Grantham Class O2 Locomotives

by Kevin Roche

Above: Class O2/3 No. 63987 at Grantham Loco on Saturday 13th July 1963, with side window cab and LNER group standard stepped tender. Alongside on the right is O2/2 No. 63941 with its distinctive GNR-type cab and GNR tender.
Photograph taken by C.J.B. Sanderson 

The O2 locomotives were powerful three-cylinder heavy mineral engines with a 2-8-0 wheel arrangement.  The first, a prototype, was completed in May 1918 by the Great Northern Railway (GNR).  Production commenced in 1921 and the last appeared in 1943, by which time 67 were in service.  They embodied innovative features patented by the company's Locomotive Engineer, Nigel Gresley, which he carried forward into his highly successful express passenger designs of the 1920s and 1930s.

The O2s were extensively modified and rebuilt over the years until four main variants existed, O2/1, O2/2, O2/3 and O2/4.  The differences betwen these sub-classes is explained in a history of the class on the LNER Encyclopedia website here.  The class became known as 'Tangos', continuing a dance-related theme alongside other GNR freight designs which were nicknamed 'Ragtimers' (K1 and K2) and 'Jazzers' (K3).  They received the power classification 8F, exceeded only by the British Railways 9F 2-10-0 design which entered service in 1954.  The last O2s were taken out of service in 1963, and Grantham was one of the final sheds to operate them.

Kevin has carefully compiled a table listing each of the Class O2 heavy freight locomotives which was based at Grantham Loco.  These locomotives were used mainly to work the ironstone traffic originating from the High Dyke branch.

BR Number	Final Sub-Class	Rebuilds	Final Cab Type	Tender Type	Period(s) at Grantham
					First allocation	Second allocation
63922	O2/1		Side Window	GN Tender	8/62 - 11/62
63923	O2/1		Side Window	GN Tender until 8/60; Group Stepped Tender ex-K3 after 8/60	11/51 -9/63
63928	O2/4		Side Window	Group Flush Tender	11/61 - 9/63
63929	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/1 (7/59)	Side Window	GN Tender with Tablet Catcher	8/50 - 6/62
63930	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/1 (8/59)	Side Window	GN Tender with Tablet Catcher	8/50 - 12/62
63931	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/1 (1/62)	Side Window	GN Tender with Tablet Catcher	8/50 - 9/63
63932	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/2 (5/58)	Side Window	GN Tender with Tablet Catcher	8/50 - 9/63
63933	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/2 (1/58)	Side Window	GN Tender	11/50 - 9/51	11/51 - 12/62
63935	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/2 (4/58)	Side Window	GN Tender	11/50 - 11/51	1/63 - 9/63
63936	O2/2		GN Plain	GN Tender	8/50 - 6/61
63938	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/2 (7/58)	Side Window	GN Tender	8/50 - 9/63
63940	O2/2		GN Plain	GN Tender with Tablet Catcher	8/50 - 9/63
63941	O2/2		GN Plain	GN Tender	11/61 - 9/63
63942	O2/2		GN Plain	GN Tender	11/61 - 9/63
63943	O2/2		GN Plain	GN Tender until 5/62; Group Stepped Tender ex-K3 after 5/62	11/60 - 6/61	7/61 - 9/63
63946	O2/2		GN Plain	GN Tender until 10/60; Group Stepped Tender ex-K3 after 10/60	4/53 - 7/61
63948	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/3 (8/59)	Side Window	Group Stepped Tender ex-J38	1/51 - 11/62
63949	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/3 (8/55)	Side Window	Group Stepped Tender ex-J38	11/60 - 9/63
63950	O2/4		Side Window	Group Stepped Tender ex-J38	8/50 - 9/51	11/51 - 10/60
63956	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/3 (12/61)	Side Window	Group Stepped Tender ex-J38	11/60 - 9/63
63957	O2/3		Side Window	Group Stepped Tender ex-J38	6/59 - 7/61
63960	O2/3		Side Window	Group Flush Tender	8/50 - 9/63
63962	O2/4		Side Window	Group Flush Tender	1/63 - 9/63
63963	O2/4		Side Window	Group Flush Tender	6/59 - 9/63
63965	O2/3		Side Window	Group Stepped Tender ex-D49	8/50 - 11/51
63966	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/3 (1/58)	Side Window	Group Stepped Tender ex-D49	8/50 - 6/61
63968	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/3 (3/61)	Side Window	Group Flush Tender	1/63 - 9/63
63974	O2/3		Side Window	Group Flush Tender	10/62 - 9/63
63981	O2/3		Side Window	Group Stepped Tender ex-D49	10/62 - 9/63
63982	O2/4	Rebuilt from O2/3 (8/57)	Side Window	Group Flush Tender	11/60 - 11/62
63984	O2/3		Side Window	Group Flush Tender	1/63 - 9/63
63985	O2/3		Side Window	Group Stepped Tender ex-D49	1/63 - 9/63
63987	O2/3		Side Window	Group Stepped Tender ex-D49	1/62 - 9/63

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