Glasgow & South Western Railway

Glasgow, Paisley, Kilmarnock & Ayr Railway

First locomotive works were at Cook Street in Glasgow. D.B. Stark was the first locomotive superintendent. He was followed by Peter Robertson (1840-1853) and by Patrick Stirling.

4-6-0 Manson

Nock British locomotives of the twentieth century notes (p. 138) noted "when their years mounted up the weaknesses in their frames, and construction at the front end began to become serious, with cylinders working loose, and frames cracking"

Rous-Marten, Charles British locomotive practice and performance. RM, 1903, 13, 124-31.
Describes new GSWR Manson 4-6-0 No. 384 (with illustration) and then gives an account of journeys made behind Carlisle and Glasgow and back behind McIntosh 4-6-0s Nos. 59 and 60. Neither of the northbound journeys was noteworthy: a problem with dampers was the explanation of the slow progress on the first and on the second a banker was provided from Baettock. The southbound journeys were better.

Essery, Bob and Jenkinson, David. An illustrated history of LMS locomotives. Volume 3. Absorbed pre-group classes Northern Division. 1986. 420 illus.
Excellent extended captions: especially good on former Glasgow & South Western Railway locomotives.

Highet, Campbell.

The Glasgow & South- Western Railway

Locomotives and Locwnotive Engineers

Any assessment of the motive power utilised on the G & S.W.R. cannot fail to reveal certain characteristics which may almost be regarded as peculiarilities deriving from Kilmarnock. First there can be noted the domeless boiler cult, to which both the Stirlings and Hugh Smellie were addicts; secondly th'ere was an extraordinary preference for the four-coupled locomotive, no less than 57.9 per cent. of the locomotives built by or for this Company had some form of this wheel arrangement, the 0-4-0, 0-4-2, and 2-4-0 type accounting for 30.5 per cent. The popularity of these was due undoubtedly to their ability to go into nooks and corners anywhere on the system. By 1871 the 0-4-0 tender engine had become almost totally outmoded on other railways, but as late as that year James Stirling was building more, with 4-wheeled tenders, by reason of their great flexibility, and they lasted for many years, one surviving until as late as 1922.

Thirdly, and perhaps most pronounced, was the apparent hatred, if that be the right word, of tank engines of any type. Of all the locomotives built for the G. & S.W.R. (of which some 48 per cent. were turned out from its own Kilmarnock works), only 10 per cent. were tank engines, and of the locomotive stock of 528 in January 1923 only 82 were tanks, 15.5 per cent. of the total.

Although some of the tank locomotives were designed for, and for a time used on, suburban services, they were mainly employed on shunting work in goods yards, docks, and harbours and even running shed yards. One explanation of this policy is that it stems from an early realisation by management that the steam locomotive could not compete economically with the electric tram-car in a densely populated urban and suburban area such as was growing up in and around Glasgow. It is noticeabl'e that there are repeated instances down the years of the cessation of steam-hauled services in areas served more easily and more economically by the excellent tram services introduced by the Corporations of Glasgow and Paisley. Of recent years tram-cars have given way to petrol and diesel buses, and the B.T.C. Modernisation Plan has produced the new 25 KV electric services, but the latter cater more for the ex-Caledonian territory than that of the ex-G. & S.W.R. It is, nevertheless, significant that a realisation of the economics of suburban transport was a key factor in determining the form of this railway's motive power units as long as sixty years ago.

A further point worth noting is that for 58 of the 70 years between Patrick Stirling's appointment and the grouping of 1923 there were Kilmarnock men in the locomotive superintendent's chair. Whilst Patrick came from the family's foundry at Dundee, his brother James was his works manager at Kilmarnock, as was Hugh Smellie when James succeeded his brother. James Manson was also Kilmarnock-trained before going to the Great North of Scotland Railway, so one could expect some continuity of thought and design with such a succession, though in apparent contradiction Manson was no supporter of the domeless boiler faction. Peter Drummond who followed was almost wholly imbued with his brother Dugald's ideas, whilst Robert Whitelegg, who came from the Tilbury line, was quite a "foreigner," his only claim to distinction being his 4-6-4 tank locomotives, the largest and heaviest of their kind in the country.

Seventy years is a long while in the life of a railway and th'e development of its locomotives, but before examining it, it is necessary to go still further back in time to the very early locomotives used on the small railways which went to the making of the G. & S.W.R.

The Earliest Locomotives

The locomotive which, it is claimed, was the first in Scotland has already been described in dealing with the Kilmarnock & Troon Railway. It is believed that this railway had another steam locomotive a year or two later, i.e., about 1818. This is said to have been built by Stephenson at Killingworth, to have been a four-wh'eels coupled engine, and to have embodied all the improvements Stephenson had introduced in his latest design. The wheels were largely of wood, thus reducing the weight and th'e wear and tear on the track. Springing, and the manufacture of springs suitable for steam locomotives, constituted a serious difficulty in those far-off days, but Stephensonian ingenuity had produced a substitute in the form of steam cushions. These consisted of plungers fixed to the axles behind each wheel and operating in cylindrical guides which formed part of the boiler. The top ends of these being open to the inside of the boiler, a uniform pressure was exerted on the plungers and an even weight distribution assured, whatever the inequalities of the track. Doubtless the problem of maintaining the glands in a steam-tight condition would be not inconsiderable! Another improvement was that the exhaust steam was being utilised to create an induced draught on the fire, materially increasing the engine's power. How this and its Killingworth companion, The Duke, dealt with the traffic on the line has apparently never been set on record.

