GNR Stirling Single

[neildimmer]

The Great Northern Railway (GNR) No. 1 class Stirling Single is a class of steam locomotive designed for express passenger work. Designed by Patrick Stirling, they are characterised by a single pair of large driving wheels which led to the nickname "eight-footer". Originally the locomotive was designed to haul up to 26 passenger carriages at an average speed of 47 miles per hour
On his arrival at GNR, Stirling set out to standardise the railway's rolling stock. He also borrowed a 'single-wheeler' from the Great Eastern Railway and, in 1868, designed two versions of 2-2-2 with 7 ft 1 in (2.159 m) driving wheels.
The outcome, in 1870 was a locomotive with 8 ft 1 in (2.464 m) driving wheels, designed specifically for high speed expresses between York and London. The norm in those days was inside cylinders. Not only were there frequent failures of the cranked axle shafts, with such large driving wheels, they would have set the boiler too high. He therefore used outside cylinders with a four-wheeled bogie for lateral stability at the front end. According to Hamilton Ellis's description entitled 'Pat Stirling's masterpiece,' the design was a version of a 2-2-2 designed by Stirling for the Glasgow and South Western Railway, 'considerably enlarged, and provided with a leading bogie.'
A total of 53 were built at Doncaster between 1870 and 1895, in three series introduced in 1870, 1884, and 1894;. (George Frederick Bird, referred to the three series as 'G, G2 and G3 classes' in 1910, and this classification has been used in other sources[6] but it does not appear to have been used officially by the GNR.)
The GNR did not number its locomotives sequentially, instead using numbers freed up by withdrawing older locomotives. Thus the 1870 series was numbered between GNR No. 1 and 671, the 1884 series 771-8 and 1001-2, and 1894 series 1003-8
These locomotives were able to haul 275-long-ton (279 t; 308-short-ton) trains at an average of 50 miles per hour (80 km/h), with a top speed, on lighter trains, of 85 miles per hour (137 km/h), taking part in the 1895 Race to the North. GNR Stirling No 775 made the 82 miles (132 km) from Grantham to York in 1 hour 16 minutes. This translates to an average speed of 64.7 mph (104.1 km/h).
Members of the 1894 series were originally built weighing 49.55 long tons (50.35 t) but following two high-speed derailments in 1895 the weight was reduced to 48,755 long tons (49,537 t; 54,606 short tons
With the arrival of the Ivatt Atlantics after 1898, the class began to be displaced from the most prestigious express services. Several examples were rebuilt by H.A. Ivatt after 1898 with a domed boiler, but withdrawals of the 1870 series began in 1899. The last examples of the class were in use on secondary services until 1916.


Only a small collection of photos here featuring Numbers 1,2 & 3

No.1

https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-HmqnbPg


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years



https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-8Zt6pV7


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years

No.2

https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-cBfRfq2


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years
No.3

https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-fRPRXvp


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years

Neil

[neildimmer]

 


3 new photos added 


No.6

https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-pwW2bn3


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years

548

https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-4JJb6hs


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years

663

https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-CNb5Gzm


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years


Neil

[neildimmer]

I have added some new photos of Stirling Singles


No.1 Stirling single  Kings Cross shed c1913


https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-VV2xb3p


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years



https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-sPDMZVG


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years
No.1 Stirling Single + 1442 Ivatt C2 'Klondike' 4-4-2 Atlantic Imperial International Exhibition Shepherds Bush 1909

https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-cRHW44T


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years
No.4


https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-gttTqtX


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years

No.5

https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-DHgbgRZ


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years

This one looks like No. 1007



https://railway-photography.smugmug.com ... /i-hJHhSTg


Stirling Singles - Railway-Photography
railway-photography.smugmug.com
railway photographs from the last 100 years



Neil

[StevieG]

Neil,
That last "No.4" photo with all the trees behind looks to me like an Up train at Ganwick (between Potters Bar and Hadley Wood North tunnels).
The one 2 or 3 shots before that, with several tall signals in shot, looks very much like an Up train taken from the Down platform at Hatfield.