The Z24 class (formerly B55 class) is a two-cylinder, non-condensing, saturated 2-6-0 ‘ Mogul‘ type steam engine built by Dübs & Company for the

New South Wales Government Railways New South Wales Government Railways (NSWGR) was an agency of the Government of New South Wales that administered rail transport in the colony, and then the state, of New South Wales, Australia, between 1855 and 1932. History The NSWGR built ...

of Australia.

Order

Following the success of the B205 class, in 1889 the

ordered an additional 25 locomotives of a basically similar design from Dübs & Company. These locomotives had a deeper firebox, steel cab and weighed an extra nine tonnes. They were pooled with the B205 class in general working. The first locomotive entered traffic on 10 March 1891 and all were in service by August that year.

Operation

They took a generally unobtrusive part in main line goods traffic until displaced by the D50/ D53/ D55 class locomotives. They then moved on to branch lines until displaced by the C30T class locomotives which arrived in the mid-1920s.

Demise and preservation

As boiler renewals became due between 1929 and 1960, their numbers were depleted through either scrapping or disposal. Representatives found their way on to the private lines of such organisations as

Bunnerong Power Station Bunnerong Power Station was a coal-fired power station in the south-eastern Sydney suburb of Matraville, New South Wales, Australia that was decommissioned by 1975 and subsequently demolished. When the last generating units were commissioned, it ...

, Nepean Sand & Gravel at North Richmond and

Hunter Valley The Hunter Region, also commonly known as the Hunter Valley, Newcastle Region, or simply Hunter, spans the region in northern New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney. It contains the Hunter River and its ...

collieries. The last locomotive withdrawn was 2413 in November 1960, following an enthusiast tour to

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

. It joined 2408 and 2414 at Bunnerong Power Station until 1975.

References

External links

{{NSWLocos Dübs locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1889 Standard-gauge locomotives of Australia 24 2-6-0 locomotives 1′C n2 locomotives