Little, too, is recorded of the Paisley & Renfrew engines, of which there were three. Mr. Dendy Marshall numbered P. & R. no. 1, St. Rollox, as no. 70 in the first 100 steam locomotives. A 2-2-0 engine, built by Robert Stephenson & Co. in 1831, St. Rollox was one of the "Planet" type and said to have cost £780 when new to the Glasgow & Garnkirk Railway. This company sold it to the P. & R. in 1836 for £350. It had two cylinders 10in. x 14in. and 4ft. 6in. diameter driving wheels. The other two engines, Paisley and Renfrew, were 2-2-2 type built in 1837 by Murdoch, Aitken & Co. Little is known of these, and when the P. & R. went over to horse haulage in 1848 all three were sold by auction, two fetching 20gns. cash and the third £13.

The Ardrossan Railway had two very old" Bury" engines, Firefly and King Goil, the latter an apt name in these parts, built by Barr and Macnab in 1840. These were not taken into stock by the G.P.K. & A., but two others were. These were 2-2-2 type by Neilson and Mitchell in 1846 and named, again most aptly, Tam o'Shanter and Soutar Johnnie. These ultimately became G. & S.W.R. nos. 10 and 16 and were withdrawn in 1861 and 1868 respectively.

The G.P.K. & A. (the Ayrshire Railway) had a very mixed locomotive stock. There were Bury 2-2-0's, some by E. Bury, some by Stark & Fulton, all built between 1839 and 1841. They were erected at Ayr after being delivered by sea to Ayr harbour. All were named; Mazeppa is recorded as working the boat train from Glasgow to Ardrossan in connection with the Fleetwood steamer in 1847, and Marmion was involved in an accident at Barassie on 11 September 1839. Despite a warning from the policeman guarding the level crossing at Barassie, a young man named Orr drove two trains of coal over the crossin,g (this would be the crossing carrying the K. & T. over the G.P.K. & A.), as the 12 noon ex Irvine was approaching. Marmion cut through the coal wagons, and her fireman fell off the footplate and was found later lying with an ear torn off.

The years onward to 1853 produced a variety of types including 2-2-2 by Kinmond, Hutton and Steel: Thos. Edington and Sons; Caird and Co.; and Hawthorn. There were 0-4-0, 0-4-2, and 2-4-0 by the same builders and by Bury, Curtis and Kennedy. One of the latter, an 0-4-2 no. 48, was on a 26-coach excursion when it collided with a Dumfries-Glasgow train at New Cumnock on 5 July 1851. The latter was drawn by no. 72, a Hawthorn 2-2-2. One of the Kinmond, Hutton and Steel 2-2-2 engines made history by being used by D. K. Clark in his tests and experiments into locomotive boiler evaporation; this was no. 82, Queen. Of such varying types was the motive power of the G.P.K. & A. made up when Patrick Stirling succeeded Peter Roberrtson as locomotive superintendent at Cook Street works, Glasgow. The distinction of having been first locomotive superintendent goes to Dugald Bannatyne Stark, who was appointed on 10 June 1840. He, however, resigned on 7 October 1840, and Peter Robertson, locomotive foreman at Ayr, was appointed in his stead. These five main classes were handling the traffic on the lines then existing, and from an old public timetable it appears they were allowed two hours for thoe 40 miles from Glasgow to Ayr. When the line was opened in August 1840 there were trains to Ayr at 8.0 and 10.0 a.m., 2.0, 4.0, and 6.0 p.m., returning at 8.0 and 10.0 a.m., 4.0 and 6.0 p.m. There was also one train in each direction between Glasgow and Johnstone, 12.0 noon down and 1.0 p.m. up.

There were also five 2-2-2 built in the company's own Cook Street shops, between 1845 and 1848. Particulars are vague and give very little idea what they were like; they were said to have been more powerful than previous types, but could not be called beautiful. Single frames and outside cylinders were used, and the boilers carried a dome on the front ring. Robertson devised a steam brake which was fitted to some of these and their K.H. & S. contemporaries. Two other engines were built at Cook Street. One was no. 8, Albert, a 2-2-2 built in 1851, and the other was similar to the Hawthorn 86 class of 0-4-0, of which ten were built 1852-3; these were domeless and following the 65 class, also from Hawthorn's works and domeless, may have influenced later locomotive superintendents in their choice of this type of boiler.

The Stirling Regime

Patrick Stirling was 33 years of age when he was appoInted to the chair at Cook Street. As yet unknown, he was destined to make history in the locomotive world and to become justly famous. Before coming to the G. & S.W.R. he had been a departmental works manager with R. & W. Hawthorn of Newcastle. This firm had already built a number of locomotives for th'e Ayrshire Railway, some of which, at least, had domeless boilers. These were introduced by Hawthorn around 1851-2, and it is doubtless from this source that Patrick brought the type to the South-Western. His first designs w~re both 0-4-2 tender engines, a class of which, at one time, the G. & S.W.R. had no less than 164 examples. However, between 1857 and 1860 he produced twelve 2-2-2 type engines which were his first real attempt at an express engine design. In the main it followed the Hawthorn design and was similar in appearance to Ramsbottom's "Lady of the Lake" class introduced about the same time on the L. and N.W.R. That they were" Stirlings" there was no mistaking. There was a likeness to the family firm's products for the Arbroath & Forfar Railway, but at the same time they were undoubtedly predecessors of the famous eightfooters built for the G.N.R. twenty years later. These early singles had domes; he did not bring in the domeless era until 1860-2 with another batch of 0-4-2 which Sharp, Stewart built. This latter class was the first on the G. & S.W.R. to have a Giffard injector fitted. The period 1860-4 also saw the introduction of Stirling's characteristic round-top cab with circular side windows like a ship's port-holes. The singles handled most of the express traffic on the main lines, but it must not be forgotten that, as yet, the G. & S.W.R. was a somewhat bucolic line-years were to pass before it linked with its future English partner; moreover, th'e line from Glasgow to Carlisle was not then the direct line through Lugton to Kilmarnock but the Long Road via Paisley and Dalry, a somewhat easier road than the new one and therefore one over which the singles could show their paces. Two other interesting features of Patrick's reign deserve mention. In 1857 the G. & S.W.R. had a 2-4-0 built for them by Beyer, Peacock and Co. specially designed by Joseph Beattie of thl:! L. & S.W.R., the result of his experiments on the use of coal instead of coke which, until then, had been the fuel generally used. The firebox of this enginl:! was Beattie's double type, and feed-water heating apparatus was also fitted. Given the number 109, it was also named Galloway, and until Lord Glenarthur appeared 65 years later, it was the last G. & S.W.R. locomotive to bear a name. No. 109 had a neat outline unusual for the L. & S.W.R. Shedded latterly at Kilmarnock and used for piloting goods trains, it lasted until 1874.

