LMS Route: Birmingham West Suburban Railway

Bournville Shed: mrb9

LMSR 2P 4-4-0 No 369 is taking on water at Bournville shed on a warm summer's day in 1938. One of the crew stands on the tender and the water crane bag is visible through the cab lookout window. The water crane itself is out of sight behind the engine. No 369 is at its home depot, as the shed code is Bournville's. Originally No 1749, a small boilered Johnson 4-4-0 with seven foot driving wheels, it was built in 1886 at Derby by the Midland Railway. It was rebuilt in 1907 with large "H" type round top boiler and new cab, returning to service with the new number 369. This rebuild upgraded its power class from 1P to 2P. It was rebuilt again in 1910 with 'G7' type Belpaire boiler, extended smoke box and restyled cab. Its power class was unaltered by this rebuild, and it passed to the LMSR in this form as a 2P. One of the last 'G7' boilered 4-4-0s with seven foot driving wheels in service, No 369 was withdrawn in 1940.

There were twenty engines in the 1738 class. Originally numbered 1738 to 1757, they were renumbered 358 to 377 in the 1907 scheme. At much the same time, Deeley started fitting some of them with his much larger "H" type boiler and new cab, radically altering their appearance. A few years later the 'G7' type boiler was preferred as the rebuilding programme continued. Ten of the 1738 class engines were rebuilt or further rebuilt with this boiler. They were numbers 358, 361, 363, 365, 366, 368, 369, 372, 374, 376. Of the forty-four 'G7' boilered 2P 4-4-0s inherited by the LMSR from the Midland, only these ten had seven foot driving wheels. They looked very different from the engines they had been when built. However, they did retain their original frames and wheels, so were not accountancy rebuilds. Like all Deeley rebuilt 4-4-0s they had straight footplates, separating them visually from the longer lived and more numerous Fowler superheated 483 class, which had the footplate raised above the driving wheels. The last surviving 'G7' boilered 4-4-0s with seven foot driving wheels were withdrawn in 1940.

John Dews

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