GWR 7800 "Manor" Class
7815Fritwell Manor at Gloucester, October 1959.
Type and origin Power type Steam Designer Charles Collett Builder GWR/BRSwindon Works Order number Lot 316, Lot 377 Build date 1938–1939 (7800-7819),1950 (7820-7829) Total produced 30
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 4-6-0  • UIC 2'Ch2 Gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)standard gauge Leading dia. 3 ft 0 in (914 mm) Driver dia. 5 ft 8 in (1,727 mm) Minimum curve 6 chains (396 ft; 121 m) normal, 5 chains (330 ft; 101 m) slow Wheelbase Loco: 27 ft 1 in (8.26 m) Loco & tender:52 ft1+3⁄4 in (15.89 m) Length 61 ft9+1⁄4 in (18.83 m) Width 8 ft 11 in (2.718 m) Height 13 ft 0 in (3.962 m) Axle load 17 long tons 5 cwt (38,600 lb or 17.5 t) (19.3 short tons) Loco weight 68 long tons 18 cwt (154,300 lb or 70 t) (77.2 short tons) full Tender weight 40 long tons 0 cwt (89,600 lb or 40.6 t) (44.8 short tons) full Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 7 long tons 0 cwt (15,700 lb or 7.1 t) (7.8 short tons) Water cap. 3,500 imp gal (16,000 L; 4,200 US gal) Firebox: ​  • Grate area 22.1 sq ft (2.05 m2) Boiler GWR Standard No. 14[1] Boiler pressure 225 psi (1.55 MPa) Heating surface: ​  • Firebox 140.0 sq ft (13.01 m2)  • Tubes and flues 1,285.5 sq ft (119.43 m2) Superheater: ​  • Heating area 160.0 sq ft (14.86 m2) Cylinders Two, outside Cylinder size 18 in × 30 in (457 mm × 762 mm)
Performance figures Tractive effort 27,340 lbf (121.61 kN)
Career Operators Great Western Railway British Railways Class GWR: 7800"Manor" Power class GWR: D BR: 5MT Number in class 30 Axle load class GWR: Blue Retired April 1963 – December 1965 Disposition 21 scrapped, 9 preserved

TheGreat Western Railway (GWR)7800 Class orManor Class is a class of4-6-0 typesteam locomotives. They were designed as a lighter version of theGrange Class, giving them a widerRoute Availability. Like the 'Granges', the 'Manors' used parts from theGWR 4300 Class Moguls but just on the first batch of twenty. Twenty were built between 1938 and 1939, withBritish Railways adding a further 10 in 1950. They were named after Manors in the area covered by the Great Western Railway. Nine are preserved.^[2]

Although successfulmixed-traffic designs, neither theHall nor the Grange 4-6-0 classes were able to cover the full range of duties previously undertaken by the4300 Class2-6-0 locomotives due to their ‘red’weight classification. By the late 1930s a lighter version of the Grange class was urgently required for those cross-country and branch line duties forbidden to heavier locomotives.^[3] A new lighter (Swindon No.14) boiler was therefore designed, and as with the Grange Class, the driving wheels and motion components were recovered from withdrawn members of the 4300 Class.^[4] The Manor class, with an axle loading of just over 17 tons, could be utilised on many lines from which the heavier Granges were barred.^[5]

The first of the Manors No.7800Torquay Manor was built atSwindon Works and entered traffic in January 1938. By February 1939 twenty were in service but the outbreak of World War II forced the cancellation of construction of a further batch of twenty locomotives. However, after nationalization, the newly createdWestern Region of British Railways was authorized to build ten more of the class. Nos. 7820–29 at Swindon in November and December 1950. A batch of ten more locomotives was planned to be released, but the batch was cancelled for unknown reasons. The cancelled locomotives were 7830Norton Manor, 7831Ogwell Manor, 7832Pimley Manor, 7833Ramsbury Manor, 7834Rodley Manor, 7835Standen Manor, 7836Sutton Manor, 7837Thorton Manor, 7838Widford Manor, and 7839Wilcote Manor.^[6]