By the early eighteen-fiftes, the Cook Street works were proving to be too small for the growing stud of locomotives, and new shops were constructed at Kilmarnock in the angle formed between the south main line and the Troon branch. These shops were opened in 1856 and were in continuous use for the building and repair of locomotives until the formation of the L.M.S. in 1923. Originally they also catered for th'e carriage and wagon stock until, this department having outgrown its available room, new C. & W. shops were built at Barassie in 1901. This move enabled a remodelling of the locomotive works to be carried out under the supervision of James Manson.

The last design of single Patrick produced before leaving Kilmarnock was his 45 class. Eleven were built between 1865 and 1868, that is to say, a number were built by his brother James after he himself had departed to Doncaster. These engines were a considerable advance on the earlier types. Outside cylinders were retained and the driving wheels increased to seven feet. From all accounts they were capable of a good turn of speed, a generally accepted characteristic of the single and possibly the main reason why the design was so popular with Patrick; his brother however had no use for the type and took the first opportunity he could of relegating them to secondary duties after he followed his elder brother as loconlOtive superintendent in 1866. Almost all James' career had been spent in the G. & S.W. workshops, and for some while he was works manager. Singles apart, he carried on the family traditions with a few slight differences: for example, Patrick encased his safety valves in a tall brass coiumn, shaped beautifully, and given a high polish, but James reverted to open Ramsbottom valves on a flat mounting, possibly as a result of a serious boiler explosion in 1876. The typical splashers with slotted oval holes, brass manhole covers, and small severe cabs were all retained, though James cut away the cabs on most of his designs to facilitate leaning out. He also retained the domeless boiler and was for a number of years a devotee of the small engine types like 0-4-2, 2-4-0, and 0-4-0.

The Second Stirling

James blossomed out as a very competent designer with his first 4-4-0 in 1873. This was his famous no. 6 class and of its type was second in Britain only to Thomas Wheatley's 224 class on the North British Railway. These locomotives had inside frames, inside cylinders, and a bogie with a fixed pivot one inch forward of the centre of a wheelbase of only 4ft. 10in. Apparently this somewhat dubious arrangement does not seem to have caused the G. & S.W.R. any great amount of trouble! The coupled wheels were 7ft. 1½in. diameter, which no doubt, together with a welI designed front-end with large ports, contributed to their success on express trains. They performed nobly on the Anglo-Scottish through trains between Carlisle and St. Enoch which started running on 1 May 1876 when the Midland Railway had completed their Settle-Carlisle line. With a load usually consisting of one Pullman car, one or two Midland 12-wheel bogie coaches of 1875 vintage, and five or six sixwheelers and a van or two, they were required to negotiate the heavily graded road on the following schedule:-

A pilot was generally taken from Dumfries to New Cumnock or even through to Kilmarnock, and timekeeping was good. The class was placed on the duplicate list by Manson in 1895 or shortly after; even so some lasted until well into L.M.S. days and were working coast trains as late as 1930. One innovation of James Stirling's was the introduction to the South-Western of some tank engines. In 1875 he brought out a class of 0-4-0 tank. They had smaller coupled wheels than the 0-4-0 tender engines, and the tank was a round-topped saddle over the boiler and smokebox. Balanced brass safety valves were fitted, as was a vertical screw reverser. Smellie rebuilt them as side tanks, removed the screw, and fitted lever reverse. A couple of years later, in order to provide suitable machines to work the suburban traffic on the new City of Glasgow Union Railway, eight of the 22 class 0-4-2 built in 1860-2 were rebuilt as 0-4-2 tanks, and the last of James' designs was another type of tank engine0-4-4T 1 class-actually completed after he had left to go south; thus was history repeating itself. His purpose in building these was to provide a compact tank engine for the heavily-graded Greenock road, presumably using the greater, though variable, adhesion weight available in a tank engine to good advantage. The side tanks carried 1000 gallons of water and the bunker 30 cwt. of coal. In other respects they were characteristic " Stir lings" and, as tank engines, suspect. Adverse comments were rife; "They rolled too much on the downhill," or "They carry too little water." Footplate opinion seems to have won the day, as it was not long before they were taken off the Greenock road to work the Potterhill, Barrhead, and Johnstone services. During the" make do and mend" period after World War I they were rebuilt by Whitelegg with larger bunkers and rusticated to Beith, Girvan, Dalmellington, and Ayr, where they lasted until the mid-twenties.

On 2 April 1878 James Stirling handed his resignation to the directors, and on 30 June he left Kilmarnock for good. He had been appointed to a similar position on the South Eastern Railway. The man who had been his works manager until 1870, Hugh Smellie, then returned to the South-Western fold after an absence of eight years as locomotive superintendent of the Maryport & Carlisle Railway.

Smellie's first task on assuming office was the completion of two classes laid down by James Stirling; then, after producing in 1879 12 very useful 2-4-0s with 6ft. 9½n. dia. wheels, familiarly known as the" Twelve Apostles," he produced his only goods class, the 22 class 0-6-0. His only goods engine certainly, but no less than 64 of them were built, 44 at Kilmarnock, 10 by Neilson, 10 by Dilbs. These engines were generally known as the" Steam Brakers," since they were the first G. & S.W.R. locomotives to be so fitted. Domeless when built, Manson gave some of these engines a dome when rebuilding them, or when they were shopped for other reasons. Later on, in Whitelegg's day, some were given the vacuum brake.

