South Devon Railway Buffalo class
Encyclopedia
The ten Buffalo class locomotives were 0-6-0
saddle tank broad gauge
locomotives operated on the South Devon Railway
, Cornwall Railway
and West Cornwall Railway
. They were designed for goods trains but were also used on passenger trains when required.
These locomotives were built by the Avonside Engine Company
and designed for easy conversion to standard gauge after the broad gauge was converted on 21 May 1892.
The locomotives of the three railways were operated as a combined fleet by the South Devon Railway but each was accounted to the railway that ordered it. On 1 February 1876 the South Devon Railway was amalgamated with the Great Western Railway, the locomotives were given numbers by their new owners but continued to carry their names too.
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...
saddle tank broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
locomotives operated on the South Devon Railway
South Devon Railway Company
The South Devon Railway Company built and operated the railway from Exeter to Plymouth and Torquay in Devon, England. It was a broad gauge railway built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel-Chronology:* 1844 South Devon Railway Act passed by parliament...
, Cornwall Railway
Cornwall Railway
The Cornwall Railway was a broad gauge railway from Plymouth in Devon to Falmouth in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The section from Plymouth to Truro opened in 1859, the extension to Falmouth in 1863...
and West Cornwall Railway
West Cornwall Railway
The West Cornwall Railway was a railway company in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, formed in 1846 to operate the existing Hayle Railway between Hayle and Redruth and extend the railway to Penzance and Truro....
. They were designed for goods trains but were also used on passenger trains when required.
These locomotives were built by the Avonside Engine Company
Avonside Engine Company
The Avonside Engine Company was a locomotive manufacturer in Avon Street, St. Philip's, Bristol, England between 1864 and 1934. However the business originated with an earlier enterprise Henry Stothert and Company.-Origins:...
and designed for easy conversion to standard gauge after the broad gauge was converted on 21 May 1892.
The locomotives of the three railways were operated as a combined fleet by the South Devon Railway but each was accounted to the railway that ordered it. On 1 February 1876 the South Devon Railway was amalgamated with the Great Western Railway, the locomotives were given numbers by their new owners but continued to carry their names too.
South Devon Railway
- Achilles (1873 – 1892) GWR no. 2165
- Converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1324 until 1905 when it was sold to the South Wales Mineral Railway and became their no. 7, later returning to the Great Western Railway and running as no. 818 until finally withdrawn in 1932. The locomotive was named after AchillesAchillesIn Greek mythology, Achilles was a Greek hero of the Trojan War, the central character and the greatest warrior of Homer's Iliad.Plato named Achilles the handsomest of the heroes assembled against Troy....
, a Greek hero.- Buffalo (1872 – 1892) GWR no. 2160
- This locomotive was converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1320. It was named after an animal, the buffaloBisonMembers of the genus Bison are large, even-toed ungulates within the subfamily Bovinae. Two extant and four extinct species are recognized...
.- Camel (1872 – 1892) GWR no. 2162
- This locomotive was converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1322. It was named after an animal, the camelCamelA camel is an even-toed ungulate within the genus Camelus, bearing distinctive fatty deposits known as humps on its back. There are two species of camels: the dromedary or Arabian camel has a single hump, and the bactrian has two humps. Dromedaries are native to the dry desert areas of West Asia,...
.- Dromedary (1873 – 1892) GWR no. 2166
- This locomotive was converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1325. It was named after a species of camel, the dromedaryDromedaryThe dromedary or Arabian camel is a large, even-toed ungulate with one hump on its back. Its native range is unclear, but it was probably the Arabian Peninsula. The domesticated form occurs widely in North Africa and the Middle East...
.- Elephant (1872 – 1892) GWR no. 2161
- This locomotive was converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1321. It was named after an animal, the elephantElephantElephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
.- Python (1874 – 1892) GWR no. 2168
- Converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1318. Rather than being named after a snake, Python was named after the Greek mythological creature, the PythonPython (mythology)In Greek mythology, Python was the earth-dragon of Delphi, always represented in Greek sculpture and vase-paintings as a serpent. He presided at the Delphic oracle, which existed in the cult center for his mother, Gaia, "Earth," Pytho being the place name that was substituted for the earlier Krisa...
.- Vulcan (1874 – 1892) GWR no. 2169
- Vulcan worked the last train on the Falmouth branchMaritime LineThe Maritime Line is a railway line that runs in the valley of the River Fal from Truro to Falmouth on the south coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom.-History:...
on 20 May 1892 before it was converted to standard gauge. The locomotive itself was also converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1319. The locomotive was named after VulcanVulcan (mythology)Vulcan , aka Mulciber, is the god of beneficial and hindering fire, including the fire of volcanoes in ancient Roman religion and Roman Neopaganism. Vulcan is usually depicted with a thunderbolt. He is known as Sethlans in Etruscan mythology...
, a Roman god.
Cornwall Railway
- Dragon (1873 – 1892) GWR no. 2164
- Converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1323. The locomotive was named after the dragonDragonA dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
, a kind of mythological animal.- Emperor (1873 – 1892) GWR no. 2167
- Converted to standard gauge and worked in this form as no. 1317 until 1905 when it was sold to the South Wales Mineral Railway and became their no. 6, later returning to the Great Western Railway and running as no. 817 until finally withdrawn in 1926. For other uses of the name, see Emperor (disambiguation)Emperor (disambiguation)An emperor is a type of monarch.Emperor may also refer to:-Animals:* Emperor angelfish* Emperor bream* Emperor Penguin* Emperor moth* Emperor scorpion* a number of brush-footed butterflies:...
.- Hercules (1872 – 1889) GWR no. 2163
- The locomotive was named after HerculesHerculesHercules is the Roman name for Greek demigod Heracles, son of Zeus , and the mortal Alcmene...
, a Roman hero.