Ceylon Government Railway B1-B6
| Industry | Railway transport |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Colombo , Sri Lanka |
| Products | Steam locomotives (Classes B1–B6) |
The Ceylon Government Railway classes B1–B6, initially referred to as the NOA class prior to the 1937 reclassification, comprised multiple classes of 4-6-0 steam locomotives with comparable designs. These engines were utilized by the Ceylon Government Railway (CGR) primarily on the Main Line. As of 2025, only a few locomotives from the B1 and B2 categories remain preserved.
Class B1
History
The Class B1 series represented the final and most advanced models among these six locomotive types.[1][2] Between 1927 and 1948, a total of forty-nine units were manufactured for the Ceylon Government Railway. This class featured five distinct subclasses beyond the base design: A, B, C, D, and E. Commonly referred to as the Governor Class, many locomotives in this category bore names honoring British Ceylon governors. In 1936, locomotive number 242, named Sir Edward Paget, was fitted with streamlining; however, this modification was reversed by 1937.[3] During the 1950s, several locomotives in this class underwent conversion from coal to oil fuel.
Locomotives
("|340/352 ") ("| Fredrick North ") ("|Coal, Oil ") ("|Disposed ") ("| ") ("|341 ") ("| ") ("|Coal, Oil ") ("|Disposed ") ("| ") ("|342 ") ("| ") ("|Coal ") ("|Disposed ") ("| ") ("|351 ") ("| ") ("| rowspan='6' |E ") ("|Coal ") ("|Disposed ") ("| ") ("|352 ") ("| Frederick North ") ("|Coal, Oil ") ("|Preserved ") ("| ") ("|353 ") ("| ") ("|Coal ") ("|Disposed ") ("| ") ("|354 ") ("|Sir Henry Ward ") ("|Coal, Oil ") ("|Disposed ") ("| ") ("|355 ") ("| ") ("|Coal ") ("|Disposed ") ("| ") ('|356 ') ('| ') ('|Coal, Oil ') ('|Disposed ') ('| ')| Number | Name | Final Subclass | Fuel Type | Current Status | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Sir Edward Stubbs | Coal | Disposed | ||
| 30 | Sir Thomas Maitland | Coal | Disposed | ||
| 242 | Sir Edward Paget | Coal | Disposed | The sole unit in the class equipped with a streamlined shell. | |
| 243 | Sir West Ridgeway | Coal, Oil | Disposed | ||
| 244 | Viscount Torrington | Coal, Oil | Disposed | ||
| 245 | Sir Robert Chalmers | Coal | Disposed | ||
| 246 | Sir William Anderson | Coal | Disposed | ||
| 247 | James MacKenzie | Coal | Disposed | ||
| 248 | Sir William Gregory | Coal | Disposed | ||
| 249 | Sir William Anderson | A | Coal | Disposed | |
| 250 | Sir Charles MacCarthy | Coal, Oil | Disposed | ||
| 251 | Sir Thomas Maitland | Coal | Preserved | ||
| 252 | Sir Edward Barnes | Coal | Disposed | ||
| 253 | Sir Richard North | Coal | Disposed | ||
| 254 | Sir Arthur Havelock | Coal | Disposed | ||
| 255 | Sir Robert Chalmers | 'Coal, Oil' | 'Disposed' | ||
| '256' | 'Sir Robert Horton' | 'Coal' | 'Disposed' | ||
| '257' | 'Ceylon Defence Force' | 'Coal, Oil' | 'Disposed' | ||
| '258' | ' Sir Hercules Robinson' | 'Coal' | 'Disposed' | ||
| '259' | ' ' | 'Coal' | 'Disposed' | ||
| '260' | ' ' | 'Coal' | 'Disposed' | ||
| '261' | ' Sir William Manning' | 'Coal, Oil' | 'Disposed' | ||
| '262' | ' King George VI' | 'Coal, Oil' | 'Disposed' | ||
| '279' | 'Sir Henry Ward' | B ' | 'Coal, Oil ' | 'Disposed ' | ' ' |
| '280 ' | ' ' | 'Coal, Oil ' | 'Disposed ' | ' ' | |
| '281 ' | ' Sir Hugh Clifford ' | 'Coal, Oil ' | 'Disposed ' | ' ' | |
| '282 ' | " " | " " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "283 " | " Sir Thomas Maitland " | "Coal, Oil " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "284 " | "James MacKenzie " | "Coal, Oil " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "285 " | "Sir Henry Blake " | "Coal " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "286 " | "Sir Graeme Thompson " | "Coal " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "287 " | " Sir Robert Brownrigg " | "Coal " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "288 " | " Sir Herbert Stanley " | "Coal " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "289 " | " " | "Coal " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "290 " | "Sir Arthur Gordon " | "Coal " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "294 " | "Sir James Longden " | C " | "Coal " | "Disposed " | " " |
| "295 " | "Sir Andrew Caldecott " | "Coal " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "337 " | " Sir Geoffrey Layton " | "Coal " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "338 " | " Sir Henry Moore " | "Coal, Oil " | "Disposed " | " " | |
| "339 " | " "
"| rowspan='4' |D " "|Coal " "|Disposed " "| " |
Preservation
From this class, only two locomotives have been preserved: No. 251 Sir Thomas Maitland and No. 340 Sir Frederick North. Both remain operational and are actively employed to pull the Viceroy Special, a chartered excursion service managed by J. F. Tours.
Class B2
History
The Ceylon Government Railway commissioned thirty-five units of this class. The Class B2 was further divided into several subclasses designated from A through E, excluding the original model.[3]
Locomotives
| Subclass | B2 | A | B | C | D | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Numbers | 28 | 1 | 208 | 227 | 40 | 25 |
| 29 | 3 | 209 | 228 | 43 | 26 | |
| 39 | 47 | 210 | 44 | 27 | ||
| 193 | 222 | 211 | 45 | |||
| 194 | 223 | 212 | 46 | |||
| 195 | 224 |
213 |
||||
| 196 | 225 | |||||
| 204 | 226 |
Preservation
Only one locomotive, No. 213, has been retained and is kept in operational condition to continue hauling the Viceroy Special.[4]
Class B3
Reference: [3]
Class B4
Class B5
Class B6
These locomotives were the pioneering 4-6-0 class to run on Ceylon’s railways. They featured a distinctive design combining both tenders and side tanks, with the side tanks primarily intended to boost the adhesive weight on the driving wheels.
The main route of the Ceylon Government Railways begins at Colombo and originally ended at Nanu Oya station. Beyond Nawalapitiya, the track ascends steadily at a gradient of one in forty-four all the way to Nanu Oya. This incline exceeded the capabilities of the existing 4-4-0 locomotives when the main line was extended past Nawalapitiya. Consequently, these new 4-6-0 tank-and-tender locomotives were designated as the Nanu Oya class, named after the section of track they were designed to serve.
Gallery
References
- ↑ "IESL Digital SLEN". iesl.lk. Retrieved 2025-02-02.
- ↑ malinga (2024-04-04). "Century of scenic rail travel". DailyNews. Retrieved 2025-02-02.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Cite error: Invalid
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External links
- Smith, Jonathan. "Steam locomotives of 66-inch gauge operated by Ceylon Government Railways". The terminal: Standard steam locomotives. Iowa State University. Retrieved 31 August 2025.