THE delightful B4 tank engines were a staple of shunting activity on London & SouthWestern Railway metals for more than 60 years. Designed byWilliam Adams, the longevity of the class proves without a doubt how perfectly suited it was to the work it did. First built in 1891 at Nine Elms LocomotiveWorks, the B4s were designed to tackle the lightly laid but tightly curved systems where larger engines simply could not go.Their 0-4-0 wheel arrangement, along with their relatively large size, meant they could punch well above their weight in terms of pulling power. It is little surprise that the locomotives would go onto become familiar sights in yards and docksides across the LSWR.
Home bases
Three of the first batch of 10 had made their way to Plymouth, while the remaining seven were sent to yards around the network. It was the work of the Plymouth engines, however, which proved the potential of the locomotives in a dockside setting.Two of the next batch built in 1893 were sent to Southampton.They were not numbered, but were named Jersey and Guernsey, as was local tradition. In a system such as Southampton Docks, where the heavy work was beginning to increase, the additional power of this class would
