LNWR Claughton Class - and Princess Alice

[DerekC]

I recall my dad (in about 1957. when taking me to see trains on the WCML, far from my usual spotting grounds on the Hertford Loop and Lee Valley) getting sad about the fact that the LNWR "Claughton" 4-6-0s had all gone. Does anyone know why they were scrapped after only twenty years or so of life, and why 6004 "Princess Alice" survived the rest by about ten years, getting into the BR era by a few months?

 

[Bevan Price]

I recall my dad (in about 1957. when taking me to see trains on the WCML, far from my usual spotting grounds on the Hertford Loop and Lee Valley) getting sad about the fact that the LNWR "Claughton" 4-6-0s had all gone. Does anyone know why they were scrapped after only twenty years or so of life, and why 6004 "Princess Alice" survived the rest by about ten years, getting into the BR era by a few months?

They were perhaps not the most economical locos to operate, and Stanier was building newer, more effiicient locos - and reducing the number of different loco types. The L&YR 4-6-0s had a similar problem and short life.

ww2 prolonged the life of a few Claughtons and L&YR 4-6-0s, plus several other classes; locos in workable condition were retained in case of necessity, possibly because some maintenance staff joined the armed forces, and maybe also in case lots of locos were damaged by enemy action.

 

[Harvester]

Yes it’s surprising that 6004 (Princess Louise) remained in stock until April 1949, as the other few survivors had gone by 1941. It was even allocated BR number 46004, but this doesn’t seem to have been carried by the loco. The engine may have spent some time stored out of use before withdrawal from stock.

 

[6Gman]

I think they were basically not very good!

Mediocre performance, heavy coal consumption.

The arrival of the Royal Scots (1927), the Patriots (some rebuilt from Claughtons) (1933), then the Black 5s and Jubilees (from 1934) offered much better locos for front-line work.

The few that survived to 1939 (4) were kept on until they needed significant work, which 3 of them did in 1940/41 so they went.

My understanding is that 6004 was based at Edge Hill and had a regular job on an Edge Hill-London fast freight. The impression I have is that it was kept in use for as long as it kept going! And, by luck or chance, it presumably didn't suffer any major mishap so kept on going! May even have been a bit of a "pet" loco at Edge Hill and with a regular job and presumably a small band of regular drivers and firemen why not keep it running?

 

[Gloster]

Was 6004 Princess Louise?

 

[Harvester]

Was 6004 Princess Louise?

Until June 1935, then it ran nameless until withdrawal. The ‘Princess Louise‘ name was subsequently allocated to newly built Stanier Pacific 6204.