Archibald Sturrock had a total of twelve 2-2-2 express locomotives built by three manufacturers in 1860 and 1861, which had a driving wheel diameter of seven feet. They were at the same time generously sized and very handsomely proportioned, so that they are sometimes described as Sturrock's masterpiece. The long firebox, which was raised compared to the boiler barrel, is clearly visible. The leading axle was now directly under the smokebox. This arrangement was adopted for all further GNR three-axle passenger and express locomotives.

No. 268 built by the Yorkshire Engine Co.

Locomotive Magazine, March 1899

The last locomotives that Sturrock designed for the GNR were six 2-4-0 express locomotives and a driver diameter of seven feet. These were built half each by Fowler and the Yorkshire Engine Co. The steel driving wheels were an innovation. Since the coupling rods often broke, Stirling converted the locomotives to 2-2-2 wheel arrangement from 1873 onwards. In this form they were more successful and were only retired between 1898 and 1902.

The Great Northern needed new locomotives to accommodate the growing freight traffic on the Metropolitan Line between King's Cross and the goods yards between Farringdon Street and Ludgate Hill. The particular challenges were gradients of up to 1 in 35, tight curves and several tunnels. Two locomotives were therefore ordered from Avonside in 1866, based on two others that had been built for the Vale of Neath Railway.

With four coupled axles they were exceptionally strong by British standards at the time. In order to be able to drive through the tight curves, the first and last axles could each be moved laterally by 5/8 inch and were reset by springs. Because of the tunnels they had a condenser. However, as they turned out to be too large for the Metropolitan Line, it is unclear how long they were actually used there in the time until they were scrapped in 1880.

Stirling's first locomotives for the Great Northern were the 20 2-4-0s of class 280, built in 1867 and 1868. Despite the large drivers measuring 6 feet 7 inches or 2,007 mm in diameter, they were used for passenger and mail trains, while express trains were reserved for Singles. One feature was that the driving axles were mounted in the inside frame and the leading axle in the outside frame.

From 1874 onwards, 117 more followed, which were known as class 86 and had some changes. Many of these were rebuilt to class E1 from 1897, when Ivatt succeeded Stirling. They received a larger boiler, while those that were not rebuilt were now referred to as class E3. In the 20th century they only served light trains on branch lines. 34 came to the LNER, but they were retired by 1927.

Patrick Stirling believed that locomotives with large wheels would not only be suitable for higher speeds, but would also achieve better traction. So he borrowed a 2-2-2 locomotive from the Great Eastern and used it to develop a significantly larger locomotive. By adding a two-axle leading bogie, guidance at higher speeds was improved and the increased weight was better distributed.

The no longer operational No. 1 in July 2003 in Doncaster

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The driving wheels were eight feet and one inch in diameter, equivalent to 2,464 mm. The cylinders were very large at 18 by 28 inches in order to still be able to convert enough steam at the lower rotational speeds of the large wheels. In order to be able to position the boiler low despite the large cylinders and also to avoid the problems with cranked axles and high forces, the cylinders were arranged on the outside. Between 1870 and 1895 a total of 53 were manufactured, which became increasingly heavier and had a higher boiler pressure.

sectional drawing

Locomotive Magazine, February 1902

The Singles were also used on heavier trains on the flat line between London and York with an average speed of around 50 mph or 80 km/h. Trains with ten to 16 three-axle coaches that weighed between 150 and 240 tons in total were common on lines that rarely had a gradient of more than 1 in 200 and a maximum of 1 in 95. With lighter trains, they could reach speeds of up to 85 mph or 137 km/h.

In the “Race to the North” they ran lighter trains at average speeds of more than 60 mph or 97 km/h. Even with heavier trains, there were strict instructions not to use pilot locomotives in order to showcase the performance of the Singles. After there were two derailments in 1895 and 1896 due to the high axle load on the driving axle, the weight was reduced.

At the turn of the century, the trains became too heavy for the Singles, so pilot locomotives were now used. With the introduction of Ivatt's Atlantics in 1898, the area of operation also shifted to less important trains. Nevertheless, some received a larger domed boiler by Ivatt. After the last ones were retired by 1916, only number 1 remained as the oldest Single from 1870. It ran for the last time in 1985 and is now in the National Railway Museum in York.

