The 2361 Class was a class of steam locomotives of the Great Western Railway. There were twenty 2361s, numbered 2361-2380 and built at

Swindon Railway Works Swindon railway works was opened by the Great Western Railway in 1843 in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. It served as the principal west England maintenance centre until closed in 1986. History In 1835 Parliament approved the construction of th ...

at Lot 67 in 1885/6. They were part of an unusual standardisation scheme whereby William Dean designed four double-framed classes with similar boilers but different wheel arrangements, the others being the 1661, 3201 and 3501.

Design

The 2361 Class is sometimes described, erroneously, as the "outside-framed version of the Dean Goods". While it is true that there is a superficial resemblance, above the

running plate A footplate provides the structure on which a locomotive driver and fireman stand in the cab to operate a British or continental European steam locomotive. It comprises a large metal plate that rests on top of the locomotive frame, usually it is c ...

; that the 2361s likewise have diameter wheels; and that they are numbered in the same sequence; they are nevertheless a quite separate class, having a longer

cylinder A cylinder (from ) has traditionally been a three-dimensional solid, one of the most basic of curvilinear geometric shapes. In elementary geometry, it is considered a prism with a circle as its base. A cylinder may also be defined as an infin ...

stroke, larger boiler, longer wheelbase, and consequently greater tractive effort.

Use

The 2361s were originally allocated to the Worcester Division, and then worked in the London area. Some subsequently worked in the Wolverhampton Division, and at miscellaneous sheds such as Neath, Llanelly, Bristol and Oswestry.

Withdrawal

Most were withdrawn in the 1930s, and all had gone by the end of 1946.

References

* * {{GWR Locomotives 2361 0-6-0 locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1885 Standard gauge steam locomotives of Great Britain Scrapped locomotives Freight locomotives