Vulcan Foundry - Steam Locomotives

Steam Locomotives

The first two locomotives were 0-4-0 Tayleur and Stephenson for the North Union Railway, similar to Stephenson's "Planet" design. Next were three 2-2-0s of a later "planet" type for the Warrington and Newton Railway. Other early orders came from the Leicester and Swannington Railway and the Birmingham and Derby Junction Railway.

There were then some 4-2-0s for America which were possibly the first British 'bogie' locomotives, though there is no record of how, or whether, they were pivoted.

From 1835 the company was selling to France, Austria and Russia, the beginnings of an export trade which was maintained throughout the life of the company. The company's locomotives had a strong Stephenson influence, many during the following decade being of the "long boiler" design. In 1852 the first locomotives ever to run in India were supplied to the Great Indian Peninsula Railway.

A number of Fairlie locomotives were built, including Taliesin for the Ffestiniog Railway and Josephine one of the NZR E class (1872). During 1870 the company supplied the first locos to run in Japan, and a flangeless 0-4-0T for a steelworks in Tredegar which was still using angle rails. A number of Matthew Kirtley's double-framed goods engines were also produced for the Midland Railway. The healthy export trade continued, particularly to India and South America, and continued after World War I.

Following the formation of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway in 1923 some very large orders were received, including over a hundred LMS Fowler Class 3F 0-6-0T engines and seventy-five LMS Compound 4-4-0 locomotives.

The most notable design manufactured for an overseas railway during this period was the large 4-8-4 built for the Chinese National Railways in 1934-35. These fine locomotives were equipped with a mechanical stoker and six of them were fitted with booster engines on the tender, providing an extra 7670 lbs tractive effort. Of the 24 exported, one returned to the UK and is preserved at the National Railway Museum in York.

Through the 'thirties the company survived the trade recessions with the aid of more orders from India, some from Tanganyika and Argentina, and a large order in 1934 from the LMS for 4-6-0 "Black Fives" and 2-8-0 Stanier-designed locomotives.