Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-8-0 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle (usually in a leading truck), eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and no trailing wheels. In the US, this wheel arrangement is commonly called a Consolidation.[1]
Other equivalent classifications are:
UIC classification: 1D (also known as German classification and Italian classification)
French classification: 140 (also known as Spanish classification)
Turkish classification: 45
Swiss classification: 4/5
Russian classification: 1-4-0
Contents[hide] |
Of all the locomotive types that were created and experimented with in the early part of the 19th century, the 2-8-0 was a relative latecomer. Total US production of the class totalled 'more than 33,000' locomotives of which '12,000 export versions' went to the rest of the world.[2] The 2-6-0, often considered the logical forerunner to the 2-8-0, was first created in the early 1860s.
The first locomotive of this wheel arrangement was likely built by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), but like the first 2-6-0s, this first 2-8-0 had a leading axle that was rigidly attached to the locomotive's frame. To create this 2-8-0, the PRR's master mechanic John P. Laird modified an existing 0-8-0, the Bedford between 1864 and 1865. However, in his book, Swengel claims the first 2-8-0 engine was ordered by Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad (USA) and that railway named all its engines. The name given to the new locomotive was "Consolidation". Swengel further claimed the Lehigh 2-8-0 evolved from the 0-8-0 locomotives - rather than a 2-6-0.
Swengel dates the first 2-8-0 order by Lehigh as 1866 and claims that the other railways and coal and mountain freight haulers '...then...got on the bandwagon'.[3] Swengel claims that the 2-8-0 design was "The" heavy freight locomotive from its inception, in 1866, into the early Twentieth century; namely 1915 as at that stage they reached the practical limit of their design.[4] There was no further growth possible with this class of locomotive.[5] The 2-8-0s' forte was starting and moving 'impressive loads at unimpressive speeds', and its versatility gave the class its longevity.[6]
Only a few railroads purchased this locomotive type upon its introduction by Baldwin. Even the Baltimore & Ohio, which had nearly 180 of this locomotive type in regular service by 1885, didn't purchase any of this type until 1873. The Rochester and Pittsburgh purchased fifteen of this class from Brooks in 1883, with numbers in the 17 through 36 range. (The BR&P eventually became part of the B&O.)
The 2-8-0 design was given a major boost in 1875 when the PRR made it the railroad's standard freight locomotive. 1875 was also the year that the Erie Railroad began replacing its 4-4-0s in freight service with 2-8-0s. The railroads found that the 2-8-0 could move trains twice as heavy for half the cost of their earlier brethren. From a financial standpoint, the choice of freight locomotives was clear. One of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad's 2-8-0 Consolidations, built in 1888, is preserved at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, Maryland.
The 2-8-0 was also a popular type in Europe, again largely as a freight hauler.
To compensate for wartime losses, Belgian railways in 1946 acquired 300 2-8-0 locomotives built in Canada (160 built by Montreal Locomotive Works and 60 by Canadian Locomotive Company) and the United States (80 built by American Locomotive Company). These machines proved to be very reliable and were used for mixed traffic until the end of the steam period, when 29.013 hauled the last scheduled steam passenger train from Ath to Denderleeuw on December 20, 1966. This machine survived in preservation and is used on special excursions. On December 16, 2006, 29.013 re-enacted the last 1966 run on the same route.[7][8]
The 2-8-0 enjoyed a brief period of popularity in Germany during the period of the state railways (Länderbahnen) prior to the establishment of the Deutsche Reichseisenbahnen (German National Railways) in 1920. The DRG chose the 2-10-0 as the heavy freight locomotive type for the new, unified rail system. Under the DRG's classification system, all 2-8-0s were assigned to Class 56 (Baureihe or BR 56), with different types receiving sub-classifications. The earliest type was the Prussian G73 of 1893.
In Russia the 2-8-0 engines were represented by the pre-revolutionary Sch(Shuka-pike) class. These were 2-cylinder compound locomotives and had no superheater. These locomotives were declared the standard freight locomotive in 1912. Since they were relatively low-power locomotives they were only good in relatively plain railroads, like Saint Petersburg-Moscow road, for example. The Sch class was quickly superseded by the E-class 2-10-0 locomotive.
The 2-8-0 gradually became the standard heavy freight steam locomotive type in the first half of the 20th Century. The first 2-8-0 built in Britain was the Great Western Railway's 2800 Class with 84 locomotives built between 1903 and 1919, followed by a further 83 of the very similar GWR 2884 Class between 1938 and 1942. In 1904 George Whale of the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) began to rebuild some of his predecessor's 0-8-0 compound locomotives as 2-8-0 simple expansion.
