The SR Merchant Navy class is a class of air-smoothed 4-6-2 Pacific steam locomotives designed for the Southern Railway by Oliver Bulleid. The Pacific design was chosen in preference to several others proposed by Bulleid.
Accidents and incidents[]
- On 17 December 1942, No. 21C6 Peninsular & Oriental S. N. Co. sustained a broken chain near Honiton. The sump was fractured leading to an oil fire.
- On 7 October 1943, No. 21C1 Channel Packet sustained a broken chain at Salisbury. The sump was fractured leading to an oil fire.
- On 29 January 1945, No. 21C12 United States Lines sustained a broken chain.
- On 24 April 1953, the crank axle on the central driving wheel of No. 35020 "Bibby Line" fractured whilst approaching Crewkerne station at speed. No-one was injured, but the incident resulted in the withdrawal of all Merchant Navy class locomotives from service whilst the cause was ascertained. An examination of other class members showed that the fracture, caused by metal fatigue, was a common fault. To cover the motive power shortage caused by the mass withdrawal of thirty locomotives, classes from other British Railways regions were drafted in to deputise. The incident resulted in a redesign and replacement of the crank axle.
Withdrawal[]
Their principal work was on the South West Main Line to Southampton and Bournemouth until 1967. However, the main reason why the class began to be withdrawn in 1964 was the transfer of the main line between Salisbury and Exeter to the Western Region and the introduction of "Warship" class diesel-hydraulic locomotives on these services. The rebuilt locomotives were therefore withdrawn relatively soon after their rebuilding, whilst still in excellent condition. The first two to be withdrawn were the second prototype 35002 Union Castle and 35015 Rotterdam Lloyd in February 1964. Nearly half of the class had been withdrawn by the end of 1965, but seven survived until the end of steam on the Southern Region in the summer of 1967
Preservation[]
Of the thirty engines built eleven are preserved with one member of the class 35028 Clan Line being purchased directly from British Railways service. The rest being rescued from Woodham Brothers Scrapyard in Barry, South Wales. With all thirty engines being rebuilt in BR days no unrebuilt example survives but one engine 35011 General Steam Navigation is being restored to it's original unrebuilt condition.
Five engines have run in preservation: 35005 Canadian Pacific, 35006 Peninsular & Oriental S.N.Co,, 35018 British India Line, 35027 Port Line and 35028 Clan Line. Three members of the class: 35005, 35018 and 35028 have also operated on the mainline in preservation. As of December 2025, three Merchant Navy's are operational with 35018 and 35028 having mainline certificates while 35005 is restricted to run only on heritage railways. Three engines: 35006, 35009, 35011 and 35025 are in the process of undergoing overhauls/restoration. 35009 and 35011 are undergoing restorations with plans to operate on the mainline with 35011 being returned to it's original streamlined shape. 35006 and 35025 are being overhauled/restored to run only on heritage railways. 35005 returned to service in 2025 but is not planned to operate on the mainline. 35022 and 35027 while presently stored awaiting restorations are planned to operate on the mainline. 35010 is stored awaiting restoration & 35029 Ellerman Lines has been sectioned and is on static display at the National Railway Museum in York.
| Image | Number (SR) | Number (BR) | Name | Nameplate Colour | Built | Rebuilt | Withdrawn | Shape | Owner | Livery | Home Base | Current status | Mainline Certified | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21C5 | 35005 | Canadian Pacific | Red | December 1941 | May 1959 | October 1965 | Rebuilt | Mid Hants Railway Preservation Society | BR Lined Green, Late Crest (on completion) | Mid Hants Railway | Undergoing Overhaul | No | ||
| 21C6 | 35006 | Peninsular & Oriental S. N. Co. | Red | December 1941 | October 1959 | August 1964 | Rebuilt | 35006 Locomotive Company | BR Lined Green, Late Crest | Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway | Operational, Boiler Ticket Expires: 2025 | No | ||
| 21C9 | 35009 | Shaw Savill | July 1942 | March 1957 | September 1964 | Rebuilt | Ian Riley | BR Lined Blue, Early Emblem (on completion) | East Lancashire Railway | Undergoing Restoration | No (to be certified) | In ex Barry-scrapyard condition | ||
| 21C10 | 35010 | Blue Star | August 1942 | January 1957 | September 1966 | Rebuilt | British Enginemen Steam Preservation Society | Colne Valley Railway | Stored, Awaiting Restoration | No | In ex Barry-scrapyard condition | |||
| 21C11 | 35011 | Peninsular & Oriental S. N. Co. | Red | December 1944 | July 1959 | February 1966 | Rebuilt (Unrebuilt) | General Steam Navigation Locomotive Restoration Society | TBC | Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway | Undergoing Restoration | No (to be certified) | Undergoing restoration to original un-rebuilt shape. | |
|
21C18 | 35018 | British India Line | Black | May 1945 | February 1956 | August 1964 | Rebuilt | West Coast Railways | BR Lined Green, Late Crest | Carnforth Motive Power Depot | Operational, Boiler Ticket Expires: 2026/27 | Yes (2017-ongoing) | First member of the class to be rebuilt |
| 35022 | Holland America Line | October 1948 | December 1956 | September 1964 | Rebuilt | Royal Scot Locomotive & General Trust | Crewe Diesel Depot | Stored, Awaiting Restoration | No | In ex Barry-scrapyard condition | ||||
| 35025 | Brocklebank Line | November 1948 | December 1956 | September 1964 | Rebuilt | Southern Locomotives Ltd | BR Lined Green, Late Crest (on completion) | Herston Works | Undergoing Restoration | No | In ex Barry-scrapyard condition | |||
| 35027 | Port Line | Black | December 1948 | May 1957 | September 1966 | Rebuilt | Royal Scot Locomotive & General Trust | BR Lined Green, Late Crest | Crewe Diesel TMD | Stored, Awaiting Restoration | No | |||
| 35028 | Clan Line | Black (Red originals) | December 1948 | October 1959 | July 1967 | Rebuilt | Merchant Navy Locomotive Preservation Society | BR Lined Green, Late Crest | Stewarts Lane TMD | Operational, Boiler Ticket Expires: 2034 | Yes (2024-ongoing) | Final member of the class to be rebuilt | ||
| 35029 | Ellerman Lines | Red | February 1949 | September 1959 | July 1964 | Rebuilt | National Collection | BR Lined Green, Late Crest | National Railway Museum | Static Display | No | Sectioned Exhibit |
Models[]
Makers of models of Merchant Navy locomotives include Hornby Railways, Graham Farish and Minitrix. The first OO gauge model of an as-built locomotive was produced by Graham Farish in 1950 followed by Hornby/Wrenn in 1962 and by the modified version. In 1959, Tri-ang Railways produced a TT gauge version of Clan Line.
Hornby and Graham Farish currently produce the rebuilt version of the class in OO gauge and N gauge respectively. The Hornby model was introduced in the 2000 edition of the Hornby catalogue. As of December 2010, fifteen members of the class have been produced.
In March 2015, Hornby announced the inclusion of a new as-built version of the class in OO gauge in their 2016 range; this model was subsequently postponed to the 2017 range.
See also[]
- List of SR Merchant Navy class locomotives
Gallery[]
