LNER B17 4-6-0 2822 Brampton Castle hauling The Hook Continental named train
By the mid-1920s, power requirements of the GE District were becoming critical. There was a shortage of suitable locomotives for hauling express passenger services which had were heavier with increased traffic & heavier vacuum-braked coaches. In 1928, the NB Loco Co. presented two designs with 18 ton & 19 ton axle loadings. Although neither design met the initial requirement of a 17 ton axle loading, the 18 ton design was chosen. The LNER accepted that this would restrict the B17's route availability to "certain GER main lines" & not the full range which was originally intended. On 17th February, an initial order for ten locomotives was placed. Between 1930 & 1936, Darlington produced 52 B17s in five batches. A final batch of elevenwas built by Robert Stephenson & Co. in 1937;making a total of 73 B17s The first locomotive, No. 2800, was named Sandringham starting a line of B17s named after English country houses. Starting with No. 2848, some of the B17s were named after Football Association clubs. Although some locomotives would be re-named, all 73 B17s bore a name. The first three B17s were withdrawn between 1952 & 1953. The remaining B17s were withdrawn between 1958 & 1960. The Hook Continental was introduced by the LNER in 1927 as a passenger train running between London's Liverpool Street Station & Harwich Parkeston Quay to connect with the night ferry to Hook of Holland. In 1925 a new train set was placed in service composed of eleven bogie coaches & two Pullmans but it was considered a very difficult turn due to the weight of the train & the climbs to Bethnal Green and Brentwood, with speed restrictions through both Chelmsford & Colchester, followed by the severe restriction over the junction at Manningtree. A further new & more luxurious train set was introduced in 1936 with the same composition as the 1925 set & weighing 443 tons. Occasionally this was increased by an additional bogie & duties by this time had been taken over by the Sandringhams
Size: 2209px × 1829px
Location: unknown
Photo credit: © Digbydachshund / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 2822, 4-6-0, b17, brampton, castle, continental, hook, lner, locomotive, railway, steam
