2-6-2 Steam Locomotives in Great Britain

Class 1501 (Locobase 21262)

Data from Baldwin Locomotive Works Specification for Engines as digitized by the DeGolyer Library of Southern Methodist University, Volume 57, pp. 176+. See also "Stoomlocomotief Type 57 / HLV 57" in 3rail Wiki at []; and photos in Flickr at [], both last accessed 21 October 2025. (Many thanks to Chris Henderson for his 11 October 2025 email pointing out Locobase 14081 as the likely base for this order and for providing background for this entry.) Works numbers were 45882-45901, 45990-45994 in July 1917 and 46024-46043 in August.

Baldwin's Eddystone complex, built new just south of Philadelphia and opened in 1906, possessed an unparalleled capacity for building steam locomotives. And the company's long-standing tradition of preserving component templates for reuse in new orders allowed the company to respond quickly to orders from all over the world.

This batch of 75 standard-gauge Prairie saddle-tanks--Baldwin class ID 10 28 D 1/4 61-110, 111-135--demonstrates the effectiveness of both qualities. Baldwin's specification (thankfully salvaged by several former employees) shows the builder received the British War Office's specs on 4/16/1917, which started the clock on the order.

Baldwin identified a candidate based on the 1914 Southern Aluminum Company saddle-tank (Locobase 14081), slightly modified to British preferences. It offered neither a superheater nor piston valves and used inside link motion for its valve gear. Its very large and long saddletank dominated the locomotive's profile, which arrived in the ROD's khaki paint scheme "with neat lining in black."

The 1501's firebox sat low between the cast steel frames and burned coal briquettes. Some photographs show the cab rear offering windows on both sides between which an angular casing heaped with fuel funneled fuel to the fireman.

The customer requested that the driving box brasses (inside the axle box) be "babbitted as British War Office drawing GHQ 2916." (Babbits line the inside of friction bearings to present a low-temperature material that sacrificially wears away, thus protecting the harder-steel bearing's original dimensions.) Another "Hereafter" note required "Rocker arms to be changed increased the valve travel to 5 1/4" (133 mm)." Another note asked Baldwin to "Arrange throttle rod with the stuffing box at the back of the dome and locate lever in line with back head [sic] of boiler."

To deal with the "greasy mud" that often covered the tracks, Baldwin fitted pipes to be filled with hot water that could be directed at the rails. The pipe arrangement had to serve its purpose whether the engine was running forward or backward. "Considerable importance is attached to the sanding gear and to its effectrive fitting", the specs advised. The sand boxes had to be positioned to be useful in either running direction.

Further evidence of the sloppy, lightly built right-of-way appeared in the instructions for equalizers: "The coupled springs are to be compensated with the pony springs as it is reported that these locomotives will have to run on very uneven track." Swing bolster pony trucks needed plenty of lateral play with the front truck swinging 2 1/2"(63.5 mm) to either side and the rear truck arcing 3 5/8" (92 mm) to each side.

Locobase has little information about the class's service in France. Chris Henderson reports: "Around July 1917, twenty of these locomotives were delivered and began operating in France, followed by ten in August 1917, twenty one in September, until the final twenty four were delivered around October '17. " Perhaps they shunted traffic at French ports or brought trains to transloading points with narrow-gauge light railways that worked much closer to the front lines. Locobase imagines this beast squelching slowly through the mud on barely visible tracks, swaying and heaving while its crew saved one hand to grip a nearby upright.

After service with the ROD in 1917-1919, the 1501s were surplus to requirements. Locobase can't say what happened to 12 of the class. As for the others, Belgian State Railways set to work rebuilding what had been an impressive network and rolling stock shattered by World War I. They bought 63 of 75 1501s and placed them in Type 22 (but gave them 47 series road numbers) for use as shunters (switchers) and local freight work.

Reclassed as Type 57 in 1931 and numbered 5703-5765, they were renumbered 57001-57062 in 1946 and remained on the roster until 1960.