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P 117 National Railway Museum, Port Adelaide |
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This scanned slide view is courtesy of John Hurst
and shows P117 at the former Mile End Railway Museum in Adelaide in 1973.
The copper cap chimney befits this
wonderful old loco, but the original buffers and coupling gear had been replaced
with modern automatic couplers during its service life.
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Builder |
Gawler, SA |
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Builder’s Number & Year |
57
of 1893 |
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Wheel Arrangement |
2-4-0T |
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No. in class |
20 |
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The South Australian Railways P-class originated with 6 locomotives built by Beyer Peacock & Co in 1884, based on an earlier design supplied to railways on the Isle of Wight. The P-class was judged a success, and an additional 14 units were delivered from local builder James Martin of Gawler. Preserved representative P 117 is one of these later James Martin built examples. The P-class excelled in Adelaide suburban passenger and goods working but were ultimately superseded by larger and more powerful locomotives. At a later stage the class proved ideal for shunting duties on the wharves and yards of Port Adelaide. The P-class had all been withdrawn by the mid-1950's but fortunately one was saved for preservation and placed in storage pending placement in a suitable museum. (Alas the retention of this locomotive for preservation did not extend to many other worthy types of South Australian Railways steam power which became extinct after this date, such as the high-stepping S-class 4-4-0, 600-class Pacifics and 720-class Berkshires.) P 117 subsequently entered the Australian Railway Historical Society (ARHS) museum at Mile End Railway in 1964. The South Australian Railways P-class follow the same basic design as the NSWGR's F-351 class of 1885, which also originated from Beyer Peacock & Co. This similarity can be seen today in preserved NSWGR cousins 1033 and 1042. P 117 is now displayed within the National Railway Museum, Port Adelaide, successor to the earlier Mile End museum. |
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References
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a |
Fluck
R. E., Sampson R., & Bird K. J. 'Steam locomotives and Railcars of
the South Australian Railways', published
by The Mile End Railway Museum (SA) Inc, 1986. |
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Page updated: 29 April 2026.
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Government Railways: |
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