John G. Robinson of the Great Central Railway (GCR) introduced his very successful GCR Class 8K in 1911 for heavy freight. 129 of these were originally built by the GCR. The design was adopted by the Ministry of Munitions and became the standard locomotive during the First World War as the ROD 2-8-0, used by the Railway Operating Division of the Royal Engineers. 521 ROD locomotives were built. Large numbers of these were purchased after the war by the LNWR and GWR and the remaining 273 were purchased by the London and North Western Railway during the early 1920s. Other successful 2-8-0 designs were introduced by Nigel Gresley of the Great Northern Railway in 1913 and 1918 (classes O1 and O2), and Henry Fowler for the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway (S&DJR 7F 2-8-0) in 1914.
The most successful British 2-8-0 class was the 8F designed by William Stanier for the London Midland and Scottish Railway in 1935. 852 had been built by 1946. During the Second World War the War Department (WD) originally chose the 8F as its standard freight locomotive and large numbers saw service overseas, notably in the Middle East. The type was however superseded by the cheaper WD Austerity 2-8-0 for war service after 1943. A total of 935 of these were built, and again many saw service overseas.
The 2-8-0 locomotive saw extensive use throughout the various Australian and New Zealand private railways. The 2-8-0s appeared on the broad, standard and narrow gauges as a freight locomotive, though often also employed in passenger service in Victoria Australia.
The first locomotive in this wheel arrangement was twenty (20), NSWGR J Class engines, which arrived from Baldwin in 1891; they were standard gauge. The J's remained in service, in NSW, until 1915, when they were withdrawn; however war time shortages during 1916-1920 saw six engines re-shopped and fitted with superheaters. The last engine of this class was withdrawn in 1934 and all were scrapped by 1937.
The second batch of 2-8-0 locomotives to appear in Australia, in 1896, was the NSWGR T class engines. The class had several overseas builders; Beyer Peacock made 151 engines; North British Co. constructed 84, Neilson & Co. constructed 10, Clyde Engineering 30, and Dubbs & Co. 5 machines. All were in service by 1916. During World War II, 14 of these locomotives were given superheaters, which raised the tractive effort from 28,777 lbs to 33,557 lbs. Several of these same class T engines were also purchased from North British Co by the Commonwealth Railways for the trans Australian railway during 1916. Some of the T series were purchased by the private line East Greta Railway (later South Maitland) in 1912 but were converted to operate as 2-8-2 tanks. The class, was a successful engine throughout its long life, before retiring from government revenue service in 1973.
In 1924 the private coal company J&A Brown in NSW obtained three of ex-British ROD 2-8-0. Later Brown ordered another ten engines but only nine of that order arrived in Australia. The last was withdrawn in 1973.
Victorian Railways also used a range of broad gauge 2-8-0 locomotives commencing from 1899. The first engines in this classification were the V class Baldwin engines. These engines were also built at Ballarat's Phoenix Foundry. They vanished from the VR by 1930.
The next type was the 26 C class engines which saw freight and passenger service. In 1922, a smaller lighter 2-8-0, the K class was introduced for branch line freight (and later, passenger) services. Finally the VR introduced 60 light 2-8-0 J class engines in 1954 and they also operated freight and passenger services.
The first 2-8-0 engine in private service on Western Australia's Midland Railway arrived in 1912. There were 5 in the class and they operated until 1958 and all were gone by 1963. These were narrow gauged 3 ft 6 in locomotives (for Australian references see below).
Several 2-8-0 engines were supplied by the Baldwin Locomotive Works of Philadelphia. Six O Class locomotives were built for the New Zealand Railways Department in 1885. The Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company (WMR) which operated the Wellington - Manawatu Line had five similar locomotives built by Baldwin in 1888 (2), 1894 (1) and 1896 (1). Because of detail differences they were classified in 1908 when the WMR was nationalised into three classes: Ob class, Oa class and Oc class respectively. The WMR locomotives of 1894 and 1896 (No. 12 and No. 13) were Vauclain compounds, the first in New Zealand and the first narrow-gauge compounds in the world. Although standard-gauge compounds usually had the larger low-pressure cylinder on each side below the high-pressure cylinder, this was usually reversed on narrow-gauge locomotives which had the low-pressure cylinder above the high-pressure cylinder to provide greater clearance from platforms.
The 2-8-0 type was not widely used in Africa.
The first two 2-8-0 locomotives were imported in 1901 from the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) (Class 8R), and a further order for 14 (Class 8X) in 1902. Kitson and Company supplied four similar locomotives in 1903 (Class 8Y) and the North British Locomotive Company eight in 1904 (Class 8Z).[9] Two experimental 2-8-0 compound locomotives were supplied by (ALCO) to the Cape Government Railways in 1902 and 1903.[10]
|