Great Western Railway Dean Express 2-4-0

In the late 1880s, when the broad gauge was nearing its end, William Dean still saw the demand for fast express locomotives. Their task were trains between London and Bristol which had to run at a constant high speed. The result were the numbers 14 and 16 built in 1888 at Swindon which only operated in their original form until 1892 when all broad gauge operations were stopped and the lines re-gauged. They had the wheel arrangement 2-4-0, drivers of seven feet and a large, long boiler. In 1892, they were rebuilt into standard gauge 4-4-0 locomotives. Named “Charles Saunders” and “Brunel”, now formed the Armstrong class together with two other rebuilt ex broad gauge locomotives. They were rebuilt again from 1915 and became members of the Flower class.