The Wee Bogies

In 1882 a new class of 4-4-0 made its appearance. Between then and 1885 twenty-two of them were built, all at Kilmarnock, and to distinguish them from their successors of 1886-9 they were known as the" Wee Bogies." The coupled wheels were 6ft. 1½in. dia. on the earlier (119) class; the 1886 engines were given 6ft. 9½in. wheels. As built, the 119s had 1065 sq. ft. of heating surface, the later engines (153 class) having 1193 sq. ft., the grate areas being 16 and 17.5 sq. ft. respectively. When rebuilt in the early 1920s, the same boiler was fitted to each, giving 1139 sq. ft. heating surface, 16.5 sq. ft. of grate, and a boiler pressure of 160 lbs. per sq. in. raised from the original 140 lbs. and 150 lbs. The cylinders remained at 18¼in. x 26in. Both classes did some most excellent work. The" Wee Bogies," or "Greenock Bogies" as they were sometimes called, certainly lived up to their designer's hopes. They coped with the severe gradients of the Greenock line admirably, and these trains were heavily loaded. So were the Ardrossan and Largs trains; these 'engines also worked to Stanraer when the turntable at that place had been replaced by a larger one, and on both roads they gave a good account of themselves. On the Ardrossan trains they had. need to for the Caledonian had at last reached that objective via the Lanarkshire & Ayrshire Railway, for several miles both lines through Saltcoats to Ardrossan ran more or less side by side-at least, so close were they that stories are told of boat trains and other excursions racing through the sandhills with the drivers shaking their fists at each other. To say that competition was keen is a deliberate understatement!

About this time there was a considerable speeding up of services as a result of the 1888 races to Edinburgh by the East and West Coast partnerships. The fastest time to Ayr was made 1 hour for the 40¾ miles from Glasgow, with one stop, and often these trains would be diverted via the Canal line with its severe curves and 43 chains additional distance. The up day expresses from Glasgow to Carlisle were also accelerated, 2 hours 30 minutes being allowed for the 115½ miles, including the customary Kilmarnock and Dumfries stops. Over this heavy road some really fine locomtive work was required to maintain average speeds of 44¼ m.p.h. from St. Enoch to Kilmarnock, 48½ m.p.h. thenee to Dumfries, and 50¾ m.p.h. from Dumfries to Carlisle.

Another development about this time was the change from Westinghouse to vacuum brake, and it came about thus. The 1875 brake trials on the Midland line near Newark, between Nottingham and Lincoln, had been held, and the opinions of railway officers were still divided as to the kind of brake to be adopted. By 1876-7 the Midland, whilst experimenting with the vacuum brake, had some sixty locomotives fitted with the Westinghouse brake. The latter, being a compressed air brake, required a compressor and a reservoir. It was decided to utilise this source of power to supply compressed air sanding gear. The Westinghouse people considered this was an infringement of their rights, holding that the compressed air was there solely to operate the brakes. This difference of opinion led to estrangement and finally to a complete breakdown between them. Moreover, certain of the Midland directors disliked the idea of tying up any more money than could be helped in a foreign undertaking, especially an American company, so they gave up the Westinghouse brake entirely and went over to the vacuum brake. Having determined on this line of action, it was necessary to get their Scottish partners to agree to do likewise and, whilst the N.B.R. remained a Westinghouse adherent, the G. & S.W.R. made the change. When the through AngloScottish workings were introduced in 1876 a number of G. & S.W.R. locomotives were equipped with the Westinghouse brake specially for these services. At th'e same time several engines and coaches were fitted with Smith's vacuum brake; these were mostly employed on th'e Greenock road. Smith's brake was, however, non-automatic, and the Westinghouse automatic brake was adopted instead. The effect of the Midland influence was immediate. In 1884 Smellie fitted two sets of coaches with automatic vacuum brake only. These went to Fairlie, and two of the 71 class 2-4-0 were fitted with vacuum ejectors. From 1886 onwards all new locomotive stock was fitted for vacuum brake only, except ten which also had Westinghouse apparatus for working special trains off the Caledonian, N.B., and N.E. Railways. Smellie's last design was another 0-6-0 goods engine, of which 20 were built after he had left the G. & S.W.R. to go to the" Auld Enemy" in 1890. At St. Rollox his career was unfortunately cut short; contracting a chill, he died after only niue months in office.

James Manson and his Engines

Smellie was succeeded by another Kilmarnock-trained man. He was James Manson, a Saltcoats man who had been connected with the G. & S.W.R. most of his life, his father having been district superintendent at Ayr. After s'eTving his apprenticeship and early training at " Auld Killie," he had left the railway to broaden his outlook and develop his mind. Gaining experience, including some marine work, he returned to Kilmarnock as Hugh Smellie's works manager; then at the age of 38 he was appointed locomotive superintendent of the Great North of Scotland Railway. From all accounts this railway was then the last word; but not in efficiency, and the locomotive department was in a grievous state. At any rate, Manson set to and reorganised the department, modernising it and putting it on a sound working basis. The wind of change blew through Kittybrewster to some tune and with beneficial results. Then, when Smellie vacated the chair at Kilmarnock, James Manson arrived to take over the locomotive superintendency of his old line. He was no slave to Stirling traditions, however, and his designs were well defined and characteristic of no one but James Manson, exemplified by his tall dome, Ramsbottom safety valves over the firebox, and orthodox cab of sweeping design. All his designs had inside cylinders except the 4-6-0, 0-4-0T, and no. 11. He used Stephenson's link motion driving direct to valves between the cylinders of the 0-6-0T and 266 class 0-4-4T types. Manson's 4-4-0, 4-6-0, and 326 Class 0-4-4T had balanced valves on top of the cylinders; these valves were driven through rocking shafts. He retained Stirling steam reversers in all classes except the rail motors. His first designs had Smellie's tenders, but when the 1.30 p.m. Glasgow-London and its complementary return train had the Dumfries stop made conditional there was a 91.1 mile run between watering points. To overcome difficulties of water shortage, Manson built two tenders similar to those of the 12 and 75 Classes on the G.N.S.R. These were 8-wheeled with a leading bogie and two fixed trailing axles. Their capacity was 3200 gallons. The tenders of the 4-6-0s carried 4100 gallons and ran on bogies rather like those of the Midland Railway. The last three of the 381 class had 6-wheeled tenders with a consequent saving in weight of around 6 tons.

