NZR D class (1874)

NZR D class

D 140, preserved and in operation at the Ferrymead Railway

Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Dübs and Company (5), Neilson and Company (19), Scott Brothers (11) Build date 1874–1890

Specifications Configuration 2-4-0T UIC class 1B nt Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Driver diameter 36 in (914 mm) Length 21 ft 6 in (6.55 m) Adhesive weight 11 long tons 10 cwt (25,800 lb or 11.7 t) Loco weight 14 long tons 14 cwt (32,900 lb or 14.9 t) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 0 long tons 11 cwt (1,200 lb or 0.6 t) Water cap 300 imp gal (1,400 l; 360 US gal) Firebox:  • Firegrate area 7.3 sq ft (0.68 m^2) Boiler pressure 130 psi (0.90 MPa) Heating surface 392 sq ft (36.4 m^2) Cylinders Two, outside Cylinder size 9.5 in × 18 in (241 mm × 457 mm)

Performance figures Tractive effort 4,693 lbf (20.88 kN)

Career Operators Public Works Department New Zealand Railways Department Number in class 35 Numbers 6, 16, 18, 46-51, 108-9, 130-1, 137-145, 149, 169-171, 195-98, 221-2, 240, 315, 578 First run May 1874 Last run March 1927 Disposition Seven preserved, one converted into diesel-mechanical, remainder scrapped

NZR D class steam tank locomotives operated on New Zealand's national railway network. The first entered service in 1874 all had been withdrawn by the end of 1927, which allowed the D classification to be used again in 1929.

Introduction

The boiler and cylinders were the same as the slightly earlier C class,^[1] but its driving wheels had a larger diameter^[2] and it was aesthetically different from the C. The class was ordered in a number of batches:^[3] eight from Neilson and Company in 1874, five from Dübs and Company and four from Neilson in 1878, seven from Neilson in 1880, ten from Scott Brothers in 1887, and the final D from Scott Brothers in 1890. The order with Scott Brothers, placed in 1884, was the first large-scale construction of locomotives in New Zealand.^[4]

Names

Four of the 1874 locomotives were named:

• D 143: Trout
• D 144: Kingfisher
• D 169: Possum
• D 240: Snapper

Operation

The class was not particularly powerful and was employed on light duties, sometimes achieving speeds of 72.4 km/h (45 mph) on a level grade.^[5] They often saw service on commuter trains between Christchurch and Lyttelton until superior locomotives took their place,^[6] and they were utilised at other major locations on the South Island's east coast.^[7] In the North Island, D 137 was used in 1905 as part of a "railcar" trial service between Lower Hutt and Upper Hutt,^[8] hauling a carriage that seated 24 first class passengers, 48 second class passengers, and had a guard's compartment. It was inspired by locomotive/carriage combinations the General Manager of NZR witnessed in the eastern United States. The combination was overpowered and uneconomic and did not last long in service.^[9]

Withdrawal

The first D to leave NZR's service went to the Public Works Department in 1899, and three more followed in the next two years, one to the PWD and the other two to private businesses. The rest of the class continued to operate for over a decade. Withdrawal began during World War I; the class had long since been superseded by newer and more powerful engines, but they were ideally sized for private sidings and bush tramways, so many were sold rather than scrapped.^[10] Only eight remained in service at the start of 1920, and the last left NZR in May 1927. The PWD and private industries continued to use them for decades - a few examples survived into the 1960s. This included D 137, which operated until 1963 on the truncated portion of the Hutt Valley Line that remained as an industrial rail siding for the Gear Meat Preserving and Freezing Company.^[11]

