NZASM 14 Tonner 0-4-0T

The NZASM 14 Tonner 0-4-0T of 1889 is a South African steam locomotive from the pre-Union era in the Transvaal.

In 1889 the Nederlandsche-Zuid-Afrikaansche Spoorweg-Maatschappij obtained its first five locomotives with a 0-4-0T wheel arrangement for use on the new line that was being constructed from Johannesburg to Boksburg. Since the railway classified its locomotives according to their weight, these side-tank locomotives were known as the 14 Tonners.^[1]

The Randtram line

As a result of the rapid development of the goldfields on the Witwatersrand in the 1880s and the demand for coal by the growing industry, the Volksraad of the Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek (ZAR), also known as the Transvaal Republic, granted a concession to the Nederlandsche-Zuid-Afrikaansche Spoorweg­maatschappij (Netherlands-South African Railway Company, NZASM) on 20 July 1888 to construct a 16 miles (26 kilometres) railway line from Johannesburg to Boksburg. The line, which was opened on 17 March 1890, became known as the "Randtram" line even though it was actually a railway in every aspect and not singularly dedicated to tram traffic. This was the first working railway line in the Transvaal.^[1][2][3]

The concession was extended the following year to continue the line eastward to Springs, where coal was known to exist, and westward via Roodepoort to Krugersdorp. The entire 49 miles (79 kilometres) line was opened to traffic on 10 February 1891.^[1]

Manufacturer

Works plate on 14 Tonner no. 1

In 1889 five side-tank locomotives with a 0-4-0 wheel arrangement, the first locomotives of the NZASM and numbered in the range from 1 to 5, were obtained from the German engineering firm and locomotive builder Maschinen­fabrik Esslingen, owned by Emil Kessler. Since the NZASM classified its locomotives according to their weight, these locomotives were known as 14 Tonners. They were erected at Elandslaagte near Johannesburg, now the city of Germiston, and were placed in service on the new line to Boksburg.^[1]

Service

NZASM

As the Randtram line was expanded to the west and east to become the Reef line between Roodepoort and Springs, the 14 Tonners remained in service on that line even though their range of operation was somewhat limited by their small coal and water carrying capacities.^[1] Photograpic evidence shows that the coal bunker and water tanks were enlarged at some stage after entering service.

NZASM 14 Tonner on the Rand Tram line, c. 1890

The first locomotive, no. 1 named "Transvaal", entered service on 18 July 1889. It hauled the first train on the Randtram line when it was opened on 17 March 1890 and was retired in December 1903, by which time it had covered a distance of 113,309 miles (182,353 kilometres).^[1]

Imperial Military Railways

All railway operations in the two Boer Republics, the ZAR and the Orange Free State, were taken over by the Imperial Military Railways (IMR) during the South African War. The IMR renumbering register made provision for all five 14 Tonners in the number range from 601 to 605, but it is not known whether all five were actually renumbered.^[4]

Central South African Railways

14 Tonner next to CSAR Class 8-L1 4-8-0 no. 438

At the end of the war, when the IMR was transformed into the Central South African Railways (CSAR), either three or four of the 14 Tonners survived and were renumbered, either from CSAR numbers A to C or from A to D. The uncertainty arises from the fact that the renumbering register lists CSAR number D both as NZASM 14 Tonner no. 5 and as one of the NZASM 18 Tonner locomotives.^[4]

NZASM numbers 2, 3 and 5 were presumably allocated IMR numbers 602, 603 and 605 respectively, but apart from either IMR number 602 or 603 which presumably became CSAR number B, it is not known whether they actually were renumbered. All three of them were converted into stationary boilers at some stage. The gap in the CSAR renumbering (see table below) suggests that only one of NZASM numbers 2 and 3 survived into CSAR stock, presumably becoming CSAR number B.^[4]

Preservation

Even though none of them were in service any longer when the South African Railways renumbering was carried out in 1912, the last of four of the 14 Tonners was only scrapped in 1916. NZASM no. 1, the engine Transvaal, was preserved and was declared a national monument by Government Notice no. 529 on 6 April 1936. It was plinthed on Pretoria station until the late 1960s when it was moved to the new Johannesburg station. It is now exhibited in the Outeniqua Transport Museum in George, Western Cape.^[1][2]

Works numbers

The NZASM 14 Tonner works numbers, IMR and CSAR renumberings and their disposal are shown in the table.^[1][4]

Modifications illustrated

Judging from the pictures below, it appears that the coal bunker and water tanks of the 14 Tonner were enlarged and the chimney was lengthened at some stage during its working life.^[2]

• 

  14 Tonner, circa 1890, with a narrow coal bunker, small tanks and short chimney

• 

  14 Tonner, circa 1900, with a wider coal bunker, larger tanks and longer chimney

• 

  14 Tonner no. 1 at the Outeniqua Transport Museum, 15 April 2013

See also

• List of South African locomotive classes
• South African locomotive history
• The 0-4-0T wheel arrangement

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: NZASM 14 Tonner (0-4-0T)

