LNWR Newton Class


The LNWR Newton Class was a class of ninety-six steam locomotives built by the London and North Western Railway at their Crewe Works between 1866 and 1873.
They were officially designated Curved Link 6-ft 6-in Passenger due to the use of a curved link between the fore and back eccentric rods of their Stephenson valve gear and the use of diameter wheel centres, which, together with thick tyres gave a driving wheel diameter of.
They were designed by John Ramsbottom who had 76 built, all without cabs and with pierced driving wheel splashers. Ramsbottom's successor F. W. Webb, built twenty more, all with cabs. The earlier locomotives also gained cabs, and all eventually had the splashers filled in.
All were 'renewed' by a like number of LNWR Improved Precedent Class between 1887 and 1894.

Fleet list

LNWR
No.		NameCrewe
Works
No.		Date builtDate scrappedNotes
1480Newton920
1481The Duke of Edinburgh921Was to have been named Franklin
1482Herschel922
1483Newcomen923
1484Telford924
1485Smeaton925
1486Dalton926
1487Faraday927
1488Murdoch928
1489Brindley929
1513Shakespeare980
1514Scott981
1515Milton982
1516Byron983
1517Princess Helena984
1518Countess985
1519Duchess986
1520Franklin987
1521Gladstone988
1522Pitt989
1523Marlborough990
1524Wolfe991
1525Abercrombie992
1526Drake993
1527Raleigh994
1528Frobisher995
1529Cook996
1530Columbus997
1531Cromwell998
1532Hampden999
1666Ariadne1160
1667Corunna1161
1668Dagmar1162
1669Ilion1163
1670Ganymede1164
1671Shamrock1165
1672Talavera1166
1673Lucknow1167
1674Delhi1168
1675Vimiera1169
1676The Nile1170
1677Badajos1171
1678Airey1172
1679Bunsen1173
1680Livingstone1174
1681Minerva1175
1682Novelty1176
1683Sisyphus1177
1684Speke1178
1685Gladiator1179
1744Magdala1280
1745John Bright1281
1746Bevere1282
1747Tennyson1283John Mayall from 1885
1748Britannia1284
1749Hibernia1285
379Sedgwick1286
380Quernmore1287
381Patterdale1288
382Buckingham1289
393Brougham1300
394Eamont1301
395Scotia1302
396Dunrobin1303Tennyson from 1885
271Minotaur1304
275Vulcan1305
276Pluto1306
295Penmaenmawr1307
304Hector1308
308Booth1309
2001Henry Crosfield1380
2002Madge1381
2003Alecto1382
2004Witch1383
2005Lynx1384
2006Princess1385
1211John Ramsbottom1479
1212Pioneer1480
1213The Queen1481
1214Prince Albert1482
1215Albion1483
1216Premier1484
1217Florence1485
1218Phaeton1486
1219Lightning1487
1220Belted Will1488
1141S. R. Graves1682
941Blenkinsop1683
942Shah of Persia1684
974Richard Cobden1685
696Director1686
787Clarendon1687
790Hardwicke1688
1020Wordsworth1689
1132North Western1690
403Isabella1691

Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway

In 1873 ten locomotives of the type were built at Crewe for the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway and utilised on passenger expresses between Blackpool, Manchester and Yorkshire. They were given the numbers 456–462 and 731–733. Most were fitted with replacement boilers about and other standard L&YR parts 1888. They were then used on Liverpool−Manchester expresses on the new L&YR route. The more powerful Barton Wright s took over on the more demanding sections to Yorkshire though the Ramsbottom engines were considered faster on light loads. Most were withdrawn in the period 1895 to 1897 but Nos. 461, 462 and 731 lasted to 1904, 1912 and 1926 respectively. No. 731 had been used as the Chief Mechanical Engineer's locomotive since 1886, based at Horwich and attached to a combined bogied tender-saloon vehicle. It passed back to the LNWR when the L&YR amalgamation of 1922 and into the London Midland and Scottish Railway in 1923 at the grouping. It was scrapped when the LMS CME department moved to Derby.

Preservation

Even though no locomotive from the Newton class was saved for posterity, their legacy is still carried on via a nameplate of one of their succeeding designs. The Improved Precedent No. 790 currently sitting at the National Railway Museum Shildon still display nameplates indicating 1873 as the year of build.