The GNR(I) Q Class

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 ...

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 of 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 ...

(GNR) were mainly used on cross-border mixed traffic duties between

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 ...

and

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 ...

, as well as the "Derry Road" between and

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

. It was designed for the GNR under the auspices of Charles Clifford and built by

Neilson, Reid and Company Neilson and Company was a locomotive manufacturer in Glasgow, Scotland. The company was started in 1836 at McAlpine Street by Walter Neilson and James Mitchell to manufacture marine and stationary engines. In 1837 the firm moved to Hyde Park ...

North British Locomotive Company The North British Locomotive Company (NBL, NB Loco or North British) was created in 1903 through the merger of three Glasgow locomotive manufacturing companies; Sharp, Stewart and Company (Atlas Works), Neilson, Reid and Company (Hyde Park Wo ...

and Beyer, Peacock and Company. The Q Class is slightly smaller than the GNR class S 4-4-0 but powerful enough to haul a rake of eight or more carriages. Faster running was achieved with the addition of superheated boilers and widened cylinders (under the supervision of G.T. Glover in the 1920s, and sometimes known as Qs class). In 1932 a two coach newspaper train hauled by No. 135 covered Howth Junction to Drogheda at a start-to-stop average speed of , the fastest run in Ireland achieved with a steam locomotive on a scheduled train

Preservation

One member of the Q Class, Number 131, has been restored by the

Railway Preservation Society of Ireland The Railway Preservation Society of Ireland (RPSI) is an Irish railway preservation group operating throughout Ireland, founded in 1964. Mainline steam train railtours are operated from Dublin and Belfast, but occasionally from other locatio ...

. It was used mainly on northern routes, the former Ulster Railway main line between Belfast and Clones and the "Derry Road" between Belfast and

''via'' . While in service it was in standard GNR black livery. It worked on Córas Iompair Éireann lines from 1958 and was withdrawn in October 1963. In the late 1970s the locomotive was repainted and placed on a plinth at Dundalk station. In June 1984 No. 131 and its tender were moved to Mallow, County Cork as the main locomotive of the Great Southern Railway Preservation Society. However, this venture was unfulfilled and the locomotive (partially stripped down and with the boiler and firebox out of the frames) was moved to

Inchicore Inchicore () is a suburb of Dublin, Ireland. Located approximately west of the city centre, Inchicore was originally a small village separate from Dublin. The village developed around Richmond Barracks (built 1810) and Inchicore railway works ...

Railway Works in the late 1990s while the running frames were moved to Whitehead, County Antrim in May 2003. The Railway Preservation Society of Ireland bought the locomotive from CIÉ in April 2005. In November 2013, funding under the Generating Opportunities Within (GROW) South Antrim scheme was allocated, permitting (together with completion of No.171 Slieve Gullion's protracted overhaul) the full restoration of No.131. On 22 February 2015, 131 ran from Whitehead to Carrickfergus and back on a trial. This was the locomotive's first run on the mainline in over 50 years. On 5 November 2017, 131 performed three mainline daytime tests to Carrickfergus and Belfast Central. The locomotive returned to mainline service in April 2018, in 1920s black with red lining livery, hauling tender No.37 which has been rebuilt with a new body. The locomotive's first mainline passenger service since 1963, was a charter to celebrate Northern Ireland Railway's 50th anniversary, where it took a train of Mk2 coaches to Great Victoria Street station. The locomotive later in the year ran one leg of the RPSI's May tour, running from Whitehead to Belfast, then to Lisburn and up the Antrim Branch to Antrim on 15 May 2018. 131 is now based at Whitehead and operates trains originating in Northern Ireland, although it is now passed to operate trains anywhere on the Irish railway systems.

Table of locomotives

References

External links

webpage for preserved Q Class No.131
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gnri Class Q Q 4-4-0 locomotives Neilson locomotives NBL locomotives Beyer, Peacock locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1899 5 ft 3 in gauge locomotives 2′B n2 locomotives 2′B h2 locomotives Steam locomotives of Ireland Steam locomotives of Northern Ireland

Preservation

Table of locomotives

See also

References

External links