The ten Buffalo class locomotives were broad gauge locomotives operated on the South Devon Railway,

Cornwall Railway The Cornwall Railway was a broad gauge railway from Plymouth in Devon to Falmouth in Cornwall, England, built in the second half of the nineteenth century. It was constantly beset with shortage of capital for the construction, and was eventu ...

and

West Cornwall Railway The West Cornwall Railway was a railway company in Cornwall, Great Britain, formed in 1846 to construct a railway between Penzance and Truro. It purchased the existing Hayle Railway, and improved its main line, and built new sections between Penz ...

. They were designed for goods trains but were also used on passenger trains when required. These locomotives were built by the

Avonside Engine Company The Avonside Engine Company was a locomotive manufacturer in Avon Street, St. Philip's, Bristol, England between 1864 and 1934. However the business originated with an earlier enterprise Henry Stothert and Company. Origins The firm was original ...

and designed for easy conversion to standard gauge after the broad gauge was converted on 21 May 1892. The locomotives of the three railways were operated as a combined fleet by the South Devon Railway but each was accounted to the railway that ordered it. On 1 February 1876 the South Devon Railway was amalgamated with the Great Western Railway, the locomotives were given numbers by their new owners but continued to carry their names too.

Locomotives

South Devon Railway

* ''Achilles'' (1873–1892) GWR no. 2165 :Converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1324 until 1905 when it was sold to the

South Wales Mineral Railway The South Wales Mineral Railway was a railway built to serve collieries in the upper Afan Valley, and bring their output to a dock at Briton Ferry, in South Wales. It opened in stages, in 1861 and 1863. It was built on the broad gauge and had s ...

and became their no. 7, later returning to the Great Western Railway and running as no. 818 until finally withdrawn in 1932. The locomotive was named after

Achilles In Greek mythology, Achilles ( ) or Achilleus ( grc-gre, Ἀχιλλεύς) was a hero of the Trojan War, the greatest of all the Greek warriors, and the central character of Homer's '' Iliad''. He was the son of the Nereid Thetis and Pele ...

, a Greek hero. * ''Buffalo'' (1872–1892) GWR no. 2160 :This locomotive was converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1320. It was named after an animal, the buffalo. * ''Camel'' (1872–1892) GWR no. 2162 :This locomotive was converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1322. It was named after an animal, the camel. * ''Dromedary'' (1873–1892) GWR no. 2166 :This locomotive was converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1325. It was named after a species of camel, the

dromedary The dromedary (''Camelus dromedarius'' or ;), also known as the dromedary camel, Arabian camel, or one-humped camel, is a large even-toed ungulate, of the genus ''Camelus'', with one hump on its back. It is the tallest of the three species of ...

. * ''Elephant'' (1872–1892) GWR no. 2161 :This locomotive was converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1321. It was named after an animal, the

elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae ...

. * ''Python'' (1874–1892) GWR no. 2168 :Converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1318. Rather than being named after a snake, ''Python'' was named after the Greek mythological creature, the

Python Python may refer to: Snakes * Pythonidae, a family of nonvenomous snakes found in Africa, Asia, and Australia ** ''Python'' (genus), a genus of Pythonidae found in Africa and Asia * Python (mythology), a mythical serpent Computing * Python (pro ...

. * ''Vulcan'' (1874–1892) GWR no. 2169 :''Vulcan'' worked the last train on the Falmouth branch on 20 May 1892 before it was converted to standard gauge. The locomotive itself was also converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1319. The locomotive was named after

Vulcan Vulcan may refer to: Mythology * Vulcan (mythology), the god of fire, volcanoes, metalworking, and the forge in Roman mythology Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * Vulcan (''Star Trek''), name of a fictional race and their home p ...

, a Roman god.

Cornwall Railway

* ''Dragon'' (1873–1892) GWR no. 2164 :Converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1323. The locomotive was named after the dragon, a kind of mythological animal. * ''Emperor'' (1873–1892) GWR no. 2167 :Converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1317 until 1905 when it was sold to the

and became their no. 6, later returning to the Great Western Railway and running as no. 817 until finally withdrawn in 1926. ''For other uses of the name, see Emperor (disambiguation).'' * ''Hercules'' (1872–1889) GWR no. 2163 :The locomotive was named after

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the ...

, a Roman hero.

References

* * * * * Railway company records at

The National Archives National archives are central archives maintained by countries. This article contains a list of national archives. Among its more important tasks are to ensure the accessibility and preservation of the information produced by governments, both ...

{{SDR Locomotives Broad gauge (7 feet) railway locomotives 0-6-0ST locomotives Buffalo Avonside locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1872