LNWR Bloomers
Design and development
James McConnell, Locomotive Superintendent of the LNWR Southern Division at Wolverton, was tasked with providing fast express engines for the Euston–Birmingham route. His response was a 2-2-2 with exceptionally large 7 ft 0 in driving wheels (later 7 ft 6 in on some examples), inside cylinders, and a short, low boiler that left the splashers and driving wheels visibly exposed above the running plate.
The conspicuous skirt-and-wheels look reminded contemporaries of Amelia Bloomer's reformed women's dress (then a controversial fashion), and the engines became universally known as "Bloomers". Three sub-classes were built between 1851 and 1862: Large Bloomers (7 ft 6 in), Small Bloomers (6 ft 6 in) and Extra-Large Bloomers (7 ft 6 in with larger boilers).
Service and withdrawals
The Bloomers worked LNWR Southern Division expresses from 1851 until progressively superseded by Webb's compounds and 2-4-0s from the 1870s onwards. The last Bloomer was withdrawn in 1888. None were preserved, but a working full-size replica of a Large Bloomer is being constructed by the Bloomer Project at Tyseley.
Identification features
2-2-2 with very large 7 ft 0 in (or 7 ft 6 in) driving wheels prominently exposed above the running plate, inside cylinders, low parallel boiler with brass dome, and distinctive open-splasher styling that gave the class its nickname.
Notable locomotives
- Bloomer (1851, original — not preserved)
- Large Bloomer replica (under construction, Tyseley)