The LNWR 17in Coal Engine was a class of 0-6-0

0-6-0

Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-6-0 represents the wheel arrangement of no leading wheels, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and no trailing wheels...

 steam

Steam locomotive

A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...

 tender engine

Tender locomotive

A tender or coal-car is a special rail vehicle hauled by a steam locomotive containing the locomotive's fuel and water. Steam locomotives consume large quantities of water compared to the quantity of fuel, so tenders are necessary to keep the locomotive running over long distances. A locomotive...

s designed by Francis Webb

Francis Webb (engineer)

Francis William Webb was a British engineer responsible for the design and manufacture of locomotives for the London and North Western Railway .- Biography :...

 for the London and North Western Railway

London and North Western Railway

The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...

. They were simple locomotives and in UK

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 service they were very reliable. "17in" refers to their cylinder diameter in inches. They were called "Coal Engines" because they were used for hauling coal

Coal

Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...

 trains.

Design and Construction

The 17in Coal was the first new design of engine to be built by Webb since he became Chief Engineer of the LNWR in September 1871. A policy of 'low costs' was in force at the LNWR, with running costs per engine mile reduced from d

Penny (British pre-decimal coin)

The penny of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, was in circulation from the early 18th century until February 1971, Decimal Day....

 per engine mile in 1857 to d by 1871. The first 17in Coal was constructed in 1873, the first of five hundred built. Ernest L. Ahrons is quoted as regarding the type as "probably the simplest and cheapest locomotives ever made in this country", and O.S. Nock

O.S. Nock

Oswald Stevens Nock , usually known as O.S. Nock, was a British railway author and signal engineer. He is known for his prodigious output of books on the subject of Railways.-Early life:...

 described them as "splendid".

Many aspects of the 17in Coal's design reflected John Ramsbottom

John Ramsbottom (engineer)

John Ramsbottom was an English mechanical engineer who created many inventions for railways, including the piston ring, the Ramsbottom safety valve, the displacement lubricator, and the water trough.- Biography :...

's final design: the 0-6-0 Saddle Tank, including the identical wheel diameter and cylinder dimensions, but the new engines had a larger, improved boiler. In February 1878, one engine of this design was built from scratch in  hours.

Operation

During the First World War

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

 the Railway Operating Division

Railway Operating Division

The Railway Operating Division was a division of the Royal Engineers formed in 1915 to operate railways in the many theatres of the First World War...

 of the Royal Engineers

Royal Engineers

The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....

 took many Coal Engines for use overseas, including many to the British Expeditionary Force in France and 42 to the Palestine Military Railway. Those in Palestine were reported to have performed badly and Palestine Railways sold them all for scrap by 1922. This may have been due partly to the poor quality of water used in Palestine.

In the 1923 grouping

Railways Act 1921

The Railways Act 1921, also known as the Grouping Act, was an enactment by the British government of David Lloyd George intended to stem the losses being made by many of the country's 120 railway companies, move the railways away from internal competition, and to retain some of the benefits which...

 227 Coal Engines passed into LMS

London, Midland and Scottish Railway

The London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...

 stock. 35 survived until the nationalisation of Britain's Railways

Transport Act 1947

The Transport Act 1947 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Under it the railways, long-distance road haulage and various other types of transport were acquired by the state and handed over to a new British Transport Commission for operation...

 in 1948 and entered British Railways stock. BR numbers were 58321-58361 (with gaps).