Everyone is aware of Pennsylvania's fleet of 425 K4s locomotives, the largest such class in the world. However, for another example of the pervasiveness of the Pacific locomotive type, consider this: as of January 1, 1946, in the New York Central diagram book, the number of J class 4-6-4 passenger locomotives was 274; the number of K class 4-6-2s was 368, although, in all fairness, 102 of the Pacifics were class K11, built as fast freight locomotives, and used for local freight to a certain extent. Forget about numbers for the moment: Of the "Trunk Lines" serving New York City, the "Anthracite Roads" and the New England lines, the New Haven and the Boston & Maine in particular, only the New York Ontario & Western did not roster Pacifics for passenger service. Of the four principal passenger-carrying railroads of the South, only one did not rely on Pacifics as their main passenger power. On the Atlantic Coast Line, the Louisville & Nashville and the Southern, Pacifics, supplemented on the Southern and the L&N; by a modest fleet of 69 inch drivered 4-8-2s, and on the ACL by 12 marginally successful 4-8-4s with 80 inch drivers, the Pacifics were the passenger locomotive until the arrival of the diesel. It should be noted that Pacifics came in a wide variety of designs, not too surprising for a class built for so many different roads over such a long period of time, They were built with driver diameters of as low as 67 inches up to 80 inches, and with steam pressures from 170 up to 250 psi. Further, they were built for many services; some for fast freight, others for dual service and many more, probably the most, for express passenger service. Tractive efforts ranged from 25/26.000 lbs to over 50,000 lbs.
West of the Mississippi, there was a similar pattern, although the transcontinentals tended to begin purchasing of 4-8-2s with relatively high (73 - 74 inch) drivers in the 1920s. One interesting sidelight is that the Union Pacific and the Southern Pacific both had Pacifics on a design similar to those on the Illinois Central. This was a result of all of these roads being controlled, from 1902 to 1913 by Edward H. Harriman, who was a great believer in standardization. 2
The Pacific, as a type, is generally considered to be an enlargement of the Atlantic (4-4-2), although it also had a direct relationship to the Ten-Wheeler (4-6-0) as well. 3 To show the relationship between the three classes, and to also show how rapidly locomotive designs were developing, consider the following examples:
Note that the LS&MS; 4-6-0 had its firebox inside the drivers. Effectively, high drivered locomotives of this wheel arrangement had gone as far as they could go, for there was no way in which locomotives with such high drivers could mount their boilers on top of the fireboxes and still meet clearance requirements, and, probably more significant, have sufficient stability. A few years later, the NYC was building dual service 4-6-0s with a 55 square foot grate, but these locomotives were equipped with 69-inch drivers, and the firebox would fit over the drivers.
The NYC&HR; 4-4-2 was a remarkable locomotive. All were equipped with superheaters during their career, and were very close in capability to the much larger Pennsylvania E6s Atlantic. But, the continued growth in the length of passenger trains, as well as the universal use of all steel cars, caused train weights to exceed the capacity of any two axle locomotive, even given the excellent track of the NYC.
ALCO's 50,000, which, as many readers are aware, had a long and successful career after its service as a demonstration locomotive as Erie 2509. It was one of, if not the first, example, of the "heavy" Pacific, designed and built to handle the passenger trains which were approaching 800/900 tons behind the tender, and at a time when such heavy trains were required to operate at speeds in the 60 mph range. It was the only one of the three examples to be superheated, with a superheating surface of 900 square feet. By later standards, it would have been considered "over cylindered", with 185 psi. and 27 x 28 inch cylinders. Possibly, the relatively low working pressure was a product of an attitude prior to the First World War that superheated locomotives could operate successfully with lower boiler pressure, resulting in lower fuel costs and less boiler maintenance, and, also, because of lubricating problems with high pressure superheated steam. Another possibility may have been nothing more complicated than a desire to keep a good factor of adhesion for a locomotive which, as a demonstrator, was going to operate on some railroads which did not have the sturdiest track in the United States.
The reason for the decline of the compound rigid frame locomotive in the United States was the general introduction of the Schmidt type superheater, which offered both fuel economy and better performance without the maintenance and construction costs of the compounds, although, in all truth, superheaters presented problems as well. So, most of the Santa Fe compound Pacifics were converted to two cylinder superheated locomotives, and enjoyed a long and successful service life. (During the mid 1920s, largely promoted by ALCO, there was considerable interest in three cylinder simple locomotives. There were a few three cylinder Pacifics built for Mexican service, but there was no series production of such Pacifics for any US or Canadian line.)
