About the identity of OHE 92 110

(by Ingo Hütter)

Still uncertain is the identity of the OHE steam locomotive 92 110. The data given on pages 31/32 of the OHE book are according to the latest research results evidently not correct. To start a discussion on this locomotive all known facts shall be described first.

The OHE railway created card files for all of their locomotives. The card of 92 110 is shown below.

According to these official data the former locomotive 10 the the light railway Celle-Wittingen was built in 1915 by Union in Königsberg with the works number 9226. This number is given as the works number of boiler and frame.
But apparently not all data in this card file are correct, as the given year of reception (1925) must be wrong. From the known business reports until 1936 it is known that no former class 92 locomotive was bought. And also the official stock list of 1925 doesn't contain a locomotive No. 10.

On the other hand the same boiler data can be found in the OHE inventory of 1948:

The problem is, that these data can't be right, as the ever highest Union works number has been 2842. So it was assumed, that 9226 was a writing error and that 2226 has been the real works number, as this number actually belonged to a T13 built in 1915. That locomotive was delivered as "BRO 7909 T13", came in 1918 or 1920 to Poland (PKP TKp1-26) and 1941 to the "Deutsche Reichsbahn" with the number 92 973. The railway Celle-Wittingen shall have bought this locomotive in 1943. But there are some hints, that the above described assumption is wrong. The PKP renumbering plan of 1946 mentions, that the DRB 92 973 became the new PKP TKp1-46. And the PKP boiler list gives as boiler of TKp1-46 "Union 15/ 2226". So it is quite certain, that 92 973 actually came into the PKP stock after WWII.

The whole story even becomes a bit more problematic by the fact, that there existed another T13 which actually carried the works number 9226. With this number the Hanomag delivered in 1919 a locomotive to the "Großherzoglich Oldenburgische Eisenbahn" (GOE) which nunmbered it "277 RECKE". In 1925 the DRB renumbere the locomotive to 92 912. After WWII the locomotive was in Russia.

Based on all these data I came to the following assumption: It hasn't been unusual to change boilers between different locomotives, so it might be possible that the boiler of the GOE locomotive came during the 1920ies or 30ies on the frame of a locomotive built in 1915 by Union. Maybe the frame didn't have a plate with the frame works number anymore, so the OHE used the works number of the Hanomag boiler together with the builder of the frame. If this assumption is correct, there must have been at least one locomotive built in 1915 by Union with unknown fate - this locomotive would be a candidate for the OHE 92 110. There is actually one locomotive matching these criteria: With the Union works number 2230 the "KAT 7962 T13" was built, which was renumbered "OPP 7962" in 1922 and 92 802 in 1925.

So the question is: Was DRB 92 802 the later OHE 92 110? As already described this is an assumption only. If one of the reader is able to add some more details to this puzzle, the author would be very greatful.