Swindon Works

[EbbwJunction1]

In the Great Western Echo (the magazine of the Great Western Society) for Winter 2024, there's a panoramic view of Swindon Works. It was taken from the roof of the Pattern Store Tank, but sadly it's undated. Amongst other things, it shows the "A" Erecting Shop, the Reception Shed and, in front of the former, "The Barn" where light boiler works were undertaken.

Including boilers on trolleys, there are almost 50 locomotives shown, and I'd like to ask a question about one of these. To the side of "The Barn", it looks very much as if there's an ex-LMS Ivatt 2-6-2 tank. This surprises me, as I didn't think that Swindon overhauled anything that wasn't originally a GWR locomotive. I've found that some were allocated to the Western Region of BR in the 1950s and 1960s; these included nos. 41202, 41203 and 41249 which were allocated to Bristol Bath Road in 1959.

So, although the allocation timescale is at the end of the 1950s, would they have been sent to Swindon for overhaul or returned to (say) Derby or Crewe? If the former, could the mystery loco be one of the ones listed above?

Your help with this will be appreciated; thank you.

 

[Clarence Yard]

Swindon were responsible for the maintenance on the SR fleet (41290-41319) up until late 1956. The WR fleet were still dealt with at Crewe during this period.

 

[Harvester]

Then Eastleigh took over the SR examples (41290-41319) from late 1956 onwards. The WR allocated locos continued to be the responsibility of Crewe, so the photo showing the Ivatt 2-6-2T at Swindon must have been predated late 1956.

 

[EbbwJunction1]

Swindon were responsible for the maintenance on the SR fleet (41290-41319) up until late 1956. The WR fleet were still dealt with at Crewe during this period.

Then Eastleigh took over the SR examples (41290-41319) from late 1956 onwards. The WR allocated locos continued to be the responsibility of Crewe, so the photo showing the Ivatt 2-6-2T at Swindon must have been predated late 1956.

Thank you, both, that's very interesting.

The description in the magazine says "Mid 1950s", so I guess that it's likely that it would have been one of the SR fleet rather than the WR fleet.

Do either of you know whether there are there any records available of the maintenance of the SR fleet at Swindon prior to 1956, please?

Thanks again!

 

[Rescars]

Swindon were responsible for the maintenance on the SR fleet (41290-41319) up until late 1956. The WR fleet were still dealt with at Crewe during this period.

There must have been a good reason for this, but it does seem odd that these fleets were being transferred to other regions for maintenance when there would appear to have been the skills available for this to have been carried out locally. There is a logic in the work bring done at Crewe, which built many of the class in the first place, but if Swindon could look after the SR locos, how come they didn't look after their own?

 

[43096]

There must have been a good reason for this, but it does seem odd that these fleets were being transferred to other regions for maintenance when there would appear to have been the skills available for this to have been carried out locally. There is a logic in the work bring done at Crewe, which built many of the class in the first place, but if Swindon could look after the SR locos, how come they didn't look after their own?

Balancing workloads between different workshops would be one possible explanation?

 

[Harvester]

There must have been a good reason for this, but it does seem odd that these fleets were being transferred to other regions for maintenance when there would appear to have been the skills available for this to have been carried out locally. There is a logic in the work bring done at Crewe, which built many of the class in the first place, but if Swindon could look after the SR locos, how come they didn't look after their own?

I suspect that until late 1956 Eastleigh wasn’t fully equipped to handle heavy repairs to modern non-Southern designs, so the region’s Ivatt 2-6-2 tanks were sent to Swindon. By the time Eastleigh was upgraded (late 1956) Swindon would be experiencing capacity problems as it geared up for pending Warship (class 42) construction, hence responsibility for the SR Ivatts could be shifted to Eastleigh.

 

[Clarence Yard]

Eastleigh was dealing with various Standards and Fairburn 2-6-4T tanks in 1954/5.

Swindon didn’t have capacity issues either. The reallocation was all about balancing workloads at a time when the total of needed steam overhauls all over the BR system was starting to decrease. The Standards and Ivatts were the “swing variables” in re-allocating work between the then regional workshops.

SR simply had enough spare capacity in 1956 to take on the work.

The capacity issue at WR workshops only became an issue much later on, which led to WR allocated 57xx pannier tanks being overhauled at Eastleigh (alongside SR allocated examples) and by Beyer Peacock, in Manchester.

 

[EbbwJunction1]

Thank you for your additional information (and my apologies for the delay in replying).

I'll try to ask the Southern Railway Records web site for advice.

 

[Taunton]

The works described above are for scheduled, periodic overhauls. There were also unscheduled items, major breakdowns, accident damage, etc, where a nearby works would be quite able to handle the task instead of hauling a defective loco halfway across the country.

