The LCDR M3 class was a class of

4-4-0 4-4-0 is a locomotive type with a classification that uses the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives by wheel arrangement and represents the arrangement: four leading wheels on two axles (usually in a leading bogie), four po ...

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

s of the

London, Chatham and Dover Railway The London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR or LC&DR) was a railway company in south-eastern England created on 1 August 1859, when the East Kent Railway was given parliamentary approval to change its name. Its lines ran through London and nor ...

. The class was designed by

William Kirtley William Kirtley may refer to: * William Kirtley (railway engineer) William Kirtley (1840 – 7 October 1919) was an English railway engineer, and was the Locomotive Superintendent of the London Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) in England from 187 ...

and introduced in 1891.

History

The class were an enlargement of Kirtley's earlier M1 and M2 classes intended for the London-Dover

boat train A boat train is a passenger train operating to a port for the specific purpose of making connection with a passenger ship, such as a ferry, ocean liner, or cruise ship. Through ticketing is normally available. __NOTOC__ Notable named boat trains ...

s. They proved to be successful for these tasks for more than a decade. The locomotives passed to the

South Eastern and Chatham Railway The South Eastern and Chatham Railway Companies Joint Management Committee (SE&CRCJMC),Awdry (1990), page 199 known as the South Eastern and Chatham Railway (SE&CR), was a working union of two neighbouring rival railways, the South Easter ...

in 1899 after which they were superseded on the heaviest trains by the

SECR D class The SECR D class is a class of 4-4-0 tender locomotives designed by Harry Wainwright for the South Eastern and Chatham Railway. Overview The construction of the initial 20 engines was shared between Ashford railway works and the Glasgow bu ...

between 1903 and 1905 and transferred to secondary duties. The class was nevertheless considered to be sufficiently useful to be worth re-boilering between 1909 and 1917. The entire class survived into Southern Railway ownership in 1923, but the appearance of the King Arthur class on the line after 1925 meant that they had all been withdrawn and scrapped by 1928.

References

* M3 4-4-0 locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1891 Scrapped locomotives Standard gauge steam locomotives of Great Britain Vulcan Foundry locomotives {{England-steam-loco-stub