This locomotive was built by Beyer Peacock in 1877 for the New South Wales Government Railway in Australia. It was the fourth locomotive of an initial order for six heavy freight locomotives of the A93 class and carried the number 116.
Beyer Peacock delivered 50 of the locomotives between 1877 and 1881 and a further 9 between 1880 and 1891. Henry Vale and Company supplied 18 in this latter period.
The A93 class was subsequently re-titled the Z19 class and the locomotive renumbered 1923. The 77 locomotives had short wheelbases and no leading boggie which resulted in them having a tendency to derail and they were ultimately restricted to a speed of 40kmh. Driven slowly they were capable of negotiating extreme curves and running on badly maintained or unballasted track.
The locomotives were capable of hauling loads of 128 tons over the Blue Mountain Line which ran from Sydney to Katoomba and then on to Mount Victoria, Lithgow and Bathurst. Gradients on this line were as steep as 1 in 33
As the locomotives of the class were replaced by more powerful engines they were redeployed on steeply graded lines which had to be operated by light locomotives and on shunting duties. Such lines included Batlow / Kunama, Oberon and Dorrigo lines where the gradient was as steep as 1 in 25 in places and the radius on curves as little as 100 metres.
This locomotive (number 1923) was saved for preservation by the Hunter Valley Steam Railway & Museum (HVSR&M) (precursor to the Dorrigo Steam Railway and Museum) in 1974 when purchased from the scrap roads at Enfield Depot for $5,800.
This locomotive is unique among the four surviving class members in having a cutaway cab side. It is paired with an original-looking Beyer Peacock & Co 6-wheel tender.
It was initially stored at Rhondda Colliery near Newcastle.
The HVSR&M changed their objective to reopening the Dorrigo branch line on the mid-North Coast region of New South Wales and a railway museum at Dorrigo.
Most of the steam locomotives (including 1923) owned by the HVSR&M were hauled from Rhondda Colliery to Glenreagh during December 1983 and then to Dorrigo in 1986..
The locomotive is now stored within the Dorrigo Station yard, where it regularly receives a coat of black oil to provide some protection against the torrential rain in this area.
Three other members of the class built by Beyer Peacock are preserved.
- 1904 – Beyer Peacock works number 1646
- 1905 – Beyer Peacock works number 1647
- 1919 – Beyer Peacock works number 1761
Preserved British Steam Locomotives 