Although the GWR had been at the forefront of British locomotive development between 1900 and 1930, the 1930s saw a degree of complacency at Swindon reflected in the fact that many designs and production methods had not kept pace with developments elsewhere. This was especially true with the useful GWR 4900 Class, the design of which largely originated in the 1900s and had not fundamentally changed since the mid-1920s.[1]Charles Collett was replaced as the Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Railway by F.W. Hawksworth in 1941 who immediately created a modified version of the design, known as the 'Modified Hall Class'.
Designedit
The Modified Halls marked the most radical change to Swindon Works' practice since Churchward's time as chief mechanical engineer and was very far from a simple modification of the Hall design. 'Although in outward appearance it looked almost the same, nearly everything about it was new.'[2] Hawksworth's use of plate frames throughout the design was a break with Churchward's practice for 2 cylinder locomotives. The cylinders were cast separately from the smokebox saddle and bolted to the frames on each side. A stiffening brace was inserted between the frames and extended to form the smokebox saddle. The exhaust pipes leading from the cylinders to the blastpipe were incorporated into this assembly.
Additionally, Churchward's bar framed bogie which had been adapted for the original Hall prototype in 1924 was replaced by a plate frame structure with individual springing. There were changes, too, above the running board. Hawksworth decided that the declining quality of coal reaching Great Western depots necessitated a higher degree of superheating. A larger three-row superheater and header regulator were fitted into Swindon No.1 boiler. Improvements were subsequently made to the draughting on some engines, while others were fitted with hopper ashpans.
Productionedit
The first batch of twelve Modified Halls was delivered from Swindon works between March and September 1944. They carried plain black livery, were unnamed and numbered 6959-6970 (immediately following the Hall Class sequence). They were all subsequently named between 1946 and 1948.[citation needed]
A further batch of ten locomotives appeared during October and November 1947 and others were on order when the nationalisation of Britain's railways took place in 1948. British Railways continued construction of this class until November 1950, by which time there were seventy-one examples.[3]
Some modified Halls were equipped with a flat, high-sided Hawksworth tenders. Once he became Chief Mechanical Engineer, many earlier locomotives also received these tenders so a Hawksworth tender does not necessarily mean a Hawksworth locomotive.
The Modified Hall class 'ran freely, steamed well and were popular with both footplate and maintenance staff. After the unambitious designs of Collett's final years, they restored Swindon's reputation.'[5] Fourteen survived until the end of steam on the former GWR in 1965.
Six Modified Halls have been preserved on various heritage railways. A seventh survivor no 7927 Willington Hall is being used as a donor for the Grange and County re-creation projects.
Out of the six engines to be preserved, five engines have run in preservation. The only engine yet to run is 6984 Owsden Hall. Half of the class have also seen main line operation: Nos. 6960 Raveningham Hall, 6990 Witherslack Hall and 6998 Burton Agnes Hall. 6960 and 6998 saw main use in the 1980s, especially in 1985 when the locos were regularly used during the GW150 Celebrations.[citation needed] 6998 was a popular mainline performer in the late 1980s, and also in the 1990s, until 1996 when she was withdrawn from operation awaiting an overhaul. Three of the class are currently[when?] operational but since 6998 was withdrawn no Modified Halls have been seen running on the main line.
Undergoing restoration from ex Barry scrapyard condition. Transferred from the Swindon and Cricklade Railway in 2019. Its tender is currently in use behind 6989 until the completion of its own.[7]
Recently returned to traffic from a major overhaul which included the pairing with an authentic Hawksworth tender which was formerly paired with 4930 Hagley Hall.
^Nock, Oswald Stevens (1984). British Locomotives of the Twentieth Century. Vol. 2: 1930-1960. London: Book Club Associates. p. 94.
^le Fleming, H.M. (November 1960) [1953]. White, D.E. (ed.). The Locomotives of the Great Western Railway, part eight: Modern Passenger Classes (2nd ed.). Kenilworth: RCTS. pp. H33-4.
^Duggan, Jamie (4 February 2018). "Recent Overhaul Progress on Steam Loco Modified Hall No. 6984 "Owsden Hall"". Rail Advent.
^Devereux, Nigel (3 January 2020). "Twin 4-6-0s for Quainton Road as 'Owsden' moves from Swindon". The Railway Magazine. Mortons Media Group. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
^"BR(WR) Modified Hall Class 4-6-0 No. 6989 Wightwick Hall". BRC Virtual stockbook. Quainton Railway Society. 10 May 2019.
Allcock, N. J.; Davies, F. K.; le Fleming, H. M.; Maskelyne, J. N.; Reed, P. J. T.; Tabor, F. J. (1968) [1951]. White, D. E. (ed.). The Locomotives of the Great Western Railway, part one: Preliminary Survey. Kenilworth: RCTS.
Herring, Peter (2004). Classic British Steam Locomotives. Wigston: Abbeydale Press. ISBN1-86147-138-6.