The WR had a number of heavy repair works, besides Swindon there were Newton Abbot, Caerphilly and Wolverhampton. These didn't build new locos, but that was always only a minor part of erecting shop work, even at Swindon, the bulk was always periodic repairs, and of course these unscheduled items. The works planning team would have constant reviews of workload and available resources, balancing them between the different facilities. In Taunton steam days some went to Swindon and some to Newton Abbot. The two 43xx suddenly repainted green in 1958 for the Royal Train on the Barnstaple line went to Newton Abbot for this, presumably unscheduled, work!

 

[Clarence Yard]

Thank you for your additional information (and my apologies for the delay in replying).

I'll try to ask the Southern Railway Records web site for advice.

The SR standard 3MT tanks (82010-9/22-5) also the made the same move at the same time, although 82010-9 were the only ones that WR actually overhauled.

Incidentally, WR then became responsible for their Britannia Pacifics and slowly took over this work from Crewe in 1956/7.

To illustrate my point on SR being able to take over this work, in 1955 their steam overhaul output (from my research) was as follows; Eastleigh - 308, Ashford - 251, Brighton - 56.

Fast forward to 1957 and the figures (again from my research) were; Eastleigh - 301, Ashford - 262 and Brighton - 38. So SR could absorb the repair to those two classes as well as the overhauls on newly built SR standards, as the workload was obviously dropping on the older classes.

Sources - National Archive records - SR works return sheets, individual WR loco repair sheets and WR works output record books.

 

[Rescars]

The works described above are for scheduled, periodic overhauls. There were also unscheduled items, major breakdowns, accident damage, etc, where a nearby works would be quite able to handle the task instead of hauling a defective loco halfway across the country.

The WR had a number of heavy repair works, besides Swindon there were Newton Abbot, Caerphilly and Wolverhampton. These didn't build new locos, but that was always only a minor part of erecting shop work, even at Swindon, the bulk was always periodic repairs, and of course these unscheduled items. The works planning team would have constant reviews of workload and available resources, balancing them between the different facilities. In Taunton steam days some went to Swindon and some to Newton Abbot. The two 43xx suddenly repainted green in 1958 for the Royal Train on the Barnstaple line went to Newton Abbot for this, presumably unscheduled, work!

Once upon a time Wolverhampton did build locos for the GWR of course, especially whilst Swindon was focused on broad gauge matters. Did Caerphilly ever build locos for the Rhymney Railway?

 

[EbbwJunction1]

Did Caerphilly ever build locos for the Rhymney Railway?

No, although the works was built for the Rhymney Railway in 1899, much of its initial work was in refurbishing older locomotives (originally built for the railway by outside contractors) with new boilers and covered cabs.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 28 Sep 2026 ==

The SR standard 3MT tanks (82010-9/22-5) also the made the same move at the same time, although 82010-9 were the only ones that WR actually overhauled.

Incidentally, WR then became responsible for their Britannia Pacifics and slowly took over this work from Crewe in 1956/7.

To illustrate my point on SR being able to take over this work, in 1955 their steam overhaul output (from my research) was as follows; Eastleigh - 308, Ashford - 251, Brighton - 56.

Fast forward to 1957 and the figures (again from my research) were; Eastleigh - 301, Ashford - 262 and Brighton - 38. So SR could absorb the repair to those two classes as well as the overhauls on newly built SR standards, as the workload was obviously dropping on the older classes.

Sources - National Archive records - SR works return sheets, individual WR loco repair sheets and WR works output record books.

Thank you; I'll be interested to see what the Southern Railway Records group say about this.

 

[Gloster]

Once upon a time Wolverhampton did build locos for the GWR of course, especially whilst Swindon was focused on broad gauge matters. Did Caerphilly ever build locos for the Rhymney Railway?

Nor did Newton Abbot; well, not quite. Three broad-gauge 2-4-0ST were under construction using parts from the Ince Forge Co. when the South Devon Railway was taken over by the GWR at the beginning of 1876. Construction was transferred to Swindon, whence they emerged as standard-gauge 2-4-0T at the end of 1878.

Source: The Locomotives of the Great Western Railway, Part Three (RCTS, 1956).

 

[Rescars]

Nor did Newton Abbot; well, not quite. Three broad-gauge 2-4-0ST were under construction using parts from the Ince Forge Co. when the South Devon Railway was taken over by the GWR at the beginning of 1876. Construction was transferred to Swindon, whence they emerged as standard-gauge 2-4-0T at the end of 1878.

Source: The Locomotives of the Great Western Railway, Part Three (RCTS, 1956).

I wonder how many other heavy repair workshops had the opportunity to have a go at new builds from kits of parts.