Midland Railway Johnson 0-6-0
The Midland Railway Johnson 0-6-0 were a class of locomotives serving Britain's Midland Railway system in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Between 1875 and 1908 the Midland Railway, under the control of locomotive superintendents Samuel Waite Johnson and Richard Deeley, ordered 935 goods tender engines of 0-6-0 type, both from the railway's own shops at Derby and various external suppliers. Although there were many variations between different batches both as delivered and as successively rebuilt, all 935 can be regarded as a single series, one of the largest classes of engine on Britain's railways. The locomotives served as late as 1964, but none of them now survive.
Builders
They were built at the following plants:| Derby Works | 160 |
| Beyer, Peacock and Company | 80 |
| Dübs and Company | 150 |
| Kitson and Company | 120 |
| Neilson and Company | 290 |
| Robert Stephenson and Company | 30 |
| Sharp, Stewart and Company | 85 |
| Vulcan Foundry | 20 |
Boilers
The H and H1 boilers fitted to the "2736" and "3815" classes were larger, having a diameter of 4 ft 8in rather than 4 ft 1in, and a longer firebox, which made the engines more powerful. While these were being built there started a program of rebuilding many of the earlier engines with the "H" boiler to increase their power. By 1915, 380 engines had been so upgraded, giving 450 with "H" and 485 with "B".Beginning in 1916 engines were rebuilt with Belpaire boilers. Those from the first two classes, received the smaller "G6" type boiler, the remainder the larger "G7" size. The "H" & "G7" boilered engines were classed "3" and those with "B" & "G6" boilers were classed "2".
By 1925, production of the new superheated 4F 0-6-0s meant there was no shortage of goods engines of this power class, and from that point only "G6" boilers were installed on rebuilding, sometimes on engines which had previously had "H" boilers, reducing them back to class 2. Three of the later examples were experimentally fitted with superheaters from 1923 to 1928, but generally the class remained saturated throughout. One hundred and thirteen engines remained with their original "B" boilers until scrapped, 22 had "H" boilers, 432 had "G7" and 368 had "G6".
Dimensions
As built
| Class | Pre-1907 numbers | Post-1907 numbers | Manufacturer | Date | Quantity built | Driving Wheels | Cylinders | Boiler | Notes |
| 1142 | 1142–1251 381–385, 400–404 | 2900–3019 | Kitson & Co. Dübs & Co. Beyer, Peacock & Co. Neilson & Co. | 1875–1876 | 120 | B - 140 psi | later had 18″ × 26″ cylinders; BR 58114–58187 | ||
| 1357 | 1357–1376 1432–1471 1582–1631 | 3020–3129 | Dübs & Co. R. Stephenson & Co. Beyer, Peacock & Co. Derby Works | 1878–1884 | 110 | 5′ 2½″ | 17½″ × 26″ | B - 140 psi | later had 18″ × 26″ cylinders; BR 58188–58228 |
| 1698 | 1698–1717 1758–1797 | 3130–3189 | Derby Works | 1885–1888 | 60 | 4′ 10½″ | 18″ × 26″ | B - 140 psi | |
| 1798 | 1798–1807 | 3190–3199 | Derby Works | 1888 | 10 | 5′ 2½″ | 18″ × 26″ | B - 140 psi | |
| Neilson Goods | 1873–1972 | 3200–3299 | Neilson & Co. | 1890–1891 | 100 | 5′ 2½″ | 18″ × 26″ | B - 150 psi | Collectively, the "1873" class. |
| J | 2023–2092 | 3300–3369 | Kitson & Co. Dübs & Co. | 1890–1892 | 70 | 5′ 2½″ | 18″ × 26″ | B - 150 psi | Collectively, the "1873" class. |
| J2 | 2133–2182 | 3410–3459 | Dübs & Co. | 1892–1894 | 50 | 5′ 2½″ | 18″ × 26″ | B - 150 psi | Collectively, the "1873" class. |
| M | 2093–2132 361–370 2259–2358 2391–2420 2461–2500 2541–2570 2641–2735 | 3370–3409 3460–3764 | Sharp, Stewart & Co. Derby Works Neilson & Co. Kitson & Co. Neilson, Reid & Co. Dübs & Co. Vulcan Foundry | 1892–1902 | 345 | 5′ 2½″ | 18″ × 26″ | B - 160 psi | Collectively, the "1873" class. |
| 2736 | 2736–2740 240–244 | 3765–3774 | Derby Works | 1903 | 10 | 5′ 2½″ | 18″ × 26″ | H - 175 psi | |
| 2736 | 245–284 | 3775–3814 | Derby Works | 1903–1906 | 40 | 5′ 2½″ | 18½″ × 26″ | H - 175 psi | |
| 3815 | — | 3815–3834 | Derby Works | 1908 | 20 | 5′ 2½″ | 18½″ × 26″ | H1 - 175 psi |
The smaller driving wheels gave an enhanced tractive effort at the expense of reduced speed, which was useful on coal trains.
Later dimensions
Use on joint lines
16 engines of the "M" class were bought by the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway, eight in 1896 and eight in 1899, which were numbered 58–73. All were built with Class "B" boilers, and replacement boilers were normally of the same type; but two were rebuilt in 1906 and 1909 with the larger Class "H" boiler. In 1921, two others were rebuilt with the Belpaire Class "G7" boiler together with longer smokeboxes, which required the main frames to be extended at both front and rear. The two already fitted with Class "H" boilers received "G7" boilers and frame extensions in 1923 and 1928. All 16 were acquired by the London and North Eastern Railway on 1 October 1936 and new numbers 058–073 were allocated, but five were considered to be worn out and withdrawn in 1936–37, and three of these did not receive their LNER numbers. The remaining eleven were added to LNER book stock in 1937 and classified J40 if fitted with the Class "B" boiler, or J41 if fitted with the Class "G7" boiler. Withdrawal of these 11 began in 1938, and by the time that the LNER renumbering scheme was prepared in June 1943, there were five left, nos. 059, 064, 065, 070 and 071. These were allotted numbers 4100–4, but none lasted long enough to be renumbered: the last, no. 059, was withdrawn in June 1944.Ten engines of "M" class were bought by the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway in 1896 and 1902, numbered 62–66 and 72–76. All ended up with "G7" boilers and were taken into LMS stock as class 3F in 1930.
Numbering
LMS
The class all retained their numbers when they passed to the London, Midland and Scottish Railway at the 1923 grouping, but in 1934 2900–2984 had 20000 added to their numbers to make way for newer locomotives. The same happened to 3000–3019 in 1947.British Railways
At nationalisation those that were class 3F, along with other LMS locomotives, had 40000 added to their numbers by British Railways, but the class 2Fs were reorganised into a new series 58114–58310.Accidents and incidents
- On 1 December 1900, locomotive No. 1433 was hauling a freight train when it was derailed at Peckwash, Derbyshire, possibly after the driver lost control and the train ran away.
- On 14 August 1949, locomotive No. 3260 was hauling a passenger train when it collided with a peat train at, Somerset and was derailed. The locomotive was subsequently scrapped.
Withdrawal
SM&JR farewell tour
No. 43222 hauled the Stephenson Locomotive Society's SM&JR railtour on 29 April 1956. It carried the reporting number M500.Gallery
- See also