| Power Classification | 4F |
| Introduced | 1924 – 1940 |
| Designer | Fowler |
| Company | LMS |
| Weight – Loco | 48t 15cwt |
| Tender | 41t 4cwt |
| Driving Wheels | 5ft 3ins |
| Boiler Pressure | 175psi superheated |
| Cylinders | Inside – 20in x 26in |
| Tractive Effort | 24,555lbf |
| Valve Gear | Stephenson (piston valves) |
After grouping in 1923, the LMS accepted the Midland 4F 43835 class as the standard freight engine, and 580 more engines were built up to 1940 (making a total of 772 locomotives of both classes). The only difference was a reduction in the size of the boiler mountings to allow the engines to be used all over the LMS system, and a change from right hand drive to left hand drive. Although officially freight engines, they were often used for passenger train working.
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Midland 4F 43835 class introduced in 1911 |
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LMS 4F 44027 class introduced in 1924 |
The engines were built at Derby, Crewe, St Rollox and Horwich as well as at a number of outside contractors (North British, Kerr Stuart and Andrew Barclay). They were built in 1924-1928 and 1937-1940. Some of the class were later used as departmental engines.
44557-44561 were built by Armstrong Whitworth for the Midland Railway in 1922 to be used on the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway (SDJR) where they were numbered 57-61. They became part of the LMS stock in 1930.
Some locomotives were converted to oil burning during the coal crisis after the Second World War but were later converted back to coal burning.
Like the earlier Fowler 0-6-0 these locomotives were employed all over the old LMS network even after the formation of BR in 1948.
Number in Service.
| Built | Withdrawals | No. in Service | ||
| BR Numbers | Quantity | |||
| 1922 | 44557-61 |
5 |
5 |
|
| 1924 | 44027-34 & 44177-78 |
10 |
15 |
|
| 1925 | 44035-158 & 44179-216 |
162 |
177 |
|
| 1926 | 44159-76, 44217-287, 44302-11, 44332-42 & 44382-99 |
128 |
305 |
|
| 1927 | 44288-301, 44312-17, 44343-79, 44400-46 & 44477-506 |
134 |
439 |
|
| 1928 | 44318-31, 44380-81, 44447-76 & 44507-56 |
96 |
535 |
|
| 1937 | 44562-76 |
15 |
550 |
|
| 1939 | 44577-96 |
20 |
570 |
|
| 1940 | 44597-604 |
8 |
578 |
|
| 1941 | 44605-6 |
2 |
580 |
|
| 1942-58 |
580 |
|||
| 1959 |
44 |
536 |
||
| 1960 |
41 |
495 |
||
| 1961 |
23 |
472 |
||
| 1962 |
76 |
396 |
||
| 1963 |
135 |
261 |
||
| 1964 |
154 |
107 |
||
| 1965 |
96 |
11 |
||
| 1966 |
11 |
0 |
||
- 44027-44056, 44207-44301, 44407-44436 and 44577-44606 were built at Derby.
- 44057-44081, 44382-44406 and 44477-44506 were built by the North British Locomotive Co.
- 44082-44106 and 44332-44356 were built by Kerr Stuart & Co Ltd.
- 44107-44176, 44302-44311, 44437-44456, 44507-44556 and 44562-44576 were built at Crewe.
- 44177-44206, 44312-44331 and 44467-44476 were built at St Rollox Works, Glasgow.
- 44357-44381 were built by Andrew Barclay & Sons Ltd.
- 44457-44466 were built at Horwich
- 44557-44561 were built by Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Co Ltd.
Accidents and Incidents
- On 12 February 1929, locomotive 4491 was hauling a freight train that was in a head-on collision with an express passenger train at Doe Hill station, Derbyshire due to a signalman’s error. Two people were killed.
- On 4 September 1942, locomotive 4541 was hauling a freight train that overran the end of a loop in blackout conditions at Todmorden, Yorkshire and was derailed.
- On 6 June 1961, a locomotive of the class was running light when it was in a head-on collision with a freight train at Carlisle Citadel station.
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44489 on Workington shed with a classmate behind-November 1965. 44489 had been withdrawn from service in August 1965 and was scrapped shortly after this photograph was taken.
44311 at Sellafield heading north with a train of coke wagons-April 1966. The locomotive was based at Barrow at the time and it was withdrawn from there in July 1966 and scrapped in October 1966. |
Preservation
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