Durban Harbour's Congella

Durban Harbour's Congella of 1902 was a South African steam locomotive from the pre-Union era in the Colony of Natal.

Durban Harbour's Congella
Natal Harbours Department engine Congella, c. 1902
Type and origin Power type Steam Designer Hudswell, Clarke and Co. Builder Hudswell, Clarke and Co. Serial number 605 Build date 1902
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 0-4-0ST (Four-coupled)  • UIC Bn2t Driver 2nd coupled axle Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm) Cape gauge Coupled dia. 33 ^1⁄2 in (851 mm) Wheelbase 5 ft 6 in (1,676 mm) Length: ​  • Over couplers 20 ft 5 in (6,223 mm)  • Over beams 17 ft 11 in (5,461 mm) Height 9 ft 10 ^1⁄4 in (3,004 mm) Adhesive weight 12 LT 8 cwt (12,600 kg) Loco weight 12 LT 8 cwt (12,600 kg) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 10 long hundredweight (0.5 t) Water cap 390 imp gal (1,770 l) Firebox type Round-top  • Firegrate area 5.6 sq ft (0.52 m^2) Boiler: ​  • Pitch 4 ft 9 ^3⁄4 in (1,467 mm)  • Small tubes 58: 2 in (51 mm) Boiler pressure 160 psi (1,103 kPa) Safety valve Ramsbottom Heating surface 287.66 sq ft (26.724 m^2)  • Tubes 254.44 sq ft (23.638 m^2)  • Firebox 33.22 sq ft (3.086 m^2) Cylinders Two Cylinder size 10 in (254 mm) bore 16 in (406 mm) stroke Valve gear Stephenson Couplers Johnston link-and-pin
Performance figures Tractive effort 5,731 lbf (25.49 kN) @ 75%
Career Operators Harbours Department of Natal Number in class 1 Official name Congella Delivered 1902 First run 1902

In 1902, the Harbours Department of the Natal Government placed a single 0–4–0 saddle-tank locomotive named Congella in service as dock shunting engine in Durban Harbour.[1]

Port Advisory Board

In 1898, a Port Advisory Board was established in Durban, consisting of seven members who represented the Colonial Government as well as commercial and municipal entities. The board was responsible for the management, control, improvement, development and maintenance of the facilities at Durban Harbour.[1]

Railway operations in the harbour became the responsibility of the Harbours Department of the Government of Natal.[2]

Manufacturer

In 1902, the Natal Harbours Department placed a single 0-4-0ST locomotive in service at Durban Harbour. It was built by Hudswell, Clarke and Company of Leeds and was not numbered, but named Congella.[1]

Service

The fate of the locomotive is not known. The engine Congella was no longer in service at the harbour when the South African Railways and Harbours classification and renumbering scheme was executed in 1912.[3]

References

1. Holland, D. F. (1972). Steam Locomotives of the South African Railways. 2: 1910-1955 (1st ed.). Newton Abbott, Devon: David & Charles. pp. 115, 129. ISBN 978-0-7153-5427-8.
2. Harbours Department of the Government of Natal
3. Classification of S.A.R. Engines with Renumbering Lists, issued by the Chief Mechanical Engineer's Office, Pretoria, January 1912. (Reprinted in April 1987 by SATS Museum, R.3125-6/9/11-1000)