GER Class C53


The GER Class C53 was a class of 12 steam tram locomotives designed by James Holden for the Great Eastern Railway. They passed to the London and North Eastern Railway at the grouping and received the LNER classification J70.

History

The locomotives had outside cylinders driving wheels, all enclosed by skirting. They were the first locomotives on the Great Eastern to use Walschaerts valve gear. From the 1930s to the 1950s, they were used on the Wisbech and Upwell Tramway and the ports of Great Yarmouth and Ipswich. They replaced earlier GER Class G15 that had a similar appearance.
YearOrderBuilderQuantityGER No.LNER No.LNER 1946 No.Notes
1903C53Stratford Works2135–1367135–71368216–8217
1908C64Stratford Works3137–1397137–71398218, —, 8219GER No.138 was withdrawn in 1942
1910I67Stratford Works113071308220
1914P75Stratford Works3127–128, 1317127–7128, 71318221–8223
1921D85Stratford Works3125–126, 1297125–7126, 71298224–8226

The first withdrawal was in 1942. The remaining 11 locomotives were renumbered 8216–8226 in 1944 and passed to British Railways in 1948 on nationalisation, after which the prefix "6" was added to their numbers. Withdrawals restarted in 1949, slowly at first, then more quickly. The last went in 1955.

Individual locomotives

Note: The data above is according to the website RailUK. Another website, BRDatabase, gives some different dates:
J70 68221 was the inspiration for the character Toby the Tram Engine in The Railway Series by the Rev. W. Awdry, and its television series adaptation, Thomas & Friends.