98-060 Ex-SE&CR C Class 0-6-0 No. 592 at Sheffield Park
Scan of a slide taken in 1995 - one of the pre-grouping loco that for me epitomise the Bluebell at its best. A history of No. 592 from the Bluebell's website:
www.bluebell-railway.co.uk/bluebell/pics/c.html
"After the amalgamation of the SER and the LCDR in 1899 it fell to Harry Wainwright to put some order into the locomotive designs the new company inherited. The C-class was his standard goods design, and 109 of them were built from 1900 through to 1908. They served the SECR, and in turn the SR and BR, well, with 106 (plus one rebuilt as a saddle tank) still extant at nationalisation in 1948, and 60 of them still in service in 1960. The steam powered reverser on this locomotive was most successful, and this design was to be found on goods and shunting engines built by the SECR and the SR for more than 40 years afterwards.
At the Nationalisation of the railways on 1st. January 1948, SR No.1592 could be found shedded at Ramsgate (Code RAM), where she remained in service with BR (being renumbered 31592 in December 1948) until transferred for a brief period to Nine Elms (70A) on 14 June 1959. On 9 February 1960, 31592 returned to the South Eastern Division and was shedded at Tonbridge (73J). The loco was transferred to Ashford (73F) on 9 November 1961 where she remained until withdrawl from revenue service in July 1963. However, that was not the end of her duty, as she was placed in departmental service in Ashford Works and was renumbered DS239.
With the last three surviving in departmental service at Ashford, the C-class Preservation Society was formed in 1962, and in December 1966 was able to buy 592 (as DS239). Kept initially in the old running shed at Ashford,[where I just about recall seeing the loco at open day circa 1969] it moved to the Bluebell in 1970, and finally entered service in 1975 after work on its boiler and a badly damaged axle journal. Its 1994 overhaul at the hands of volunteers saw it returned to service with a spare tender which we overhauled. We had been fortunate enough to obtain this from Folkestone, where it had been used as a mobile water tank. In 2006-7 we overhauled the spare boiler which we have for this locomotive (which had been a stationary boiler at Ashford), since the firebox of the existing boiler was deemed beyond repair. Mechanically the locomotive was in reasonable order, although the condition of the cylinders may determine how long it runs after overhaul; it is thought likely to require a new cylinder block at a subsequent overhaul. It returned to service on 8th October 2007."
98-060 Ex-SE&CR C Class 0-6-0 No. 592 at Sheffield Park
Scan of a slide taken in 1995 - one of the pre-grouping loco that for me epitomise the Bluebell at its best. A history of No. 592 from the Bluebell's website:
www.bluebell-railway.co.uk/bluebell/pics/c.html
"After the amalgamation of the SER and the LCDR in 1899 it fell to Harry Wainwright to put some order into the locomotive designs the new company inherited. The C-class was his standard goods design, and 109 of them were built from 1900 through to 1908. They served the SECR, and in turn the SR and BR, well, with 106 (plus one rebuilt as a saddle tank) still extant at nationalisation in 1948, and 60 of them still in service in 1960. The steam powered reverser on this locomotive was most successful, and this design was to be found on goods and shunting engines built by the SECR and the SR for more than 40 years afterwards.
At the Nationalisation of the railways on 1st. January 1948, SR No.1592 could be found shedded at Ramsgate (Code RAM), where she remained in service with BR (being renumbered 31592 in December 1948) until transferred for a brief period to Nine Elms (70A) on 14 June 1959. On 9 February 1960, 31592 returned to the South Eastern Division and was shedded at Tonbridge (73J). The loco was transferred to Ashford (73F) on 9 November 1961 where she remained until withdrawl from revenue service in July 1963. However, that was not the end of her duty, as she was placed in departmental service in Ashford Works and was renumbered DS239.
With the last three surviving in departmental service at Ashford, the C-class Preservation Society was formed in 1962, and in December 1966 was able to buy 592 (as DS239). Kept initially in the old running shed at Ashford,[where I just about recall seeing the loco at open day circa 1969] it moved to the Bluebell in 1970, and finally entered service in 1975 after work on its boiler and a badly damaged axle journal. Its 1994 overhaul at the hands of volunteers saw it returned to service with a spare tender which we overhauled. We had been fortunate enough to obtain this from Folkestone, where it had been used as a mobile water tank. In 2006-7 we overhauled the spare boiler which we have for this locomotive (which had been a stationary boiler at Ashford), since the firebox of the existing boiler was deemed beyond repair. Mechanically the locomotive was in reasonable order, although the condition of the cylinders may determine how long it runs after overhaul; it is thought likely to require a new cylinder block at a subsequent overhaul. It returned to service on 8th October 2007."