which received the Company’s Nos., 251 to 260 (makers’ Nos. 1667 to 1676). These were in many respects similar in detail to the large single-wheel engines built by the firm six years earlier, having “hoops” on the crank-axle webs, unusually large fireboxes, and leading wheels placed well forward. They had one feature, however, distinct from their predecessors, in the form of a big steam dome on the centre of the boiler barrel. The illustration (Fig. 32), which shows No. 251, will afford a general idea of their appearance.
The leading dimensions were : diameter of leading wheels 4-ft. and of four-coupled wheels 6-ft.; wheel-base : leading to driving wheel centres 9-ft. 7-in., driving to trailing wheel centres 7-ft. 6-in., total 17-ft. 1-in. ; total length over buffer-beams 25-ft. 7-in.; cylinders 16 1/2-in. by 22-in. ; boiler barrel, length 10-ft., diameter 4-ft., containing 157 tubes of 2-in. diameter; length of firebox casing 7-ft. 2-in. ; weight (empty) 33 tons 14 cwt., in working order 36 tons 4 cwt. ; capacity of tender 2,400 gallons. All these engines were subsequently rebuilt by Mr. Stirling, and performed useful work for many years. They are now all broken up, with the exception of No. 258.”
More Notes
258 was withdrawn in October 1902