Unlike the Granges of 1936 where the use of a standard design and the re-use of existing components had produced a masterpiece, the initial performance of the Manors was comparatively mediocre, exhibiting poor steaming rates and high fuel consumption. "Were it not for the constraints of war there is every reason to expect that Swindon would have recalled the engines for modifications."^[4]

It was not until after nationalisation that theWestern Region of British Railways sanctioned investigation into the class' shortcomings. In 1951 comparative trials were made between 7818Granville Manor and a newBR Standard Class 4 4-6-0, which was built at Swindon and fulfilled a similar brief to the Manor class but was designed at the Brighton works underRobert Riddles. This revealed that the front end of the Manor restricted both steam flow and draught on the fire, with the blastpipe being too large in relation to the size of the chimney. The blastpipe's area was reduced by a quarter, while a new design of firebar increased the air space in the grate, allowing more efficient combustion.

These changes doubled the practical steaming rate of the No.14 boiler. A programme of alterations was implemented across the class during 1952, and the Manors started to perform in a similar fashion to the Grange and Hall classes. They were given the same power classification as those types - 5MT.

The first examples were despatched to depots atWolverhampton,Bristol,Gloucester,Shrewsbury,Westbury inWiltshire andNeyland in South Wales. In October 1938 No.7805Broome Manor underwent clearance tests between Ruabon and Barmouth. Subsequently, the class were used over the main lines of the erstwhileCambrian Railways, with its headquarters and works in Oswestry. The Manors were also successfully employed in the West Country where they were used for banking and piloting trains over the Devon banks between Newton Abbot and Plymouth. Their light axleloading also allowed them across the Tamar Bridge and on to the branch lines of Cornwall.^[7]

By 1959 twenty-one Manors were congregated in Mid- and South Wales. Their most prestigious working was the Cambrian Coast Express, where a Manor took over from aKing orCastle at Shrewsbury and worked through to Aberystwyth. Others of the class operated in the Birmingham, Gloucester and Hereford areas while the handful stationed at Reading frequently ventured on to the Southern Region line to Guildford and Redhill.^[8]

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The first Manor to be withdrawn was No.7809Childrey Manor, of Shrewsbury depot in April 1963 and which was cut up at Swindon. By May 1965 the numbers had been halved and the final two in service, No.7808Cookham Manor of Gloucester, and No.7829Ramsbury Manor of Didcot, were condemned in December 1965. Remarkably, for a relatively small class where thirty engines were built, nine examples have been preserved. All of which were withdrawn from British Railways service in 1965.

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Nine members of the Manor class have survived into preservation with four being GWR built engines and five being BR built examples. One member of the class7808Cookham Manor was purchased directly from BR service for preservation by the Great Western Society. The remaining eight engines were all rescued from Barry Scrapyard with the first member of the class7827Lydham Manor being rescued in June 1970 and left as the 5th departure from Barry Scrapyard. The last member of the class to be rescued from Barry Scrapyard being7828Odney Manor being rescued in June 1981 leaving as the 133rd departure.

All nine members of the Manor class have operated at some point in their preserved career and of the nine Manors to survive in preservation, all four of the GWR built Manors have seen main line operation: Nos.7802Bradley Manor, 7808Cookham Manor,7812Erlestoke Manor and7819Hinton Manor.

In the 1970s, no. 7808Cookham Manor was used by theGreat Western Society (GWS) to haul nine vintage ex-GWR carriages on an annual outing on the main line from Didcot to Birmingham. Today 7808 is on static display inside the GWS shed at Didcot awaiting an overhaul.

7812Erlestoke Manor only worked a small number of railtours between April and June 1982. Also certified for main line operation in the 1980s was fellow SVR based engine 7819Hinton Manor. It worked a number of railtours along former Great Western routes including theCambrian Coast Line & played a big part in 1985 during the 150th anniversary of the Great Western Railway. 7812 was until New Year's Eve 2017 operational on the SVR but wasn't main line certified and 7819 was until Aug 2018 on static display in Swindon, the engine is now on static display insideThe Engine House awaiting an overhaul.

7802Bradley Manor was the last and most recent member of the class to have operated on the national network, being withdrawn from the mainline in 2007 following the requirement that mainline certified steam engines had to haveOTMR fitted by the end of the year. Its last overhaul was completed in November 2015, however it was not certified to operate on the main line.