Locomotives of South Africa Steam Brunel gauge HBEL 0-4-0 HBTB 0-4-0T HBTB 0-4-0WT HBTB 0-4-0ST Broad gauge CGR Aid CGR Blackie CGR 0-4-2 CGR 2-4-0T NRC Durban NRC Natal NRC Perseverance Cape gauge Tank CGR Coffee Pot CGR 040 1873 CGR 040 1874 CGR 060 1876 CGR 060 1902 CGR 260 1900 CGR 260 1902 CGR 1st 040 1875 CGR 1st 440 1875 CGR 1st 040 1876 CGR 1st 260 1876 CGR 2nd 1882 CGR 3rd 1900 CGR RM CSAR C CSAR E CSAR Rack CSAR RM Dbn Congella Dbn Edward Innes Dbn John Milne Dbn Sir Albert HBPE 040 Kowie 060 Kowie 440 M&S 462 NGR Dbn & Pmb NGR I 262 NGR K 040 NGR K 060 NGR K 260 NZASM 10T NZASM 14T NZASM 18T NZASM 19T NZASM 32T NZASM 40T PPR 26T PPR 35T SAR RM SAR 0-4-0ST SAR 040 69 SAR A SAR B SAR C SAR C1 SAR C2 SAR D SAR E SAR F SAR G SAR H SAR H1 SAR H2 SAR J SAR K SWA 2-8-0T Cape gauge Tender CGR 1st 260 1876 BP CGR 1st 260 1876 K CGR 1st 260 1879 CGR 1st 440 1879 CGR 1st 1881 CGR 1st 1891 CGR 2nd 1875 CGR 3rd 1883 CGR 3rd 1884 CGR 3rd 1889 CGR 3rd 1898 CGR 3rd 1901 CGR 3rd 1903 CGR 4th 1880 CGR 4th 1882 CGR 4th 1884 CGR 4th 1897 CGR 5th 1890 CGR 5th 1891 NGR Havelock NGR I 260 Exp-1 Exp-2 Exp-3 Exp-4 Exp-5 Exp-6 SAR S SAR S1 SAR S2 SAR 1 SAR 1A SAR 1B SAR 2 SAR 2C SAR 3 SAR 3A SAR 3B SAR 4 SAR 4A SAR 5 SAR 5A SAR 5B SAR 6 SAR 6A SAR 6B SAR 6C SAR 6D SAR 6E SAR 6F SAR 6G SAR 6H SAR 6J SAR 6K SAR 6L SAR 6Y SAR 6Z SAR 7 SAR 7A SAR 7B SAR 7C SAR 7D SAR 7E SAR 7F SAR 8 SAR 8A SAR 8B SAR 8C SAR 8D SAR 8E SAR 8F SAR 8X SAR 8Y SAR 8Z SAR 9 SAR 10 SAR 10A SAR 10B SAR 10C SAR 10D SAR 11 SAR 12 SAR 12A SAR 12B SAR 13 SAR 14 SAR 14A SAR 14B SAR 14C SAR 15 SAR 15A SAR 15B SAR 15C SAR 15CA SAR 15E SAR 15F SAR 16 SAR 16A SAR 16B SAR 16C SAR 16D SAR 16DA SAR 16E SAR 17 SAR 18 SAR 19 SAR 19A SAR 19B SAR 19C SAR 19D SAR 20 SAR 21 SAR 23 SAR 24 SAR 25 SAR 25NC SAR 26 SWA 2-8-0 Cape gauge Articulated CGR Fairlie CGR Kitson-Meyer SAR FC SAR FD SAR GA SAR GB SAR GC SAR GCA SAR GD SAR GDA SAR GE SAR GEA SAR GF SAR GG SAR GH SAR GK SAR GL SAR GM SAR GMA SAR GO SAR HF SAR KM SAR MA SAR MB SAR MC SAR MC1 SAR MD SAR ME SAR MF SAR MG SAR MH SAR MJ SAR MJ1 SAR U 2ft 6in gauge CCC 1871 CCC Britannia CCC Caledonia CCC Clara CCC Condenser CCC Scotia NCC Pioneer 2ft & 600mm gauges ACR NG-G16A CGR NG 060 CGR NG 462 CGR A CGR C NGR N SAR 040 1899 SAR NG1 SAR NG2 SAR NG3 SAR NG4 SAR NG5 SAR NG6 SAR NG7 SAR NG8 SAR NG9 SAR NG10 SAR NG-G11 SAR NG-G12 SAR NG-G13 SAR NG-G14 SAR NG15 SAR NG-G16 SWA Ha SWA Hb SWA Hc SWA Hd SWA Jung SWA Zwillinge Diesel -electric SAR DS SAR DS1 SAR 31-000 SAR 32-000 SAR 32-200 SAR 33-000 SAR 33-200 SAR 33-400 SAR 34-000 SAR 34-200 SAR 34-400 SAR 34-500 SAR 34-600 SAR 34-800 SAR 34-900 SAR 35-000 SAR 35-200 SAR 35-400 SAR 35-600 SAR 36-000 SAR 36-200 SAR 37-000 SN 39-000 TFR 39-200 TFR 43-000 SAR 91-000 Afro4000 -hydraulic SAR 61-000 Electro-diesel SN 38-000 Electric SAR ES SAR ES1 Exp-AC SAR 1E SAR 2E SAR 3E SAR 4E SAR 5E-S1 SAR 5E-S2 SAR 5E-S3 SAR 5E1-S1 SAR 5E1-S2 SAR 5E1-S3 SAR 5E1-S4 SAR 5E1-S5 SAR 6E SAR 6E1-S1 SAR 6E1-S2 SAR 6E1-S3 SAR 6E1-S4 SAR 6E1-S5 SAR 6E1-S6 SAR 6E1-S7 SAR 6E1-S8 SAR 6E1-S9 SAR 6E1-S10 SAR 6E1-S11 SAR 7E SAR 7E1 SAR 7E2-S1 SAR 7E2-S2 SAR 7E3-S1 SAR 7E3-S2 SN 7E4 SAR 8E SAR 9E-S1 SAR 9E-S2 SAR 10E SAR 10E1-S1 SAR 10E1-S2 SAR 10E2 SAR 11E SAR 12E SN 14E SN 14E1 TFR 15E SN 16E SN 17E SN 18E-S1 TFR 18E-S2 TFR 19E TFR 20E TFR 21E E38 List of South African locomotive classes Rail transport in South Africa