Whitehurst, Brian (1973). Great Western Engines, Names, Numbers, Types and Classes (1940 to Preservation). Oxford, UK: Oxford Publishing Company. pp. 63–64, 69, 103, 131. ISBN978-0-9028-8821-0. OCLC 815661.
External linksedit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to GWR 6959 Class.
Great Western Archives - Modified Hall Class.
January 01, 1970
6959, class, great, western, railway, 6959, modified, hall, class, class, steam, locomotive, they, were, development, frederick, hawksworth, charles, collett, earlier, hall, class, named, after, english, welsh, country, houses, great, western, railway, 6959, c. The Great Western Railway GWR 6959 or Modified Hall Class is a class of 4 6 0 steam locomotive They were a development by Frederick Hawksworth of Charles Collett s earlier Hall Class named after English and Welsh country houses Great Western Railway 6959 Class6960 Raveningham Hall now preserved with a Didcot slow train April 1957 Type and originPower typeSteamDesignerFrederick HawksworthBuilderGWR BR Swindon WorksOrder numberLots 350 366 368 376Build date1944 1950Total produced71SpecificationsConfiguration Whyte4 6 0 UIC2 C h2Gauge4 ft 8 1 2 in 1 435 mm standard gaugeLeading dia 3 ft 0 in 0 914 m Driver dia 6 ft 0 in 1 829 m Minimum curve8 chains 530 ft 160 m normal 7 chains 460 ft 140 m slowLength63 ft 0 1 4 in 19 21 m over buffersWidth8 ft 11 1 2 in 2 731 m Height13 ft 2 1 16 in 4 015 m Axle load19 long tons 5 cwt 43 100 lb or 19 6 t 21 6 short tons Adhesive weight57 long tons 10 cwt 128 800 lb or 58 4 t 64 4 short tons Loco weight75 long tons 16 cwt 169 800 lb or 77 t 84 9 short tons fullTender weight47 long tons 6 cwt 106 000 lb or 48 1 t 53 0 short tons fullFuel typeCoalFuel capacity6 long tons 0 cwt 13 400 lb or 6 1 t 5 6 short tons Water cap 4 000 imp gal 18 000 L 4 800 US gal Firebox Grate area27 07 sq ft 2 515 m2 BoilerGWR Standard No 1Boiler pressure225 psi 1 55 MPa Heating surface Firebox154 90 sq ft 14 391 m2 Tubes and flues1 582 60 sq ft 147 028 m2 Superheater Heating area295 sq ft 27 4 m2 CylindersTwo outsideCylinder size18 5 in 30 in 470 mm 762 mm Valve gearStephenson insideValve typePiston valvesPerformance figuresTractive effort27 275 lbf 121 33 kN CareerOperatorsGreat Western Railway British RailwaysPower classGWR D BR 5MTNumbers6959 6999 7900 7929Axle load classGWR RedWithdrawnJanuary 1963 December 1965DispositionSix preserved one donor remainder scrapped Contents 1 Background 2 Design 3 Production 4 Assessment 5 List of locomotives 6 Preservation 7 See also 8 References 9 External linksBackground editAlthough the GWR had been at the forefront of British locomotive development between 1900 and 1930 the 1930s saw a degree of complacency at Swindon reflected in the fact that many designs and production methods had not kept pace with developments elsewhere This was especially true with the useful GWR 4900 Class the design of which largely originated in the 1900s and had not fundamentally changed since the mid 1920s 1 Charles Collett was replaced as the Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Railway by F W Hawksworth in 1941 who immediately created a modified version of the design known as the Modified Hall Class Design editThe Modified Halls marked the most radical change to Swindon Works practice since Churchward s time as chief mechanical engineer and was very far from a simple modification of the Hall design Although in outward appearance it looked almost the same nearly everything about it was new 2 Hawksworth s use of plate frames throughout the design was a break with Churchward s practice for 2 cylinder locomotives The cylinders were cast separately from the smokebox saddle and bolted to the frames on each side A stiffening brace was inserted between the frames and extended to form the smokebox saddle The exhaust pipes leading from the cylinders to the blastpipe were incorporated into this assembly Additionally Churchward s bar framed bogie which had been adapted for the original Hall prototype in 1924 was replaced by a plate frame structure with individual springing There were changes too above the running board Hawksworth decided that the declining quality of coal reaching Great Western depots necessitated a higher degree of superheating A larger three row superheater and header regulator were fitted into Swindon No 1 boiler Improvements were subsequently made to the draughting on some engines while others were fitted with hopper ashpans Production editThe first batch of twelve Modified Halls was delivered from Swindon works between March and September 1944 They carried plain black livery were unnamed and numbered 6959 6970 immediately following the Hall Class sequence They were all subsequently named between 1946 and 1948 citation needed A further batch of ten locomotives appeared during October and November 1947 and others were on order when the nationalisation of Britain s railways