The Mystery of 363

[Edwardian]

This No. 363 was an Adams T1 Class 0-4-4T.

 

She was one of the final batch, completed under Drummond in 1896.  As such, she was built without a cover to her safety valves, but with coal rails from the first.  By the 1900s, T1s. by now in Drummond livery, all seem to have acquired coal rails, and I have seen a picture of 367 in 1902 with a covered safety valve, suggesting that, in these two respects, the Adam and Drummond builds ended up looking much the same.

 

There are a couple of other visual differences. the 1896 batch bunker-side number plates were to the Drummond, not Adams pattern (again, see picture of 367), and  this batch lacked brass beading to the splashers.

 

From 1903, number plates began to be replaced by 6" high transfer numerals.

 

All the pictures show side chains, but that tells me nothing.  They were evidently retained for a long time on the Adams classes, for instance, I've seen pictures of a 395 with them at Bournemouth in 1912 and of an X6 at Eastleigh works with them in 1913, but if anyone knows when they were removed, I'd be interested to know; post-war shots don't tend to show them.

 

T1s began as suburban London locos, and followed the familiar pattern of spreading out to the sticks. According to Bradley RCTS, 363 was stationed at Fratton by 1905.

 

The Ilfracombe branch saw a good number.  They were apparently established there by 1907, when Frank Box noted several, including 363. After the departure of the last llfracombe Goods (1908) they probably ran the branch more or less single handed, aside from visiting Jubilees and Steamrollers, until the advent of the M7s, though I do not think the first of the Drummond 0-4-4Ts was recorded on the branch until 1919.

 

Here we have a picture of 367 in 1902, to show a profile of an 1896 series loco.  The other three are of 363 herself and the last one, if not her, is another class member on the branch around the same time.

 

One shows 363 at Hounslow & Whitton, apparently on an Aldershot-Waterloo service. This is taken from Locomotives Illustrated No.73 and is said to be "in the early 1900s", though note that she has lost her plates in favour of transfer numerals.

 

We also see her at Waterloo.  The locomotive behind is either an M7 or a T1 with a replacement Drummond chimney.  Although the first such replacement was made in 1901, it was a particularly long process, not complete until 1931(!) and pre-Great war pictures of Drummond-liveried T1s invariably show the Adams stovepipe.  The album that contains the picture says it dates from 1910.

 

But, does it?  More precisely, does the third photograph, showing 363 at Ilfracombe, date from 1907, as it is supposed to, forming part of Frank Box's set?

 

Also in shot is Set 234.  This is an arc-roofed bogie brake coach coach with the look-out at the coach end.  I suspect the final picture, also taken by Box, apparently in 1907, near Ilfracombe, shows it as part of a two-coach set, both arc-roofed and both with look-outs at the coach ends.

 

I interpret these/Set 234 as one of the 2-sets created for branch line used in 1909-1910 by converting 42' Thirds and 45' Tri-comps from the 1890s to include brake compartments.  Some of these sets used arc-roofed coaches, as here, and other pairs used elipitcal profiled coaches.  Only the earliest conversions placed the look-outs at the ends, as here, suggesting to me that this set could have been converted as early as 1909.

 

Possibly I have misidentified the coaches, bit I do not know of any other SW coaches that would resemble those in the pictures taken on the branch. 

 

If that is correct, 1909 would be the earliest date at which Box's 1907 picture was taken.  Either that or the LSWR records are astray and that the conversions started earlier than Weddell records.

 

Potentially, then, we have 363 at Waterloo and Ilfracombe around much the same time!

 

If anyone can shed any light on Set 234 or on when No.363 worked the Ilfracombe branch, I would be most grateful.

Edited July 29, 2018 by Edwardian