None of the BR built Manors have operated on the main line in preservation.

See:List of GWR 7800 Class locomotives for all Manor locomotives built. Nine locomotives have been preserved:

Number	Name	Built	Withdrawn	Base	Current location	Owner	Status	Livery	Photo	Notes
7802	Bradley Manor	January 1938	November 1965	Severn Valley Railway	Tyseley Locomotive Works	Erlestoke Manor Fund	Under Overhaul, boiler ticket expires: 2032[9]	BR Lined Green, Late Crest		Moved to Tyseley in July 2019 following broken piston rod suffered while on loan to the WSR[10]
7808	Cookham Manor	March 1938	December 1965	Didcot Railway Centre	Didcot Railway Centre	Great Western Society	Static Display	GWR Unlined Green, Shirtbutton Logo		Final member of class to be withdrawn from service by BR
7812	Erlestoke Manor	January 1939	November 1965	Severn Valley Railway	Severn Valley Railway	Erlestoke Manor Fund	Operational, boiler ticket expires: 2032	BR Lined Green, Late Crest		Operational on hire to West Somerset Railway in 2023[11]
7819	Hinton Manor	February 1939	November 1965	Severn Valley Railway	Severn Valley Railway	Severn Valley Railway Charitable Trust	Static Display	GWR Unlined Green, Shirtbutton Logo		On display in The Engine House awaiting its turn for overhaul[12]
7820	Dinmore Manor	November 1950	November 1965	Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway	Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway	Dinmore Manor Locomotive Ltd.	Static display	BR Lined Black, Early Emblem (Red Nameplates)		Boiler ticket ended in January 2025.[13]
7821	Ditcheat Manor	November 1950	November 1965	West Somerset Railway	Swindon Designer Outlet	West Somerset Railway Association	Static Display	BR Lined Black, Early Emblem (Red Nameplates)
7822	Foxcote Manor	December 1950	November 1965	West Somerset Railway	Tyseley Locomotive Works	Foxcote Manor Society	Under overhaul	BR Unlined Black, Early emblem (Red Nameplates)		Withdrawn from traffic following failure of copper welds inside firebox.[14]
7827	Lydham Manor	December 1950	October 1965	Dartmouth Steam Railway	Dartmouth Steam Railway	Dart Valley Railway plc	Operational, boiler ticket expires: 2033	BR Lined Green, Late Crest		Returned to traffic in October 2023 following completion of overhaul outshopped in BR lined green for the first time in preservation.[15]
7828	Odney Manor	December 1950	October 1965	West Somerset Railway	West Somerset Railway	West Somerset Railway	Operational, boiler ticket expires: 2028	BR Lined Green, Late Emblem		Returned to service in December 2018 following repairs[16]

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Mainline Railways hadOO gauge Manor Class models in their catalogue in 1983, with a model of Cookham Manor in GWR green and a retooled model of Lydham Manor in BR lined green.^[17] Mainline's tooling was later used byBachmann Branchline, but is not currently in production. Both Dapol and Accurascale released 00 gauge renditions of the 78xx in Autumn of 2022.

• List of GWR standard classes with two outside cylinders

• Bradley, Rodger (1988).GWR Two Cylinder 4–6–0s and 2–6–0s. Newton Abbot, Devon: David and Charles Publishers plc.
• Herring, Peter (2004).Classic British Steam Locomotives. Wigston: Abbeydale Press.ISBN 1-86147-138-6.
• Holcroft, Harold (1971) [1957].An Outline of Great Western Locomotive Practice 1837-1947 (2nd ed.). Shepperton:Ian Allan.ISBN 0-7110-0228-2.
• le Fleming, H.M. (November 1960). White, D.E. (ed.).The Locomotives of the Great Western Railway, part eight: Modern Passenger Classes (2nd ed.).RCTS.
• Whitehurst, Brian (1973).Great Western Engines, Names, Numbers, Types and Classes (1940 to Preservation). Oxford, UK: Oxford Publishing Company. pp. 68–69, 103, 128.ISBN 978-0-9028-8821-0.OCLC 815661.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toGWR 7800 Class.

• GreatWestern.org page
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• Erlestoke Manor Fund website

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