Manson first completed Smellie's 306 class of 0-6-0, but gave them domes and vacuum brakes, and put the boiler pressure up to 150 lbs. Dübs built them, hence they were known as the " Dübs Goods." His own goods engines were the 160, 361, and 17 classes. The 160 class were favourites on the" Long Road Goods," the nightly freight train from Glasgow College Goods to Carlisle via Paisley, DaIry, and Kilmarnock. On this arduous turn they were allowed 38 wagons on a tight schedule. The duty was taken over by the 17 class in 1910.

In all, Manson produced five types of 4-4-0, of which one was a "one-off." This was the famous no. 11, a four-cylinder simple engine often erroneously referred to as a compound since the outside cylinders were only 12½in. dia. and the inside cylinders 14½in. dia., the strokes being 24in. and 26in. respectively. All took high pressure steam at 165 lbs. per sq. in. The coupled wheels were 6ft. 9½in. dia., giving a tractive effort of 15,860 lbs. at 85 per cent. The inside valves were operated by two sets of Stephenson's link motion, rocking levers being provided to transmit the motion to the outside valves.

No. 11 had the distinction of being the first four-cylinder locomotive in Britain, coming out in April 1897 and forestalling the first Crewe 4-cyl. engine by about two months. It had a chequered career. Badly damaged in a smash at Gretna on 19 January 1898 when in collision with a derailed freight train, extensive repairs became necessary. After the 4-6-0s came upon the scene, no. 11 went to Hurlford. In 1915 Drummond rebuilt it with a larger boiler. Whitelegg in due course had a hand in trying to improve this engine, giving her in 1922 a Drummond boiler with superheater and new cylinders with only two piston valves, one to each pair of cylinders. The name Lord Glenarthur was bestowed on her, after the chairman of the company, but even this did not make no. 11 the success her designer had hoped and expected. Nevertheless, she did some very good work in her time on Ayr-Glasgow expresses. Manson's other four classes of 4-4-0 appeared at intervals during his tenure of office. First came the 8 class which immediately replaced Smellie's 153 class. They were similar to his 12 Class on the G.N.S.R., and although they did excellent work on the Carlisle road their somewhat limited power output necessitated quite an amount of piloting.

Three years later Manson produced his version of the engine to cope with the gradients of the Greenock road. Twenty-five engines of the 336 class were built for these services and for the Stranraer road. The coupled wheels were 6ft. 1½in. dia. and, with 165 lbs. working pressure compared with 150 lbs. of the 8 class, the tractive effort was some 3000 lbs. greater, a useful contribution on these hilly sections of the system.

Except for no. 11, there was now a gap until the next class appeared in 1904 when the 240 class was brought out. They were very similar in all respects to the 8 class save for increased boiler dimensions and a working pressure of 170 lbs. Not greatly unlike McIntosh's" Dunalastair" class on the Caledonian, they were fast-running engines. Allocated mostly to Glasgow and Carlisle, they did some useful work on the main line and deputised when necessary for the 4-6-0s. One went to Stranraer for the" Port Road Paddy," the boat train between Stranraer and Carlisle.

The last class of 4-4-0 followed in 1907, the 18 class, in most respects the same as the preceding type but with one big difference. Instead of a deep firebox and a grate area of 18.2 sq ft., the 18s had a long shallow box and a grate 22 sq. ft. in extent. It may well be that Manson was influenced in this by the Crewe experiments which, to the satisfaction of the L.N.W.R. people at least, had demonstrated the superiority of the shallow firebox in the vexed question of coal consumption. Useful engines these, especially on the Anglo-Scottish services, and when in 1908 the Glasgow-Carlisle run was being done non-stop by at least one train, two of the class did excellent work. Later they were given the eight-wheel tenders of the two 8 class, handed down to them via two of the 240s. Ahrons (Locomotive and Train Working in the Latter Part of the Nineteenth Century. Vol. 3) quotes an instance of a Manson 8 class, no. 4, with no. 52, a SmeIlie 153 class coupled, taking a moderate load of 160 tons up the long bank from Dumfries to New Cumnock, 37 miles, in 47min. 5sec.; the 21/8 miles thence to Kilmarnock were reeled off in 21min. 43sec., the fastest mile being from m.p. 38 to m.p. 37 in 53 seconds, the average over th'e whole distance from Dumfries being 50¾ m.p.h. On another occasion two Mansons ran the Scotsman from Carlisle to Dumfries, 33 miles, in 38 minutes, 37 miles to New Cumnock in 44min. 32secs., the lowest speed on the 1 in 150 bank being 40 m.p.h.; thence to Kilmarnock took 20min. 50secs. This, with a load of 220 tons, shows what Manson's 4-4-0s could do in capable hands, and the" Sou'-West" men knew how to handle them and took a tremendous pride in maintaining their running times.

