Milwaukee Road class F7

**Milwaukee Road class F7**
Power type	Steam
Class F7 leading the Midwest Hiawatha past Tower B17, Bensenville, Illinois, May 1943
Builder	ALCO
Serial number	69064–69069
Build date	August–September 1938
Total production	6
Gauge	4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm)
Driver size	84 in (2.13 m)
Wheelbase	89 ft 10 in (including tender)
Length	100 ft 0 in (30.48 m)
Axle load	72,250 lb (32,770 kg)
Weight on drivers	216,000 lb (98,000 kg)
Locomotive and tender combined weight	791,000 lb (359,000 kg)
Tender capacity	50,000 lb (22,500 kg) coal, 16,700 US gallons (63,200 L) water
Boiler pressure	300 lbf/in² (2.07 MPa)
Fire grate area	96.5 ft² (9.0 m²)
Heating surface: Total	4,166 ft² (387 m²)
Superheater area	1,695 ft² (157 m²)
Cylinders	2
Cylinder size	23.5×30 in (597×762 mm)
Tractive effort	50,294 lbf (223.72 kN)
Career	Milwaukee Road
Number	100–105
Retired	November 1949 to August 1951
Disposition	All scrapped

The Milwaukee Road's class F7 comprised six (#100–#105) high-speed, streamlined 4-6-4 "Baltic" or "Hudson" type steam locomotives built by ALCO in 1937–38 to haul the Milwaukee's Hiawatha express passenger trains. Following on from the success of the road's class A 4-4-2s, the F7s allowed the road to haul longer trains on the popular Chicago–Twin Cities Hiawatha routes.

[edit] See also

CNW Class E-4 - nine very similar 4-6-4 locomotives built for the Milwaukee's Chicago competitor, the Chicago and North Western Railway.

Benn, Bryan. Fastest Steam Locomotive. Retrieved on 2006-01-09.
Ross, Don. Chicago Milwaukee St. Paul & Pacific: Class F7 4-6-4 Hiawatha Atlantics. Don's Rail Photos. Retrieved on 2006-01-09.
Hollingsworth, Brian and Cook, Arthur (2001). The Great Book of Trains. Osceola, Wisconsin: MBI Publishing. ISBN 0-7603-1193-5.
Reed, Brian (1972). Loco Profile 26 - The Hiawathas. Windsor, Berkshire, UK: Profile Publications Ltd.
Edson, William D. (Spring 1977). "Milwaukee Road Locomotives". Railroad History (136): 28–129. The Railway and Locomotive Historical Society, Inc..