D&KR Princess Class

Princess was the class lead for a set of five locomotives built by the Dublin and Kingstown Railway (D&KR) in their own Grand Canal Street works from 1841. Princess was both the first locomotive built in Ireland and the first locomotive to be completed by a railway company in the British Isles in their own workshops.[1]

Princess
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
DesignerRichard Pim
BuilderGrand Canal Street
Build date1841
Total produced5 or 6[lower-alpha 1]
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 • Whyte2-2-2WT
Gauge
  • 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
  • 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm) (c.1856)
Driver dia.5 ft 0 in (1,520 mm)[lower-alpha 2]
Loco weight20 long tons (20 t)
Fuel typeCoke
Fuel capacity20 long hundredweight (1,000 kg; 2,200 lb)
Water cap.340 imp gal (1,500 L; 410 US gal)
Boiler:
​
 • TypeDomeless
Boiler pressure[lower-alpha 3]
Cylinders2
Cylinder size12 in × 18 in (305 mm × 457 mm)
CouplersBergin
Career
Operators
Number in class5 or 6[lower-alpha 1]

History

By the 1840s, some of the D&KRs original nine locomotives were becoming life expired, difficult to maintain with Star unusable and those from Sharp's unable to be converted to tank locomotives. In common with other railways such as the Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR) it was found the cost of buying locomotives from independent manufacturers had become extremely expensive and enough expertise had been gathered in the company's own workshops to construct locomotives themselves.[2][3]

In August 1840, locomotive superintendent Richard Pim was authorised to construct a locomotive using parts from the scrapped Star locomotive. The design was heavily based on those previously supplied by George Forrester and Company but using trailing axle 2-2-2WT configuration. Princess completed and tested on 3 April 1841. In the event few parts from Star were used, but the cost of £1,050 14s 5d. compared well with the £1,000 cost of the previous locomotive from Forresters.[4]

The second of the class, Bellisle, did use parts of Star,[5] entered service in August 1841, with a build cost of £749 1s 0d including £378 10s 8d labour.[6] Three sister engines were then built in parallel,[7] emerging from between November 1842 and July 1844 as Shamrock, Erin and Albert, the average cost of £853 being markedly less than the estimated £1400 from an external supplier.[8]

The design was eventually found to be under powered for the D&KR's increasing needs and the 1845 Burgoyne engines were a more powerful evolvement of the design.[8]

Dalkey Atmospheric Railway

When the Dalkey Atmospheric Railway, also operated by the D&KR, had a long breakdown in 1848 and Princess was modified to operate the section with a reduced chimney and temporary canopy to protect the engine crew from the very low loading gauge. Princess proved capable of operating with four carriages on the heavily graded section for a couple of months.[9]

Fleet
Name Introduced Rebuilt 5' 3" Withdrawn Notes
Princess184118561884Named in honour of Victoria the Princess Royal, first locomotive built in Ireland, first in world built in railway company workshop, Modified in 1848 with cab cover and reduced chimney to work over Dalkey Atmospheric Railway section.
Belleisle184118561864–1872
Shamrock184218561864–1872
Erin184318561864–1872
Albert184418561874Named in honour of Albert, Prince Consort
Comet185118561864–1872Heavy rebuild from Forrester Comet of 1835

Notes
  1. Six includes the Comet rebuild of 1851
  2. Lowe (2014), p. 138 claims 5 ft 0 in (1,520 mm)
  3. Boiler pressure unknown but within range 50 lbf/in2 (0.34 MPa) to 90 lbf/in2 (0.62 MPa)

References
  1. Lowe (2014), pp. 136–137.
  2. Donaghy (1972), pp. 50–51.
  3. Murray (1981), pp. 182–183.
  4. Murray (1981), pp. 187–188.
  5. Lyons (2015), p. 83.
  6. Lyons (2015), p. 188.
  7. Bergin (1841), p. 265.
  8. Murray (1981), p. 188.
  9. Lyons (2015), pp. 119–120.
  • Bergin, T. F. (27 October 1841). "Dublin and Kingstown Railway No. 29". Letter to Lords of the Privy Council for Trade. pp. 213–214.
  • Donaghy, Thomas J. (1972). Liverpool & Manchester Railway operations, 1831-1845. Newton Abbot, Devon: David and Charles. ISBN 0-7153-5705-0.
  • Lowe, James W. (2014) [1975]. British Steam Locomotives Builders. Pen & Sword Transport. pp. 245–259. ISBN 978-1-47382-289-4. OCLC 889509628.
  • Lyons, Garrett (15 October 2015). Steaming to Kingstown and Sucking Up to Dalkey: The Story of the Dublin and Kingstown Railway. Dublin: Londubh Books. ISBN 978-1907535772.
  • Murray, Kevin (1981). Ireland's First Railway. Dublin: Irish Railway Record Society. ISBN 0-904078-07-8.
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