The Manson 4-6-08

The year 1903 saw the magnificent Caledonian 4-6-0 locomotives nos. 49 and 50 turned out from St. Rollox to McIntosh's designs. G. & S.W.R. prestige was threatened, so Manson got out a design for a 4-6-0 which would be an answer to the challenge and be an engine of sufficient power to eHminate piloting on the main line. The result was the 381 class, of which 10 were built by the North British Locomotive Co. in 1903. In comparison with the" Caley" giants, the 381 class were smaller but every bit as handsome, being one of the finest 4-6-0s in the country in appearance. The cylinders were 20in. dia. against 21in. of the Caley engine, the boiler pressure was only 180lbs. against 200lbs. Tube and firebox heating surface and grate area of the G. & S.W.R. 'engines were approximately 21, 10, and 6 per cent. less respectively, and the tractive effort was 19,320 lbs. as against 24,990 lbs. Nevertheless they were to prove very, very good engines indeed, handling the Anglo-Scottish expresses in a splendid manner. The heavier loadings of the summer were beyond their capacity single-handed, and it was frequently necessary to resort to piloting. Manson gave these engines outside cylinders driving the middle pair of coupled wheels, whereas the" Caley" engine had inside cylinders driving the leading coupled axle. The boilers were given Belpaire fireboxes, the only G. & S.W.R. engines so fitted being the 4-6-0s.

The success of this fast-running locomotive being well proven, a further seven were built at Kilmarnock in 1910-11, and as a swan song prior to his retirement Manson brought out a modified design in 1911. Two engines were built by the North British Locomotive Co., the celebrated nos. 128 and 129. They had 21in. cylinders with piston valves and the boil'ers were given Schmidt superheaters. The heating surface was 1430 sq. ft. of tube area, 445 sq. ft. superheater surface, the firebox and grate area being similar to th'e 381 class. As was so often the practice in the early days of superheating, Manson dropped the working pressure, in this case from 180 Ibs. to 160 Ibs. Despite this slavish conformity to the orthodoxy of the day, thes'e two engines were brilliant performers, and, whilst the customary " Sou'-West" driving technique was to avoid heavy pounding uphill but to run downhill as if " Auld Clootie " was after them, they and their earlier sisters weTe frequently timed at speeds of 85 m.p.h. and over. It has also been recorded of their running the 91.1 miles from Carlisle to Kilmarnock in 101 minutes inclusive of the Dumfries stop. It has been said that the really excellent performances of no. 129, who quite outshone her sisters, stemmed from the fact she was fitted with a Weir feedwater heater. For a while no. 389 was similarly fitted.

Tank Engines and Rail-Motors

Of tank engines Manson produced only four types. Two were 0-4-4T and the others 0-6-0T and 0-4-0T. The first to come were the 326 class 0-4-4T in 1893. Built by Neilson's, these were intended for the Glasgow suburban services, but the growth of the Corporation tramways, resulting in a curtailment, and even withdrawal, of some rail services, meant that the engines thus released were put in store at Hurlford and withdrawn as and when required.

Next followed the 14 class of 0-6-0T, of which four were built in 1896, further engines of the same class appearing in 1903 and 1914 until there were fifteen altogether.

Designed to be of similar power to the 0-6-0T but capable of negotiating sharper curves, a little 0-4-4T was turned out from Kilmarnock in 1906. Six were built, all with vacuum brake. They were employed on the Maidens & Dunure Light Railway, wihch had been opened in May of that year, and on the Moniaive and Catrine branches. Their final duties after the closure of these lines were shunting at Ardrossan and Ayr harbours.

The last of Manson's tank engines was an interesting example of "guid gear in sma' buik," an 0-4-0T of 39.6 tons weight on a wheel base of 7ft. 6in., specially designed for the very sharp curves of Greenock harbour and the 1 in 50 gradients. They had outside cylinders with the valves on top driven through rocking shafts in front of the cylinders-itself an unusual arrangement.

No account of Manson's work would be complete without a reference to his rail-motors. It was fashionable early in the present century to experiment with this form of combined engine and passenger vehicle for branch-line services, and the G. & S.W.R. did not lag behind other companies. In 1904-5 a neat design was prepared, and three of these units were built at Kilmarnock. They took the form of a saloon-type coach body on frames which were extended beyond one end rather like the shafts of a cart. Between these extended frames was the engine unit, held in by the front buffer-beam. The engine itself was an orthodox 0-4-0 type with 9in. by 14in. cylinders and 3ft.6in. driving wheels. The boiler had a heating surface of 400 sq. ft. and the firebox 40 sq. ft. with 8 sq. ft. of grate. The working pressure was 180 Ibs. per sq. in., balanced safety valves were fitted on top of the dome. A well tank between the engine frames held 500 gall. of water, and 15 cwt. of coal was carried in two side bunkers. The opposite end of the unit was mounted on an ordinary (4-wheel) coach bogie. Engine and coach weighed only 40 tons. .

There were slight differences between the three units; for example, No.3 had the engine and the coach separate, either when built, or shortly after, in an endeavour to minimise the severe fore-and-aft vibrations produced when running. This feature, together with the draughty cab and perpetual wetness of the footplate from the tank filler overflow, made the railmotors well disliked by the enginemen. In service they were mainly used on the Catrine branch, on the Cairn Valley Light Railway, and between Ardrossan and Largs and Ardrossan and Kilwinning. Although they did not work after the Catrine branch closed down in December 1916, they were not finally withdrawn until 1922.

Such was the reign of James Manson at Kilmarnock. He retired at the end of 1911 after twenty-one years in the one post. This period may be summed up as the most interesting in the history of the " Sou'-West's" locomotive department, as he was the first man to break away from the small-engine complex and set the pattern for the large engine era introduced with his 381 class and developed by his successors. Sixty-seven years of age when he retired, Manson lived to the ripe age of ninety.

