LBSCR class H1 and H2 "Atlantic" 4-4-2

When the London Brighton and South Coast Railway needed a new Locomotive Superintendent in 1904 they turned to Douglas Earle Marsh, the then Chief Assistant to Harry Ivatt on the Great Northern Railway. Prior to this Marsh had begun his career under no less a person than William Dean of the Great Western Railway where he had risen to the position of Assistant Works Manager at Swindon in only eight years. During his time at Doncaster Marsh had been heavily involved with the design of the first of the large Great Northern Atlantics so it was hardly surprising that immediately he assumed office at Brighton and found he needed a new large express engine that he set about designing a very similar machine, the 'H1' class Atlantic. The outward similarity was very noteable with just the footplate undulations, the chimney and the cab (standard RJ Billinton fittings) differing from the GNR example. The undulations referred to were a rise over the driving wheels and then again a similar rise over the cylinders.

Class H1 Nº37 at Lewes with the early 'LB&SCR' on her tender. Note the footplate that is raised over the driving wheels, then again over the cylinders.

photograph: Dave Searle collection

The boiler, at 5' 6" inches in diameter with a 6' 6" long and 5' 11" wide firebox, was far larger than anything the Brighton company had built previously. It differed from the GNR '251' class in that the firebox was deeper but with the same grate area and with the working pressure at 200 lb sq in in place of 175. Cylinder sizes differed with 18½ in x 26 in fitted to 37, 38 and 40 whilst 39 and 41 had ones of 19 in diameter. These compared with the GNR locomotives' 18¾ x 24 in cylinders. The coupled wheels were 6' 7½" with wheelbase of 6' 10", exactly the same as on the Great Northern.

Left: Class H1 Nº40 with the later 'LBSC' livery.

Right: A close-up view of the design on the splashers.

photographs: Dave Searle collection

Marsh abandoned the Brighton practice of naming locomotives and as a result only one of the H1s bore a name during LBSC days, Nº39, which was named La France in 1913 prior to working the train for the visit of the French President, as seen above. The name was carried until January 1926 at which time the Southern Railway renamed the locomotive Hartland Point.

photograph: Graham Watson collection

The superheating of the subsequent 'H2' class was so successful that in later years the Southern Railway superheated the 'H1's, though it has been said that even when saturated these earlier engines performed better than the 'H2's. The Southern Railway also reduced the contours of the chimney, dome and cab, in a sympathetic manner, and gave all the locos in the two classes names, re-naming La France as Hartland Point in the process.

H1 Atlantic Nº2039, now named Hartland Point, during late Southern Railway/early British Railways days whilst she was being used as a test bed for Bulleid's sleeve valve design for his Leader project. She is also fitted with an experimental large diameter chimney and multiple jet blast pipe. The fireman (shown sitting) in this photograph was Dennis Taylor but the identity of the driver is unknown.

We were sent this photograph by Dennis Taylor's son, Geoff, who would be very pleased if he could correspond with anyone who may have known his father. Dennis was first based at Brighton and later moved to Epsom. Geoff would also be grateful for the opportunity to correspond with anyone who had experience of working on the Brighton line in the 1940s.

If you can assist please make contact via the webmaster .

photograph courtesy of Geoff Taylor

Nº2040, St Catherine's Point after withdrawal in 1944, not looking any too pretty! This is the same locomotive seen above in her earlier guise as LB&SCR Nº40.

photograph: Mike Morant collection

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This page was last updated 16 April 2008