Class Roster

Key:	In service	Out of service	Preserved	Overhaul/Repair	Scrapped

Original Name	1890 Number	Builder	Builders Number	Introduced	Withdrawn	Notes
	6	Neilson	2564	1881	1917	Industrial use 1917-1964. Preserved Ocean Beach Railway, Dunedin.
	16	Neilson	2306	1878	1918	Industrial use 1918-1985 (last 12 years as static display). Preserved at Pleasant Point Museum and Railway.
	18	Neilson	2308	1878	1920	Industrial use 1920-1941.
	46	Dübs	1168	1-1879	1920	Industrial use 1920-1939. Scrapped 1953.
	47	Dübs	1166	1-1879	1917	Industrial use 1917-1952. Derelict at Ruru, 1972.
	48	Dübs	1167	1-1879	1925	Industrial use 1925-1950.
	49	Dübs	1165	2-1879	1919	Industrial use 1919-1935.
	50	Dübs	1164	2-1879	1900	Industrial use 1900-1950. Converted to diesel-mechanical 1950. Further use 1950-1980. 1980 to Stratford museum.
	108	Scott Bros.	30	12-1887	10-1920	To Public Works Department as PWD 519, 1920-1930.
	109	Scott Bros.	34	12-1887	1-1916	Industrial use 1916-1956.
	130	Scott Bros.	35	6-1888	3-1927	Industrial use 1927-1940. Scrapped 1964.
	131	Scott Bros.	38	1-1888	11-1916	Industrial use 1916-1930.
	137	Scott Bros.	31	2-1888	1901	Industrial use 1901-1963. Preserved at Silver Stream Railway.
	138	Scott Bros.	32	2-1888	12-1916	Industrial use 1916-1955.
	139	Scott Bros.	33	1-1888	10-1919	Industrial use 1919-1953.
	140	Scott Bros.	36	1-1888	7-1920	Industrial use 1920-1960. Preserved Ferrymead Railway.
	141	Scott Bros.	37	2-1888	8-1919	Industrial use 1919-1927.
	142	Scott Bros	39	3-1888	10-1920	To Public Works Department as PWD 520, 1920.
Trout	143	Neilson	1847	4-1875	3-1916	Industrial use 1916-1968. Preserved at Silver Stream Railway.
Kingfish	144	Neilson	1849	6-1875	1915	Industrial use 1915-1951.
	145	Neilson	2309	1879	9-1919	To Public Works Department as PWD 517, 1919-1955.
	149	Neilson	2307	1879	1920	Industrial use 1920-1931.
Possum	169	Neilson	1848	1-1875	10-1914	Industrial use 1914-1928.
	170	Neilson	2563	5-1881	8-1922	Renumbered as D576, 1912. Industrial service 1922-1960. On display at Helensville Railway Station.
	171	Neilson	2562	5-1881	5-1915	Industrial use 1915-1957.
	195	Neilson	1846	11-1874	1919	Industrial use 1919-1931
	196	Neilson	1845	11-1874	1914	To Public Works Department as PWD 513, 1914-1955.
Eel	197	Neilson	1844	12-1874	1916	Industrial use 1916-1951. Engine unit stored at Ocean Beach Railway.
	198	Neilson	2561	3-1881	1899	To Public Works Department as PWD 506, 1899-1930.
	221	Neilson	2565	5-1881	11-1918	Industrial use 1918-1928. On display at Centennial Park, Kaitaia.
	222	Neilson	2566	6-1881	5-1915	Industrial use 1915-1932.
Schnapper	240	Neilson	1843	9-1874	1919	Industrial use 1919-1939.
	315	Scott Bros.	40	1900	1901	Purchased from New Zealand Midland Railway Company, no. 6, 1890. To Public Works Department as PWD 510, 1901-1930.
		Neilson				Built for Kaitangata Railway & Coal Co.. Never owned by NZR.

Preservation

Seven locomotives have been preserved, with two operational. The first to be returned to operational condition was D 16, owned by the Pleasant Point Museum and Railway,^[12] followed by D 140 at the Ferrymead Railway. D 6 is unrestored at the Ocean Beach Railway, D 137 and D 143 are awaiting restoration at the Silver Stream Railway, D 170 is on static display at Helensville station, and D 221 is on static display in Centennial Park in Kaitaia and its sister (number unknown) is in a paddock in Kaingaroa.^[13]

References

1. Eric Heath and Bob Stott, Classic Steam Locomotives of New Zealand (Wellington: Grantham House, 1993), 22.
2. New Zealand Steam Locomotives, "D class 2-4-0T"
3. New Zealand Steam Locomotives, "D class 2-4-0T register"
4. D. B. Leitch, Railways of New Zealand (Melbourne: Lothian Publishing, 1972), 160.
5. Heath and Stott, Classic Steam Locomotives of New Zealand, 22.
6. Canterbury Railway Society, "D class no. 140"
7. Pleasant Point Railway, "Locomotives"
8. David Jones, Where Railcars Roamed (Wellington: Wellington Tramway Museum, 1999), 4.
9. Leitch, Railways of New Zealand, 192.
10. Heath and Stott, Classic Steam Locomotives of New Zealand, 22.
11. Tony Hurst, Farewell to Steam: Four Decades of Change on New Zealand Railways (Auckland: HarperCollins, 1995), 131.
12. Pleasant Point Railway, "Locomotives".
13. . Weka Pass Railway's pages on the seven preserved D locomotives: D 6's page, with links at the bottom of the page to the other six locomotives