Cornwal Minerals 0-6-0 Locomotives in Great_Britain

Class Treffrey (Locobase 20876)

Data from P C D [P C Dewhurst?], "The Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway and its Locomotives", Locomotive Magazine, Volume 27 (14 May 1921), pp. 126. See also "The Cornwall Minerals Railway - Part 1" on Roger Farnworth's blog at [], last accessed 1 April 2021. Works numbers were 2350-2361 and 2368-2373 in 1877.

Both "PCD" and Farnworth describe this order as excessively ambitious given the CM's history and those of earlier tramroads in the area. Farnworth notes that the first engine's name was a misspelling of one of the founders (Treffry). Farnworth adds that the lack of a coal bunker behind the cab--which was left open--responded to a desire to be able to couple two of the locomotives back-to-back to increase power to haul longer trains.

" There is no evidence to suggest," Farnworth crisply adds, "that the traffic on the railway was ever large enough to justify this intention." And, indeed, upon the Great Western's assumption of a lease of the CM line, God's Wonderful Railway sold back nine of the locomotives to Sharp, Stewart.

The builder found a ready buyer in the Lynn & Fakenham, which bought three in 1877, enlarged bunker capacity, and added a cab. PCD reports that five more came from Leeds in later years. All were converted to tender engines in 1883.