The next man to occupy the chair at Kilmarnock was a Drummond-Peter Drummond: one of four brothers, two of whom were occupied with the family engineering business at Glasgow, the third no other than Dugald, locomotive engineer of the London & South Western Railway. Peter had" served his time" with Forrest & Moor, Glasgow, worked under William Stroudley on the L.B. & S.C.R. 1870-75, and on the N.B. at Cowlairs 1875-82, whence he went to the Caledonian to be Assistant Locomotive Engineer and works manager at St. Rollolk. In 1896 he left St. Rollox and went to take charge of the locomotive department of the Highland Railway at Inverness, where he stayed until appointed successor to Manson on the G. & S.W.R. at the end of 1911. Here he remained until his death in 1918. Peter had shown a great leaning towards Dugald's practices at Eastleigh, and although the latter died in November 1912 his brother continued to follow L. & S.W.R. design trends. In outline, the adoption of smokebox steamdryers, marine big-ends, and other features he copied the elder Drummond. In one or two matters he differed, as, for example, putting his tenders on three axles with outside frames and axleboxes, always having his lock-up safety valves over the firebox, and not adopting water-tube fireboxes. Each of his designs for the G. & S.W.R. was in violent contrast to that company's traditions, and perhaps his most sweeping change was to change the driver's position from the right-hand side of the footplate to the left-hand side: typical Drummond practice no doubt, but a hated innovation on the" Sou'-West."

Peter Drummond)s Engines

Peter Drummond produced only six designs while at Kilmarnock. Size was the keynote from the start. The year 1913 saw the production of a new 0-6-0, the 279 class, and a new 4-4-0, 131 class. Fitted with feed pumps, the 0-6-0s were known as "The Pumpers." Good steamers, on a heavy coal consumption, but sluggish on the up-grades, they worked the Long Road Goods for some years. Heated big-ends were a constant source of trouble on these engines, only cured by replacing the marine by the cottered type of bearing.

The 131 class was Drummond's contribution to the Coast and Greenock roads power, three being allocated to Ayr and three to Greenock. Again the appearance was typical of L. & S.W.R. practice. Careful handling was necessary to get the best out of these engines. Uphill they were sluggish, and they rolled badly so that endeavours to regain lost time were not recommended, particularly on the sinuous roads in the Paisley and Glasgow areas.

These were followed the following year by a further six engines, similar in all respects save for the addition of Schmidt superheaters. They proved excellent machines, fast hill-climbers and economical on coal and water by G. & S.W.R. standards, though when some official figures were published under L.M.S. auspices 63.4 Ibs. of coal per mile was given for this class, a consumption far in excess of the Midland compound which replaced it on many duties.

For the first time in the" Sou'-West's" history a 2-6-0 appeared in 1915. Known as the" Austrian Goods" (403, later 16, class) because much of the material used in their construction had been got ready for a contract N.B. Loco. Co. had for Austria prior to World War I, they were used to replace the 0-6-0s on the Long Road Goods. Robinson's superheater was fitted, as were injectors instead of pumps.

The inside cylinders were 19½in. by 26in. and the coupled wheels 5ft. 0in. diameter. The tube heating surface was 1344 sq. ft., superheater 211 sq. ft., firebox 147 sq. ft. and the grate area 26.2 sq. ft. At 85 per cent. of the working pressure of 180 Ibs. per sq. in., these 'engines had a tractive effort of 25,210 Ibs., a figure similar to the 279 class and only exceeded on the G. & S.W. by Whitelegg's Baltic tanks. These were very economical engines, and it is recorded that one, at any rate, ran the Long Road Goods from Glasgow, College Goods, to Midland Yard, Carlise, almost 127.8 miles on one tank of water! After grouping the class got a bit scattered; one got as far as Tain on the Highland, and one at least worked the Gorgie-Carlisle goods, based on Edinburgh, DaIry Road. The last survivor of the class was withdrawn from Corkerhill in March 1947.

Drummond built only two types of tank engine. Eighteen 0-6-2T of the 45 class appeared in 1915-7 and three 0-6-0T of the 5 class in 1917. The former were a cut-down adaptation of his 0-6-4T on the Highland Railway and did good work, whilst the latter type was specially designed to replace the Stirling 0-4-0 tender engines which were still remaining. To negotiate the sharp curves of some of the industrial lines served, Drummond gave these engines no flanges on the middle pair of driving wheels. "P.D.", as he was known throughout the system, died on 29 June 1918, leaving his masterpiece on the drawing board. This was to have been a very large fourcylinder 4-6-0 somewhat in the style of Dugald's "Paddle-boxes." The design never materialised, and what it might have done can only be a matter for conjecture.

Robert Whitelegg)s Engines

To succeed" P.D. " the Board appointed Robert H. Whitelegg, the son who had succeeded his father as locomotive superintendent of the London, Tilbury & Southend Railway. Since the absorption of the L.T. & S. by the Midland in 1912, most of Whitelegg's time had been spent on military service, and when he arrived at Kilmarnock he was shortly to be faced with the task of rehabilitating the locomotive stock of the G. & S.W.R. after the four years of war and consequent neglect, overwork, and shortage of materials. The immediate post-war years were a period of retrenchment, and the building of new locomotives and development of new types were out of the question until arrears of repairs had been overtaken.

To start with, Whitelegg designed a number of new boilers suitable for the classes of locomotives he intended to retain in service. Four of these designs were put in construction, and in this exercise there was a half-hearted attempt at standardisation: one class of boiler was to be fitted to the 8, 240, and 336 classes of 4-4-0, another to the 17 and 361 classes of 0-6-0, yet another, though slightly smaller, for the 119 and 153 classes of 4-4-0 and the 22, 306, and 160 0-6-0s, while th'e fourth boiler was for the 381 class 4-6-0. None of these boilers was superheated.

