North British Locomotive Company

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The North British Locomotive Company (NBL) was created in 1903 through the merger of three Glasgow locomotive manufacturing companies;
  • Sharp, Stewart and Company (Atlas Works, Springburn)
  • Neilson, Reid and Company (Hyde Park Works, Springburn)
  • Dübs and Company (Queens Park Works, Polmadie).

Diamond NBL builders plate on Steam loco WD600, No.25437 of 1943 Photo by Dysgraphyk


  • The different works perpetuated different styles of works plate: Oval for Atlas works, Round for Hyde Park, Diamond for Queen's Park.
    • Locos built at the Hyde Park works continued to be fitted with round work plates (until 1942?)
    • From around 1943, the diamond works plates omitted which factory constructed the locomotive.
    • The Electric and Diesel-Electric locos built included "The General Electric Company Ltd" on the plate, but omitted 'Glasgow'.
Atlas works plate No.20153 of 1913
Queens Park Works plate, No.24154 of 1935
Hyde Park Works plate, No.24607 of 1940
NBL-GEC builders plate, No.27867 of 1959

  • Atlas works built its last steam loco in 1923. During 1952 fourty SAR class 4E Electric locos were erected there.
  • The last steam locomotive NBL built for British Railways was Class B1 61399, (NBL 26858) to service 22/04/1952.
  • In the late 1950s North British signed a deal with the German company MAN to construct diesel engines under licence at Atlas works.

  • South African Railways (SAR) Class GMA No. 4140 (NBL 27792), was the last steam locomotive built by the NBL in 1958. (per Wikipedia).


SAR Class 15F 3007 on display in George Square Glasgow on 24th August 2007 Photo by class47man


Outside Hyde Park Works, Springburn, 1960. British Railways class 84, class 43 Warship and class 21. Photo by SCRAN www.scran.ac.uk)


Diesel and Electric locomotives built by NBL for British Railways

Type & Wheel Arrangement Rating Engines Orders Quantity BR Region Works First to Service Last to Service 1968 class Final Withdrawal
Type 1 DE Bo‑Bo 827hp Paxman L977 1 LMR QP 10800 29/06/1950 n/a ~ 08/08/1959
Shunter DH 0-4-0 200hp Paxman L14, L44 8 ER/ScR QP 11700 25/07/1953 11707 02/02/1956 ~ 03/02/1968
Shunter DH 0-4-0 225hp M.A.N. L81, L93, L102 73 ScR QP 11708 16/07/1957 D2780 09/03/1961 ~ 03/02/1968
Type 4 DH A1A‑A1A 2000hp M.A.N. (x2) L76 5 WR QP D600 24/01/1958 D604 20/01/1959 ~ 31/12/1967
Shunter DH 0-4-0 330hp M.A.N. L88, L101 14 ER/LMR QP D2900 15/04/1958 D2913 31/12/1959 ~ 11/02/1967
Type 1 DE Bo‑Bo 800hp Paxman L78 10 ER HP D8400 30/05/1958 D8409 26/09/1958 Class 16 30/09/1968
Type 2 DE Bo‑Bo 1000hp* $ M.A.N. L79, L94 58 ER/ScR HP D6100 02/12/1958 D6157 07/12/1960 Class 21 $ 31/12/1971
Type 2 DH B‑B 1000hp* M.A.N. L77, L97 58 WR QP D6300 12/01/1959 D6357 13/11/1962 Class 22 01/01/1972
Type AL4 Bo‑Bo n/a L91 10 LMR HP E3036 08/03/1960 E3045 12/03/1961 Class 84 30/11/1980
Type 4 DH B‑B 2200hp M.A.N. (x2) L100 33 WR HP/QP D833 06/07/1960 D865 28/06/1962 Class 43 03/10/1971
* Later locos rated at 1100hp. | $ 20 of Type 2 DE locos rebuilt with 1350hp Paxman engines, Class 29. | 117xx series later renumbered to D27xx.



  • Of its three works, Hyde Park at Springburn was closed late 1961 and several uncompleted Type 4 diesel-hydraulics for the W.R. were moved to the Queens Park works at Polmadie to be finished. The Atlas works, which concentrated on diesel engines, has been in the process of clearance; its men and machinery were also being transferred to Queens Park. The company's large office administration block has lately been acquired by Glasgow Corporation for conversion into a college of engineering and most of the office staff have moved to Queens Park. (Modern Railways, June 1962)
  • Having failed to gain any significant orders for locomotives after 1958, North British declared that it was entering voluntary liquidation on 19 April 1962.
  • The final locomotive for British Railways (Western Region), type 2 diesel-hydraulic D6357 was delivered from NBL to Swindon Works on 04/11/62.


Preserved NBL built Steam locos in Scotland.

  • SAR Class GMAN 4112 - Summerlee - Museum of Scottish Industrial Life
  • SAR Class 15F 3007 - Riverside Museum Glasgow
  • GSWR 0-6-0T No. 9 - Riverside Museum Glasgow
  • GNSR Class F - 49 'Gordon Highlander' - Bo'ness
  • Stanier Class 8F - WD554 - Bo'ness


See Also


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