#1252

GWR 2800 Class

🇬🇧 United Kingdom ·built by Swindon Works· from 1905· class of 84 two-cylinder 2-8-0 locomotives

10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences

1. 2857 at Kidderminster (36030816474): Tony Hisgett from Birmingham, UK· CC BY 2.0
2. GWR 2800 Class No. 2818 at the Swindon Railway Museum - August 2018: nzsteam· CC BY 2.0
3. 2876 Aberdare MPD 15-4-63 (27396124285): Rob Hodgkins· CC BY-SA 2.0
4. Stored line Aberdare MPD 15-4-63 (27362394186): Rob Hodgkins· CC BY-SA 2.0
5. GWR 2-8-0 heavy freight locomotive (CJ Allen, Steel Highway, 1928): Andy Dingley (scanner)· Public domain
6. Image from page 642 of "Railway mechanical engineer" (1916): Internet Archive Book Images· CC0
7. GWR 2807 steam loco: Gwsralex· CC BY-SA 4.0
8. GWR Class 28xx No 2807 Cheltenham Racecourse: PeterSkuce· CC BY-SA 4.0
9. GWR Class 28xx No 2807 Toddington: PeterSkuce· CC BY-SA 4.0
10. 2807 arriving from Toddington at Winchcombe: kitmasterbloke· CC BY 2.0

what is it?

The Great Western Railway (GWR) 2800 Class is a class of steam locomotive designed in 1903 by George Jackson Churchward. Members of the class have a 2-8-0 wheel arrangement and were produced from 1905 to 1919 for heavy freight work, but members of the class were known to pull passenger trains when necessary. Six locomotives of this class have been preserved.

who runs it

Great Western Railway British Rail Western Region of British Railways

base stats

weight 76.2 tin working order
built 84made in total

Bars compare against all trains: 600 km/h (maglev), 1,700 seats; power, weight and number built on a log scale up to 20 MW, 1,000 t and 20,000 built.

fun facts

First built 121 years ago, in 1905.
Weighs about as much as 13 African elephants (~6 t each).
19.2 m long: about 4 cars parked nose to tail.
Served for 62 years (1903–1965).

steam locomotive: Burns coal, wood or oil to boil water; the steam drives pistons that turn the wheels.

spec sheet

built: 1905–1919
in service from: 1903
retired: 1965
status: preserved
number built: 84
kind: Steam
traction: steam
origin: 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
builders: Swindon Works
designer: George Jackson Churchward
operators: Great Western Railway, British Rail, Western Region of British Railways
top speed: —
power: —
wheel arrangement: 2-8-0
length: 19.2 m
weight: 76.2 t

From the Wikipedia infobox and Wikidata. Blank means the sources don't say.

Sources: Wikidata Q4039203, Wikipedia: GWR 2800 Class (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-25.