GWR 1361 Class
The 1361 Class were small steam locomotives built by the Great Western Railway at their Swindon Works, England, mainly for shunting in docks and other sidings where track curvature was too tight for large locomotives.
History
The 1361 Class were designed by George Jackson Churchward as an update of the 1392 Class, originally built in 1874 for the Cornwall Minerals Railway. As such they combined unusual and outdated elements, such as saddle tanks and Allan valve gear, with current Great Western details such as the cab, bunker and many minor fittings. G.W.R. were generally being converted to have Belpaire fireboxes and pannier tanks by this date, but the firebox on the 1361 was round topped, so the saddle tank was more appropriate. The wheelbase allowed them to negotiate radius curves, a requirement for work in docks and on lightly laid branch lines. Although the design is credited to the Churchward, Harold Holcroft was the junior draughtsman who did the actual work on the class.The five locomotives were built at Swindon in 1910 and were worked alongside the ex-Cornwall Minerals Railway locomotives. Their usual home was Plymouth Millbay, Devon, from where they worked in Millbay Docks and on the Sutton Harbour branch. Until 1928 some of the class could also be found at St Blazey engine shed, Cornwall, where they worked on ex-Cornwall Minerals Railway branches, and also at Moorswater for working the Looe branch.
In 1920 one locomotive was transferred to Newton Abbot, Devon, for shunting the railway workshops there, doing so until 1952. Other allocations were Taunton for working at Bridgwater, Somerset,, and Swindon. One was tried briefly on the Weymouth Harbour Tramway in 1949, and another went to St Philips Marsh, Bristol in 1962.
The same basic design was used for the six 1366 Class locomotives built in 1934, but this time they were fitted with Belpaire fireboxes, pannier tanks and more modern cabs. When the 1361s were withdrawn their remaining jobs were given to D2000 diesel shunters. All five examples were in service over 50 years.