The Dublin and South Eastern Railway 15 and 16 were a pair of

2-6-0 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, usually in a leading truck, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles and no trailing wheels. ...

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 loco ...

s which were built for the heavy goods (freight) traffic on the

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

Wexford Wexford () is the county town of County Wexford, Ireland. Wexford lies on the south side of Wexford Harbour, the estuary of the River Slaney near the southeastern corner of the island of Ireland. The town is linked to Dublin by the M11/N11 ...

main line of the

Dublin and South Eastern Railway The Dublin and South Eastern Railway (DSER), often referred to as the Slow and Easy, was an Irish gauge () railway in Ireland from 1846 to 1925. It carried 4,626,226 passengers in 1911. It was the fourth largest railway operation in Ireland oper ...

(DSER). The two locomotives were built by

Beyer, Peacock and Company Beyer, Peacock and Company was an English railway locomotive manufacturer with a factory in Openshaw, Manchester. Founded by Charles Beyer, Richard Peacock and Henry Robertson, it traded from 1854 until 1966. The company exported locomotives, ...

at their Gorton Foundry in Manchester. On account of the risk of damage when new (during the

Irish Civil War The Irish Civil War ( ga, Cogadh Cathartha na hÉireann; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United ...

period of 1921–1922), both examples were initially sent to

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

for safekeeping. They were stored by the

Great Northern Railway (Ireland) The Great Northern Railway (Ireland) (GNR(I) or GNRI) was an Irish gauge () railway company in Ireland. It was formed in 1876 by a merger of the Irish North Western Railway (INW), Northern Railway of Ireland, and Ulster Railway. The governme ...

at Adelaide yard until 1923, when they were returned to the DSER. The locos were withdrawn in the early 1960s. In 1925, the DSER was absorbed into the

Great Southern Railways The Great Southern Railways Company (often Great Southern Railways, or GSR) was an Irish company that from 1925 until 1945 owned and operated all railways that lay wholly within the Irish Free State (the present-day Republic of Ireland). The ...

and the two locomotives were renumbered 461 and 462, and placed in Class 461 or Class K2.

Livery

Originally said to have been painted green, although the DSER's standard livery was lined black, on becoming part of the GSR, they were painted in the standard livery of unlined dark battleship grey which they retained until withdrawal. Following withdrawal, 461 was repainted into a livery based on lined DSER black for display, while still owned by CIÉ. Under the RPSI, she was initially painted plain black with a 'flying snail', but more recently she has been outshopped in an unprototypical CIÉ lined green livery upon completion of her overhaul in 2011.

Preservation

Locomotive No. 461 was initially preserved by

CIÉ Córas Iompair Éireann (''Irish Transport Company''), or CIÉ, is a statutory corporation of Ireland, answerable to the Irish Government and responsible for most public transport within the republic and jointly with its Northern Ireland counter ...

in 1967, one of several engines to be put on display at various railway stations around Ireland following an appeal by the Irish Railway Record Society. Other locomotives put on display by CIÉ included ex-GNR 131 and ex-GSWR No. 90. After being moved several times following display, 461 was presented by CIÉ to the RPSI in 1977. An extensive overhaul followed at Whitehead and the locomotive returned to traffic in late 1990. The locomotive completed an overhaul in 2011 at the RPSI's Whitehead base, and was operation in the Dublin area until 2018. She has also been used on some northern operations including one to

Portrush Portrush () is a small seaside resort town on the north coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It neighbours the resort of Portstewart. The main part of the old town, including the railway station as well as most hotels, restaurants and bars, ...

and also some to Bangor. The locomotive is currently in store in Whitehead since late 2018, awaiting overhaul. 461 has appeared in theatrical film releases such as

Michael Collins Michael Collins or Mike Collins most commonly refers to: * Michael Collins (Irish leader) (1890–1922), Irish revolutionary leader, soldier, and politician * Michael Collins (astronaut) (1930–2021), American astronaut, member of Apollo 11 and ...

, Nora, and

Angela's Ashes ''Angela's Ashes: A Memoir'' is a 1996 memoir by the Irish-American author Frank McCourt, with various anecdotes and stories of his childhood. The book details his very early childhood in Brooklyn, New York, US but focuses primarily on his lif ...

. She can be seen in an episode of

Foyle's War ''Foyle's War'' is a British detective drama television series set during and shortly after the Second World War, created by ''Midsomer Murders'' screenwriter and author Anthony Horowitz and commissioned by ITV after the long-running series ...

. While she did have some initial steaming problems after the last overhaul, it was later discovered this was due to incorrect firebar spacing at Whitehead (which a Dublin volunteer had previously corrected in its previous service period in the 1990s). Once rectified in Dublin, her performance improved dramatically. No. 461 is the only surviving DSER locomotive.

References

External links

webpage for preserved K2 Class No.461
{{Ireland Steam Locomotives Beyer, Peacock locomotives 2-6-0 locomotives Steam locomotives of Ireland Steam locomotives of Northern Ireland Railway locomotives introduced in 1922 5 ft 3 in gauge locomotives 1′C h2 locomotives

Livery

Preservation

See also

References

External links