The

Midland Railway The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 in rail transport, 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had ...

115 Class was the third of four classes of

4-2-2 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-2-2 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, two powered driving wheels on one axle, and two trailing wheels on one axle. Other equivalent clas ...

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, Fuel oil, oil or, rarely, Wood fuel, wood) to heat ...

, nicknamed "Spinners", designed by

Samuel Waite Johnson Samuel Waite Johnson (14 October 1831 – 14 January 1912) was an English railway engineer, and was Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) of the Midland Railway from 1873 to 1903. He was born in Bramley, Yorkshire and educated at Leeds Grammar ...

. A total of 15 of the class were built between 1896 and 1899. They were capable of reaching speeds of up to . One engine, No. 673, is preserved in the

National Collection The UK National Collection is a collection of around 280 historic rolling stock, rail vehicles (predominantly of British origin). The majority of the collection is kept at four national museums: * National Railway Museum, York * National Railwa ...

Classes of Midland Railway 4-2-2 locomotives

Single-driver locomotives had been superseded in the late 19th century as loads increased, but were then reintroduced when steam

sanding file:Schleifpapier verschiedene Sorten.jpg, upright=1.35, Sheets of sandpaper with different grit sizes (40 (coarse), 80, 150, 240, 600 (fine)) Sandpaper, also known as coated abrasive or emery paper, is a type of material that consists of sheet ...

allowed better adhesion. Five similar classes were built, with slight enlargements each time, and details as follows:

Construction history

The fifteen locomotives in the 115 class were built in two batches, both at

Derby Works The Derby Works comprised a number of British manufacturing facilities designing and building locomotives and rolling stock in Derby, England. The first of these was a group of three maintenance sheds opened around 1840 behind Derby railway sta ...

Service history

It was quite common for the class to pull an express weighing , which suited them perfectly. Given a dry rail, they could maintain a tight schedule with . Speeds up to were not uncommon, and the sight of their large, spinning driving wheels with no visible connecting rods earned them the nickname "Spinners". Due to the Midland's practice of building low-powered locomotives and relying on

double-heading In railroad terminology, double heading indicates the use of two locomotives at the front of a train, each operated individually by its own crew. The practice of triple-heading involves the use of three locomotives. The practice of multi-headi ...

to cope with heavier trains, many had working lives of up to 30 years. They made ideal pilot engines for the later Johnson/Deeley

4-4-0 4-4-0, in the Whyte notation, denotes a steam locomotive with a wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles (usually in a leading bogie), four powered and coupled driving wheels on two axles, and no trailing wheels. First built in the ...

classes.

Renumbering

In the Midland Railway 1907 renumbering scheme, they were assigned numbers 670–684. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

most were placed in store, but were then pressed into service afterward as pilots on the

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other Chemical element, elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal i ...

trains. Twelve locomotives survived to the 1923 grouping, keeping their Midland Railway numbers in LMS service. Nevertheless by 1927 only three of the class remained, with the last engine, 673 (formerly 118) being withdrawn in 1928 and subsequently preserved.

Preservation

No. 673 is the sole survivor of its class. It was steamed around 1976–1980 when it took part in the Rainhill Trials 150th cavalcade but is currently a static exhibit in the

National Railway Museum The National Railway Museum (NRM) is a museum in York, England, forming part of the Science Museum Group. The museum tells the story of rail transport in Britain and its impact on society. It is the home of the national collection of historical ...

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

but not on display currently.

Gallery

Midland Railway No. 116; A Jubilee Year Record-Maker. The Engineering Magazine, XV-1, April 1898, New York, p. 97 – With caption.jpg, Caption: "A Jubilee Year Record-Maker. Midland Railway No. 116."
In 1897, No. 116 (shown here in

photographic grey Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed in many ...

) reached a speed of while under full load, at that time the highest recorded speed in the UK.Charles Rous-Marten:
Notable Speed-Trials of British Locomotives.
In ''The Engineering Magazine'', vol. XV, no. 1, April 1898, New York, p. 97. MR 4-2-2 673, Rocket 150, Rainhill, May 1980 Slides184 (9859805644) – edited.jpg, Preserved No. 673 in Midland Railway crimson lake livery at the '' Rocket 150'' celebration in Rainhill in May 1980. Hugh llewelyn 115 (6241296834).jpg, Model of No. 117. Note the differences to No. 673, both in construction (smokebox door, handrail) and livery (base of smokebox red lined with yellow; boiler bands picked out in yellow; springs red lined with yellow; wheel spokes red; different lining on tender sides; number,

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

and MR initials in different locations.

References

* *Herring, Peter (2000) ''Classic British Steam Locomotives'', Enderby: Abbeydale, * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Midland Railway 0115 Class 0115 4-2-2 locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1896 Standard-gauge steam locomotives of Great Britain Passenger locomotives