Shortly before the turn of the century, Henry Ivatt had the task of developing a new locomotive for the increasing loads of the most important express trains. He had to measure himself against the singles from his predecessor Patrick Stirling, who were still considered excellent and very fast, but no longer powerful enough. Here, for the first time in Great Britain, the wheel arrangement 4-4-2 was used, which originally came from the USA and was known there as “Atlantic”. The difference was that the Atlantic was developed in the US from the 4-4-0 “American” to allow for a larger firebox and smoother running, while in the UK it was a 4-2-2 “Single” with an extra coupled axle. 

No. 990 “Henry Oakley” at the Doncaster Works Open Day, July 2003

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The class also represented a departure from British tradition in other respects, most notably with its externally mounted cylinders. The class was initially only named after the first machine built with the number 990 and later got the designation C1. To distinguish them from the larger boiler design of 1902, the locomotives are generally known simply as “C1 (small boiler)” or “Small Atlantics”. Because of the American influence, they were also nicknamed “Klondykes” after the Klondike Gold Rush. A single example, number 271, was built in 1902 with four small simple acting cylinders.

Schematic drawing

Locomotive Magazine, October 1900

A total of 22 pieces were made. The locomotives easily reached 90 mph, which proved difficult in everyday use on routes such as between London and Doncaster. At some speeds, it was often found that the cylinders were too small to implement the boiler's output. This led to unfavorable valve gear settings during operation, which led to high steam consumption.

In 1909, number 988 was the only one equipped with a superheater according to the Schmidt patent. The boiler pressure was reduced from 175 to 160 psi and in return the cylinder diameter was increased from 19 to 20 inches. From 1914 all other machines were converted with the Robinson superheater. From 1923, the machines were listed as class C2 by the LNER. The decommissioning began as early as 1935 and lasted until 1946. Today only number 990, which was built first, still exists, which bears the name “Henry Oakley” after the former managing director of the Great Northern. 

As a development of the C1 with a small boiler, Ivatt had number 251 built in 1902, which was also an Atlantic. The most striking difference was the significantly larger boiler, which had a diameter of 5 ft 6 in instead of 4 ft 8 in. Based on the American model, its firebox stood on the frame behind the coupled axles and was significantly wider. This should serve the goal of being able to produce large amounts of steam even at the highest speeds.

The prototype had only two cylinders, slightly larger than those of the smaller Atlantic. The slide valves were soon exchanged for piston valves, improving performance. Initially 80 production pieces of this version were built between 1904 and 1908. Ten more followed in 1910, which had a factory superheater and operated with a boiler pressure of just 150 instead of 170 psi. The earlier pieces also got a superheater later.

Individual examples were built with four compound cylinders and a 200 psi pressure boiler as a trial. Number 292, which was already built in 1904, made the start. As a compound locomotive of the De Glehn type, it had external high-pressure cylinders that drove the rear coupled axle and internal low-pressure cylinders that drove the front coupled axle. The valve gear was designed in such a way that it could start up as a four-cylinder engine with simple steam expansion and then be switched to compound action. This locomotive had a boiler pressure of 200 psi and was in service until 1927.

No. 251

J.R. Howden, „The Boys' Book of Locomotives”

Similar to the 292 was the 1421, also built at Doncaster in 1907. It had a similar engine, but larger low-pressure cylinders. After receiving a superheater in 1914, it was converted into a simple two-cylinder engine in 1920 and thus joined the 91 examples of the production version.

An exception was number 1300, built by the Vulcan Foundry in 1905, which like the small Atlantic had a long, narrow firebox. The arrangement of the cylinders corresponded to the other two four-cylinder locomotives, but the valve gear differed. It had an automatic starting device, which initially worked with two cylinders with simple steam expansion and automatically switched to compound operation with all four cylinders as speed increased. Like the 1421, it received a superheater in 1914 and was converted to a two-cylinder engine in 1917.

The 279, which had been part of the series production, was converted into a four-cylinder locomotives in 1915. Here, however, simple steam expansion was still used, which is why all cylinders now had a diameter of 15 instead of 19 inches. It remained in service in this form until 1938, when it received two new 20-inch diameter cylinders from the K2 class Mogul. 

Schematical drawing of No. 292

Locomotive Magazine, May 1908

Since the production version already provided very good service, no further special versions were built. Like their predecessors, they easily reached 90 mph and, in contrast to these, were able to pull up to 500 long tons at high speeds. The LNER also referred to them as class C1, while the smaller C1s now became C2s. Although one machine was equipped with a booster in 1923 to increase the tractive effort, the tractive effort of the other machines was apparently still sufficient and so this was later removed again.