Whitelegg made various other alterations and innovations, not all of which were successful. The new boilers were indifferent steamers and sent the coal consumption figures up. One thing he did which appealed to the footplate staff: he restored the driver to the right-hand side of the footplate. This was among the modifications made to Drummond's 0-6-2T which were building at the time Whitelegg took over, ten by the N.B. Loco. Co., the 1 class of 1919. Originally allocated to Ayr and Hurlford, they became scattered in L.M.S. days, working in yards as far south as Toton and as far north as Blair Atholl. In the last L.M.S. renumbering they became 16900-16909, and 16905 was the last G. & S.W.R. locomotive to remain in service. It was withdrawn from Kingmoor on 17 April 1948.

The last of Whitel'egg's designs, and the last class of engine to be built for the G. & S.W.R., was the huge 99-ton "Baltic" tank engine which appeared in 1922. These tremendous engines were the logical outcome of Whitelegg's efforts to introduce large tank engines on the L.T. & S.R. and were intended for very similar work, heavily-loaded short-distance commuter expresses between Glasgow and Kilmarnock and Glasgow and Ayr. Again N.B. Loco. Co., were the builders, and there were six engines of this, the 540 class. The two cylinders were as large as possible consistent with loading-gauge limits and were provided instead of three cylinders which would have increased to the weight too much. The acclaim with which these big tank engines was received was in complete contrast to the antipathy with which tank engines had for so many years been viewed on the SouthWestern. The footplate staff liked these engines despite their tendency to ,rolling at high speeds-and they could run-and their proneness to heating. The bogies gave trouble, and after the grouping some of these heating troubles were cured by fitting a bogie of the Midland pattern. As a class, however, they were short-lived, all having been scrapped by 1935.

Whitelegg only remained at Kilmarnock until 1 March 1923 when he departed to become general manager of Beyer, Peacock & Co. in Manchester. The motive power of the Scottish railways came completely under the rule of the London masters, and an intensive programme of scrapping of obsolescent types was begun. Alongside it grew the new standardisation programme which was initiated by Derby and resulted in the transfer of such types as " class 2 " 4-4-0 with 6ft. 9in. driving wheels and the famous standard compounds which were a modified development of the Johnson-Deeley engines. These took the place of locomotives of the G. & S.W.R. and Caledonian when grouped in the L.M.S., whose stocks were decimated drastically. The first ten years of L.M.S. rule saw the scrapping of 79.4 per cent. of the G. & S.W.R. stock, no less than 419 engines going under the hammer. Of the three Scottish companies, the "Sou'-W'est" suffered worst; the" Caley" lost 137 or 12.7 per cent. and the Highland 63 or 36.4 per cent. This was hardly surprising, since the Caledonian was by far the largest and strongest of the northern companies, but it was galling to the G. & S.W.R. people to see the Auld Enemy ruling the roost. Nevertheless, if circumstances warranted it, the two would fight shoulder to shoulder to oppose their London bosses. Another feature of grouping which was particularly felt was the introduction of the Midland" Lake" for all passenger engines. The G. & S.W.R. had always been a green-engine company, and a very beautiful green it was. In early days there were variations of the shade of green used, but by Manson's time a dark olive green, with black and white lining and maroon footsteps and frame angle-irons, was the order of the day. This gave place to a light olive green when Drummond took office. Experiments in the use of black paint were never successful on the G. & S.W;R., and by 1922 there was a general return to green. The standard of cleanliness in pre-grouping days was very high and, of course, it showed off the pleasant green livery to best advantage.

The pooling of resources and closer working arrangements resulting from the huge amalgamations which had taken place meant the closure of the G. & S.W.R. engine shed at Currock Road, Carlisle, and the transfer of engines and staff to Kingmoor, where they lodged with the Caledonian. The history of G. & S.W.R. occupancy at Carlisle is a strange one. When the Scottish company first reached this border town in 1850, its engines were stabled in a shed leased by the Lancaster & Carlisle Railway, for which it paid the L. & C.R. £32.10.0d. per annum rent. In 1855 an agreement was reached with the " Caley" to use its shed at Carlisle West Walls. This agreement was not" tied" to an Act, so in order to regularise the position claus'es were inserted in the Caledonian and Scottish Central Railways Amalgamation Act of 5 July 1865 covering not only the G. & S.W.R. use of the" Caley" shed at West Walls, but the use of its goods depots as well. The Act also legalised the G. & S.W.R. right in perpetuity to use the Caledonian line between Gretna Junction and Carlisle, for which the "Sou'-West" had been paying £5,000 for running powers and a further £1,000 for use of the station. Working expenses were also assessed and paid for additionally.

When the need arose for the enlargement of Carlisle Citadel station, the Carlisle Citadel Station Act was obtained on 21 July 1873. Under this Act the Caledonian engine shed at West Walls, just north of the joint station on the up side, was to be removed, and a clause was included to protect the interests of the G. & S.W.R. who were tenants. However, instead of moving to the new" Caley" shed at Etterby, later called Kingmoor, the SouthWestern came to an arrangement with the Midland Railway and obtained accommodation in its shed at Petteril Bridge. They continued to lodge here until a new shed was built to the designs of their engineer William Melville in 1896. Agreement was reached with the Maryport & Carlisle Railway on 30 January 1894 in readiness for this move, as the new shed could only be reached by running over M. & C. metals. This time payments were to be 6d. per light engine, 2d. per carriage, and 1d. per ton for coal and stores, with a minimum annual payment of £750.

The only other place where motive-power premises were shared was at Glasgow in th'e early days. When the Ayrshire line was opened, the G.P.K. & A.R. shared the Cook Street shed with the G.P. & G.R., but when the shed at Ayr was built Cook Street was handed over wholly to th'e Greenock Company. The original shed at Ayr was between Falkland Junction and the terminus; a new shed was constructed in 1878 during Andrew Galloway's term of office as engineer. This able engineer was also responsible for the sheds at Hurlford, Dumfries, and St. Enoch. Ardrossan and Corkerhill sheds we're the work of William Melville.