Kent & East Sussex Railway

NORWEGIAN STATE RAILWAY 21C CLASS
2-6-0 TENDER LOCOMOTIVE

No. 19 Norwegian (NSB No. 376)

The only tender locomotive on the K&ESR, No. 19 arrived in 1971 having been purchased privately and transported from Oslo.

No. 19 was built for the Norwegian State Railway (NSB) by the Swedish firm of Nydquist and Holm (works No. 1163) at Trollhattan in 1919. Eight such locomotives were constructed and designated class 21c. They developed from an earlier series of 2-6-0 moguls built for the NSB. The first three had been built by Messrs Dubs and Company of Glasgow in 1891, the design being credited to David Jones of the Highland Railway. There is also one preserved in Norway and another (No. 377) in this country.

Given the running number 376, this locomotive and its sisters were built for use on the Kongsvingar line in south eastern Norway. Displaced from there, No. 376 ended its days as motive power for snow plough work at Grong on the Nordland line, some 60 miles north of Trondheim. An interesting feature of the 38 ton locomotive was the enclosed cab fitted to provide shelter during the long hours of darkness encountered in the north of Norway. A headlamp is also fitted above the smokebox door, current being provided by a steam generator mounted above the firebox.

After arrival on the K&ESR it was fitted with a vacuum brake and retubed whilst retaining the airbrake for its own use. As K&ESR No. 19 it was regularly in service during 1974-76, but was withdrawn in 1977 for extensive overhaul and repairs.

Work proceeded only slowly and the locomotive changed hands several times. During 1984 it came into the ownership of the Norwegian Locomotive Trust. The tender had to be virtually rebuilt as the old one had suffered bad wastage and it was at this stage that the tender portion of the fully-enclosed cab was dispensed with. As far as the boiler was concerned, many stays needed to be replaced as did all tubes and superheater elements and a new smokebox and ashpan were also required. A particularly time consuming aspect of the overhaul was the valve gear which was very badly worn. The locomotive re-entered traffic in 1996 and was ceremoniously recommissioned by His Excellency the Norwegian Ambassador, the Patron of the Trust. Shortly afterwards the locomotive was named Norwegian.

The Locomotive has now been withdrawn for routine overhaul and is due to return to service shortly.

TECHNICAL DATA

Class: 21c
Weight: loco 38 tons; tender 22 tons
Tractive effort: 18,560 lbs.
Cylinders (2) 17 in. dia x 24 in. stroke
Boiler Pressure: 170 lbs. superheated
Wheels: 4 ft. 6 ins. diameter