took place in 1948 British Railways continued construction of this class until November 1950 by which time there were seventy one examples 3 Some modified Halls were equipped with a flat high sided Hawksworth tenders Once he became Chief Mechanical Engineer many earlier locomotives also received these tenders so a Hawksworth tender does not necessarily mean a Hawksworth locomotive Table of order and numbers 4 Year Quantity Lot No Locomotive numbers Notes 1944 12 350 6959 6970 1947 48 20 366 6971 6990 1948 50 29 368 6991 6999 7900 7919 1950 10 376 7920 7929Assessment editThe Modified Hall class ran freely steamed well and were popular with both footplate and maintenance staff After the unambitious designs of Collett s final years they restored Swindon s reputation 5 Fourteen survived until the end of steam on the former GWR in 1965 List of locomotives editSee List of GWR 6959 Class locomotivesPreservation editSix Modified Halls have been preserved on various heritage railways A seventh survivor no 7927 Willington Hall is being used as a donor for the Grange and County re creation projects Out of the six engines to be preserved five engines have run in preservation The only engine yet to run is 6984 Owsden Hall Half of the class have also seen main line operation Nos 6960 Raveningham Hall 6990 Witherslack Hall and 6998 Burton Agnes Hall 6960 and 6998 saw main use in the 1980s especially in 1985 when the locos were regularly used during the GW150 Celebrations citation needed 6998 was a popular mainline performer in the late 1980s and also in the 1990s until 1996 when she was withdrawn from operation awaiting an overhaul Three of the class are currently when operational but since 6998 was withdrawn no Modified Halls have been seen running on the main line Number Name Image Built Withdrawn Tender fitted Status Livery Current Location Notes 6960 Raveningham Hall nbsp March 1944 June 1964 Collett Awaiting overhaul GWR Lined Green GW Lettering One One Collection 6984 Owsden Hall nbsp February 1948 December 1965 Collett Undergoing Restoration BR Lined Green Early Emblem On Completion 6 Buckinghamshire Railway Centre Undergoing restoration from ex Barry scrapyard condition Transferred from the Swindon and Cricklade Railway in 2019 Its tender is currently in use behind 6989 until the completion of its own 7 6989 Wightwick Hall nbsp March 1948 June 1964 Collett Operational boiler certificate 2019 2029 BR Lined Green Early Emblem Buckinghamshire Railway Centre Entered service in March 2019 following restoration from ex Barry scrapyard condition borrowing 6984 s tender 8 6990 Witherslack Hall nbsp April 1948 December 1965 Hawksworth Operational boiler certificate 2016 2026 BR Lined Green Early Emblem Great Central Railway Recently returned to traffic from a major overhaul which included the pairing with an authentic Hawksworth tender which was formerly paired with 4930 Hagley Hall 6998 Burton Agnes Hall nbsp January 1949 December 1965 Hawksworth Static Display GWR Lined Green GW Lettering Didcot Railway Centre Awaiting Overhaul Famed for working the GWS Vintage trains which used vintage GWR carriages 7903 Foremarke Hall nbsp March 1949 June 1964 Hawksworth Operational boiler certificate 2016 2026 BR Lined Green Late Crest Gloucestershire and Warwickshire Railway Recently returned to traffic following completion of its recent overhaul See also editList of GWR standard classes with two outside cylindersReferences edit Herring 2004 p 158 Nock Oswald Stevens 1984 British Locomotives of the Twentieth Century Vol 2 1930 1960 London Book Club Associates p 94 le Fleming H M November 1960 1953 White D E ed The Locomotives of the Great Western Railway part eight Modern Passenger Classes 2nd ed Kenilworth RCTS pp H33 4 Allcock et al 1968 pp 39 40 Herring 2004 p 159 Duggan Jamie 4 February 2018 Recent Overhaul Progress on Steam Loco Modified Hall No 6984 Owsden Hall Rail Advent Devereux Nigel 3 January 2020 Twin 4 6 0s for Quainton Road as Owsden moves from Swindon The Railway Magazine Mortons Media Group Retrieved 26 January 2020 BR WR Modified Hall Class 4 6 0 No 6989 Wightwick Hall BRC Virtual stockbook Quainton Railway Society 10 May 2019 Allcock N J Davies F K le Fleming H M Maskelyne J N Reed P J T Tabor F J 1968 1951 White D E ed The Locomotives of the Great Western Railway part one Preliminary Survey Kenilworth RCTS Herring Peter 2004 Classic British Steam Locomotives Wigston Abbeydale Press ISBN 1 86147 138 6 Whitehurst Brian 1973 Great Western Engines Names Numbers Types and Classes 1940 to Preservation Oxford UK Oxford Publishing Company pp 63 64 69 103 131 ISBN 978 0 9028 8821 0 OCLC 815661 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to GWR 6959 Class Great Western Archives Modified Hall Class Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title GWR 6959 Class amp oldid 1214758136, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
