William Crooks (locomotive)
| William Crooks |
| Power type |
Steam |
| Builder |
New Jersey Locomotive and Machine Works |
| Build date |
1861, rebuilt 1869 after 1867 fire |
| Configuration |
4-4-0 |
| Gauge |
4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
| Driver diameter |
63 in (1.600 m) |
| Weight on drivers |
35,950 pounds (16.3 t) |
| Locomotive weight |
55,400 lb (25.1 t) |
| Boiler pressure |
110 psi (0.76 MPa) |
| Cylinders |
Two |
| Cylinder size |
12 × 22 in (305 × 559 mm) |
| Tractive effort |
4,700 lbf (20.91 kN) |
| Career |
St. Paul and Pacific Railroad, Saint Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railway, Great Northern Railway |
| Class |
1 |
| Number |
1 |
| First run |
June 1862 |
| Retired |
September 1897 |
| Current owner |
Minnesota Historical Society, loaned to Lake Superior Railroad Museum |
| Disposition |
static display at Lake Superior Railroad Museum |
William Crooks, named after the Superintendent of the Minnesota and Pacific RR [1] was the first locomotive to operate in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Constructed in 1861 for the Minnesota and Pacific Railroad as their number 1,[2] it first provided service a year later in 1862 for the St. Paul and Pacific Railroad.[2] The St.P&P passed to the Saint Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba Railway in June 1879,[3] and the St.PM&M passed to the Great Northern Railway in February 1890.[4] James J. Hill had the locomotive pull his personal train. It is reported that he was responsible for saving it from the scrap heap when engines of its vintage were being replaced by faster and more powerful vehicles. The classic 4-4-0 is one of the only locomotives from the age of the American Civil War to survive to the present day.
William Crooks was displayed at the 1939 New York World's Fair and again at the Chicago Railroad Fair in 1948 where it was operated as part of the "Wheels A-Rolling" pageant. Its cylinders, rods and bearings were all rebuilt at the Great Northern's Dale Street Shops in St. Paul, MN in 1947-48 by machinist George A. Halvorsen as his last job before retirement. It was displayed at the Saint Paul Union Depot from June 1954,[2] before being donated to the Minnesota Historical Society in June 1962.[2] It currently resides at the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in Duluth, Minnesota. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, reference number 74002403. Important Note: The original William Crooks locomotive, built in 1861, was destroyed in a fire at St. Paul in 1867. The locomotive was "rebuilt" in 1869, and that is the locomotive that still exists today.
Photo gallery
Notes
- ^ Wills, Jocelyn. Boosters, Hustlers and Speculators: Entrepreneurial Culture and the Rise of Minneapolis and St. Paul 1849-1883. Minnesota Historical Society, St. Paul, MN p. 105. 2005
- ^ a b c d Norman & Middleton (1980). p.40
- ^ Middleton & Norman (1980). pp.14–15
- ^ Middleton & Norman (1980). p.15
References
- Wills Boosters, Hustlers and Speculators St. Paul MN Hist. Soc. 2005
- Chicago Railroad Fair Official Guide Book (1949).
- Middleton, Kenneth R.; Keyes, Norman C., Jr. (Autumn 1980). "The Great Northern Railway Company: Predecessors and Fully-Controlled Subsidiaries". Railroad History (Boston, Massachusetts: The Railway and Locomotive Historical Society, Inc.) (143): 8–19. ISSN 0090-7847.
- Keyes, Norman C., Jr.; Middleton, Kenneth R. (Autumn 1980). "The Great Northern Railway Company: All-Time Locomotive Roster, 1861–1970". Railroad History (Boston, Massachusetts: The Railway and Locomotive Historical Society, Inc.) (143): 20–162. ISSN 0090-7847.
- Family History- George Antonius Halvorsen 1881-1959.
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