Regular service on the heaviest express trains ended in the 1920s with the introduction of the A1 class Pacifics. The C1 now tended to pull lighter express trains and stood in for failed Pacifics. Especially in the latter area of operation, they often proved that they could also take over these trains without any problems and thus provided train services that were actually significantly higher than the services originally intended for them. From about 1950 they mainly only pulled regular passenger trains before they were retired between 1954 and 1960.

The obsolescence of the existing freight locomotives on the Great Northern shortly before the turn of the century faced the problem that there was no free capacity in the local locomotive factories. Neither the own workshops in Doncaster, nor the commercial British factories were able to deliver any significant number in a timely manner. So they turned to Baldwin in the USA, who developed a freight locomotive for use in England.

While in Great Britain at that time ordinary freight locomotives were normally manufactured with a 0-6-0 wheel arrangement, mainline locomotives in the USA were always designed with a leading axle or bogie. Thus the new locomotive was a lightly built Mogul, which was delivered a total of 20 times in 1899. It corresponded mainly to American design principles and got a four-axle tender with bogies. Typically British features were the placement of the sandbox under the running boards and a British-design chimney.

Schematic drawing

Locomotive Magazine, November 1900

During operation, a somewhat high coal consumption and a very high consumption of lubricating oil were noticed. Despite the leading axle, their running was considered unsteady and due to the light construction, the continuous steaming performance did not have any significant advantages compared to earlier freight locomotives. The experimental use with London suburban trains from King's Cross did not bring convincing results. Thus, the decommissioning took place between 1909 and 1915, when enough freight locomotives from indigenous production were available.

The Great Northern class H4 was a 2-6-0 mixed-traffic locomotive designed by Sir Nigel Gresley. Its basis was the H3, but now it got three instead of two cylinders, being the first production locomotive to use Gresley's conjugated valve gear. All three cylinders worked on the second driving axle. With a huge boiler being six feet in diameter, the axle loading became somewhat high for some lines.

The first ten locomotives were built in 1920 at Doncaster and the LNER adopted this class as a standard design. With additional batches built at Doncaster, Darlington and three commercial manufacturers, 193 had been completed by 1937. They were designated class K3 by the LNER. Due to their rhythm of the exhaust beat and the uneven gyratory movements, they earned the nickname “Jazzers”.

Nevertheless, they were able to run at up to 75 mph (121 km/h) and were also used to haul express trains when needed. So they could be rated as being very successful, although Thompson rebuilt one in 1945 into the two-cylinder K5. All were withdrawn between 1959 and 1962 with none being preserved. The A1 steam trust once announced that they might build a new K3, but as of today no new news can be found about that topic.

The design of the J5 goes back to the design of Patrick Stirling's “Standard Goods” which were built from 1867 and are known as the Class J7. As a direct development, the J6 was built from 1873, in which the boiler diameter was increased by two inches from 4 feet and 1/2 inch, the cylinder diameter grew from 24 to 26 inches and which now had splashers around the wheels.

After the last ten J6s received other 4ft 5in diameter boilers, 133 new locomotives were built in 1903 with these boilers and designated J5. 125 of the 170 J6 were then also converted to the J5. Twelve almost identical locomotives went to the Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway. The J5s could often be found double-headed in front of heavy coal trains running non stop from Peterborough to London. In some cases, however, they were even used in front of local trains. During the First World War, 26 engines were drafted by the ROD and taken to France. They received a condensation device to reduce the visible vapor plume, which was removed again when they returned to Great Britain.

From 1912 Nigel Gresley began rebuilding the J5 into a new class called the J4. A new boiler was used, which now had a diameter of 4 feet and 8 inches and was actually intended for the 4-4-0 class D2 locomotives. Prior to the grouping, 71 examples were rebuilt, which then became the J3 in the newly formed LNER, while the remaining J5s became the new class J4. By 1929, the LNER had rebuilt a further 82 units. During this time, the task area of the locomotives shifted to shunting tasks and local freight trains, since more powerful locomotives were now available for transporting heavy freight trains on main lines. Gradually the number of locomotives was reduced, with some being sold to coal mines. A few examples made it to British Railways in 1948, the last unconverted being retired in 1951 and the last converted in 1954.