J24's (almost) serving in WW1

[Rlangham]

According to the superb 'The Railway Operating Division on the Western Front' book, 22 P Class 0-6-0's (later J24) were selected and prepared for ROD service but not sent - does anyone know why they weren't, and if possible, which locomotives they were? Apparently they were brought together to Borough Gardens Shed at Gateshead before it was decided not to send them. The only other locomotives described as planned to be sent but then not are 12 Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway 0-8-0's

[Greedy Boards]

Hi

don't have the locomotive numbers, but two potential reason for the P Class locomotives remaining in the North East, may be due to:

Their original purpose & design not meeting requirements for Northern France. Believe that the P Class was a departure from the previous C Class, in that it was deliberately designed for short-haul mineral workings in the North East, with its smaller wheels, higher tractive performance, but also its reduced tender capacity for coal, and therefore its range. Certainly, the P Class was produced between 1894-1898, when mineral operations were at their height and requirements were for hauling short distances from the Durham & Northumberland coalfields. However, as circumstances changed, so the NER turned to its P1 Class produced from 1898, and then its large-boilered P2 & P3 Classess in 1904 & 1906 respectively, and distance, increased tractive power & flexibility took over.

Second reason, and probably the more telling, was that the ROD hired two batches of Belgian 0-6-0s in 1915 & 1916 respecttively, totalling 225 locomotives. The Belgian locomotives were essentially McIntosh designs based on the 812 Class for the Caledonian Railway, and therefore familiar to the Sappers recruited from British railway companies. The assembly of P Class locomotives in the North East, could have been part of a Plan B, and even may have been used to drive down the cost of hiring the Belgian locomotives. But certainly, it looks like the ROD went for large-scale local purchasing in 1915 & 1916, certainly as the build-up of the new Kitchener armies took place prior to the start of the Somme offensive of 1916.

Regards

Greedy Boards

Certainly the NER parted with its complete T1 Class of 50 locomotives to the ROD, and it has been suggested that this temporary loss may have been a contributing factor in leaving the P Class at home.

[billdonald]

My guess would be that the NER were trying to work a stroke by offering the P class. These were the least effective of the Worsdell small boiler freight classes, having been supplanted by their bigger brothers the P1, P2, and P3 classes. It was out of the question to offer any of these highly sucessful locomotives, and the War Office were moving their requirements to 0-8-0 locomotives. This got the NER out of the hole as they could then offer their small boiler 0-8-0 T and T1 classes, whose duties were being taken over by Raven's superb T2 locomotives. Don't forget the Shildon-Newport electrification scheme had reached completion and this released large numbers of heavy freight locomotives on the NER.

Any comments on ths?

Bill Donald
Dublin, Ireland

[52D]

Sound reasoning Bill, a combination of your post and the one above it certainly ticks all the boxes.