Wellington Transit 0-4-0 Locomotives in New_Zealand

Class Florence (Locobase 6291)

Information from John Garner, in an article published on the Greenwich (England) Industrial History Society's website -- gihs.gold.ac.uk/gihs15.html (15 August 2004). Boiler pressure is estimated. The builder is well-known in Great Britain as a constructor of fire engines.

Garner says that Florence, Hibernia, Wellington, Zealandia, & Victoria all formed one batch (works #60-64) that arrived in Wellington in July, August, and October of 1878 while Cambria, Scotia, and Anglia (85, 87, & 86, respectively) were delivered in December. A photograph of the first two show a horizontal boiler with the stack at the rear. It is enclosed by a rectangular box with roof, the latter holding the water condenser. Trailing the prime mover is a 4-wheel coach of very tram-like appearance.

Although the octet operated reliably enough, they were far too noisy for city streets and cast cinders liberally in their wake. Moreover, many horses simply couldn't get used to the strange conveyances.

Anglia and Scotia went to the Dunedin, Peninsular & Ocean Beach Railway in December 1880. The others were idled when the line was closed in January 1882 after less than four years service. One suffered the ignonimy of being pressed into service driving a chaff-cutter for the horses.

Hibernia went to the Foxton-Sanson Tramway and thence to a flaxmiller. According to [] "The Sanson-Foxton Tramway was a project carried out by the Manawatu County Council. Opened in August 1884, it extended the Foxton vPalmerston North line from where it turned inland at Himatangi north to Sanson. The last train ran on this line in November, 1945 ..."

All of the others went to timber companies, with Zealandia at least continuing to serve as a steam tractor for several years.