Namaqualand 0-6-0T 1871

Namaqualand 0-6-0T
Namaqualand Railway mule train, c. 1876
Type and origin Power type Steam Designer Lilleshall Company Builder Lilleshall Company Serial number 171, 190 Build date 1870, 1871
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 0-6-0T (Six-coupled)  • UIC Cn2t Gauge 2 ft 6 in (762 mm) Namaqualand Coupled dia. 22 in (559 mm) Adhesive weight 6 LT 10 cwt (6,604 kg) Loco weight 6 LT 10 cwt (6,604 kg) Tender weight 3 LT (3,048 kg) Fuel type Coal Boiler pressure 100 psi (689 kPa) normal working 120 psi (827 kPa) maximum Cylinders Two Cylinder size John King: 6 in (152 mm) bore 12 in (305 mm) stroke Miner: 7 in (178 mm) bore 14 in (356 mm) stroke
Performance figures Tractive effort 1,473 lbf (6.55 kN) @ 100 psi (689 kPa) 1,760 lbf (7.8 kN) @ 120 psi (827 kPa)
Career Operators Cape Copper Mining Company Number in class 2 Official name John King & Miner Delivered 1871 First run 1871

The Namaqualand 0-6-0T of 1871 were two South African steam locomotives from the pre-Union era in the Cape of Good Hope.

In 1871, two 2 feet 6 inches (762 millimetres) gauge tank locomotives with a 0-6-0 wheel arrangement were placed in service by the Cape Copper Mining Company. They were the first steam locomotives to enter service on the hitherto mule-powered Namaqualand Railway between Port Nolloth and the Namaqualand copper mines around O'okiep in the northwestern Cape of Good Hope.

The Cape Copper Company had its origin in the Cape Copper Mining Company, which was established in 1862 or 1863 as the Cape of Good Hope Copper Mining Company, to take over the copper mining properties of Phillips & King, an enterprise which had been involved in copper mining in Namaqualand since the 1850s. John King, one of the members of the defunct Phillips & King, was appointed a director of the new mining company. The Cape Copper Mining Company was restructured as the Cape Copper Company in 1888.

Copper ore had to be transported by ox wagon from the mines around O'okiep to the harbour at Port Nolloth on the West Coast. The poor roads through mountainous areas hindered development of the mines and the already high transport cost was often aggravated by droughts and animal sickness. This eventually led to the decision by the mining company to build a light railway between the port and the mines, on advice from civil engineer R. Thomas Hall, Superintendent of the narrow gauge Redruth and Chacewater Railway in Cornwall.

The proposed construction of a narrow gauge railway in the Cape of Good Hope dates back to 1854, when the board of the Cape Town Railway and Dock Company considered a proposal to construct a railway between Port Nolloth and O'okiep in Namaqualand. Since they were not empowered to authorise such construction, the proposal was forwarded to the London board with a recommendation for its favourable consideration.

The first 48 miles (77 kilometres) long section of the Namaqualand Railway, from Port Nolloth to Nonams, was authorised by the Cape Government under Act no. 4 of 1869 and construction of the 2 feet 6 inches (762 millimetres) gauge railway commenced on 4 September 1869. Anenous, to the west of Nonams, was reached on 1 January 1871. Nonams was bypassed by the railway and Steinkopf was reached in 1873. The 93 ¹⁄₂ miles (150 kilometres) long line between Port Nolloth and O'okiep was opened for mule traction on 1 January 1876.