The "light" 4-6-2 was a beautifully balanced locomotive. It had a large boiler, as, indeed, did all of the USRA locomotives. 73 inch drivers were ideal for a period when train speeds (and, particularly, under wartime restrictions) when 70/75 mph speeds were sufficient. 25 x 28 cylinders were a good proportion, but the locomotive design had a starting tractive effort of over 40,000 lbs, at time when relatively few Pacifics had such a high starting tractive effort. The railroads to which these locomotives were assigned were the Atlantic Coast Line, which received 45, plus 25 non-USRA follow-ups; the Baltimore & Ohio, 30 units from the USRA, 15 subsequently, and the L&N;, which received 6, later ordering 20 more. One of the most interesting developments was on the ACL. This company ordered 165 further Pacifics, identical to the USRA ones, except that they had 69-inch drivers and 210 lbs boiler pressure. These Pacifics, with a starting tractive effort of 45,275 lbs. On the relatively flat route between Richmond and Savannah, these Pacifics had a freight tonnage rating of 4400 tons (unadjusted) in either direction. And, with their 69 inch drivers. they were more than capable of maintaining the moderate passenger train schedules of the 1920s and early 1930s. 5
The "heavy" was a somewhat more complicated design. Basically, it was a development of ALCO's 50,000, mentioned earlier, through ALCO built PRR 3395 of 1911, considered to be the precursor of the famous (deservedly so) PRR K4s class to what seems to have been a 79 inch drivered version of the K4s with a conventional firebox. The demand for Pacifics of such a capacity for tonnage and speed was rather limited; the NYC, for example, was content to compete successfully with the Pennsy with 79-inch drivers and only 30,000 or so pounds of starting tractive effort. Thus, the only railroad which received USRA 462B engines was the Erie, which got 20, and later ordered 11 more on its own. The only other railroad to order this design was the Chicago and Eastern Illinois, which required them for its part in handling Florida trains between Chicago and Evansville, Indiana. But, from the USRA heavy Pacific was developed one of the best known American steam locomotives, the Southern Railway Ps4 class. These engines, identical with the basic USRA designs except for 73-inch drivers, had a starting tractive effort of 45,000 lbs. Again, used in services which did not require maximum speeds with long trains on moderate grades, this was a type which, outside of the fact that they were one of the most attractive classes ever to run on steel rails, were outstanding performers. As was the case of all the classes enumerated above, they lasted as the main passenger power of their railroads until the diesel-electric came along to replace them. 6
Railroad Line | ALCO | Baldwin | Lima | Others | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alabama Great Southern | 12 | 5 | - | - | |
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe | - | 272 | - | 2 AT&SF; | |
Atlanta & West Point | 3 | - | 1 | - | |
Atlantic Coast Line | 81 | 275 | 2 | - | |
Baltimore & Ohio | 81 | 131 | - | 31 B&O; | |
Bangor & Aroostook | 5 | - | - | - | |
Bessemer Lake Erie | 4 | - | - | - | |
Boston & Maine | 96 | - | 10 | - | |
Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburgh | 22 | - | - | - | |
Canadian National | - | - | - | 313 MLW & CLC | |
Canadian Pacific | - | - | - | 498 CP, MLW & CLC | |
Central of Georgia | - | 25 | 4 | - | |
Central Railroad of New Jersey | - | 21 | - | - | |
Central Vermont | - | 3 | - | - | |
Chesapeake & Ohio | 56 | 17 | - | - | |
Chicago & Alton | 25 | 10 | - | - | |
Chicago & Eastern Illinois | 2 | 16 | 6 | - | |
Chicago & North Western | 242 | - | - | - | |
Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha | 40 | - | - | - | |
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy | 35 | 110 | - | - | |
Chicago Great Western | - | 8 | - | 29 CGW | |
Chicago, Indianapolis & Louisville | 25 | - | - | - | |
Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific | 124 | - | - | 47 CMSt.P&P; | |
Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific | 175 | - | - | - | |
Cincinnati, New Orleans & Texas Pacific | 23 | 10 | - | - | |
Clinchfield | - | 5 | - | - | |
Colorado & Southern | - | 11 | - | - | |
Delaware & Hudson | 10 | - | - | 3 D&H; | |
Delaware, Lackawanna & Western | 69 | - | 14 | - | |
Denver & Rio Grande Western | - | 6 | - | - | |
Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range | - | 7 | - | - | |
Erie | 92 | 53 | 5 | - | |
Florida East Coast | 87 | - | - | - | |
Fort Worth & Denver City | 5 | 7 | - | - | |
Georgia | 4 | - | - | - | |
Grand Trunk Western | 4 | 4 | - | - | |
Great Northern | 6 | 55 | 25 | 50 GN | |
Gulf, Mobile & Northern | 3 | 6 | - | - | |
Illinois Central | 169 | 11 | - | 62 IC | |
Kansas City Southern | 11 | - | - | - | |
Louisianna & Arkansas | 3 | - | - | - | |
Lehigh Valley | 12 | 58 | - | 51 LV | |
Louisville & Nashville | 49 | 14 | - | 83 L&N; | |
Maine Central | 26 | - | - | - | |
Mexican Railway | 4 | - | - | 3 MLW | |
Minneapolis & St. Louis | 5 | - | - | - | |
Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie | 62 | - | - | - | |
Missouri-Kansas-Texas | 49 | - | 15 | - | |
Missouri Pacific | 106 | - | - | - | |
Mobile & Ohio | - | 14 | - | - | |
Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis | - | 20 | - | - | |
Nacionales de Mexico | 7 | 28 | - | - | |
New York Central System | 835 | 145 | - | 53 NYC | |
New York, Chicago & St. Louis | 6 | - | 4 | - | |
New York, New Haven & Hartford | 111 | 27 | - | - | |
Norfolk & Western | 21 | 31 | - | 10 N&W; | |
Northern Pacific | 134 | 47 | - | - | |
Ontario Northland | - | - | - | 8, CLC | |
Pennsylvania | 12 | 106 | - | 568 PRR | |
Pittsburgh & West Virginia | 3 | - | - | - | |
Reading Company | - | 15 | - | 35 Reading | |
Richmond, Federicksburg & Potomac | 24 | 37 | - | - | |
Rutland | 6 | - | - | - | |
St. Louis-San Francisco | 30 | 40 | - | - | |
Seaboard Air Line | 35 | 45 | - | - | |
Southern Pacific Lines | 16 | 92 | 2 | 2 SP | |
Southern | 98 | 108 | - | - | |
Spokane, Portland & Seattle | - | 7 | - | - | |
Texas & Pacific | 15 | 7 | - | - | |
Toronto, Hamilton & Buffalo | - | - | - | 1, MLW | |
Union Pacfic | 52 | 133 | 26 | - | |
Virginian | 6 | - | - | - | |
Wabash | 10 | 6 | - | 23 Wabash | |
Western Maryland | - | 19 | - | - | |
Western Railway of Alabama | 3 | - | 1 | - |
No. | Class | F.M. Whyte | Gauge | Railroad Line | Location | Status | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1912 | 4-6-2 | 19" | Swanton Pacific | Swanton Pacific, Davenport, CA | operational | ||
1913 | 4-6-2 | 19" | Swanton Pacific | Swanton Pacific, Davenport, CA | restoration | ||
1914 | 4-6-2 | 19" | Swanton Pacific | Swanton Pacific, Davenport, CA | operational | ||
1915 | 4-6-2 | 19" | Overfair | California State Railroad Museum, Sacramento, CA | display | ||
2467 | P-8 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | SP | California State Railroad Museum, Sacramento, CA | display | on loan from PLA, Oakland |
2479 | P-10 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | SP | Santa Clara Co Fairgnds, S Hwy 101, San Jose, CA | restoration | |
2472 | P-8 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | SP | Niles Canyon Railway, Sunol, CA | operational | owned by the GGRM, |
148 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | FEC | siding, Monte Vista, CO | restoration | from Zerr's Historic Steam Train LLC, near C&O; engine house, Traverse City, MI, owned by Don Shank's D&RG; Historial Foundation | |
22 | 4-6-2 | ng | S Turkey Rd, Hwy 285, Tiny Town, CO | operational | |||
1246 | G5c | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CPR | Railroad Museum of New England, Waterville, CT | display | painted in April, 2002 |
1401 | Ps-4 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | SR | National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Museum, Washington, DC | display | Named Charlotte, |
1504 | USRAl | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | ACL | Prime F. Osborn Convention Center, Jacksonville, FL | display | |
113 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | FEC | Gold Coast Railroad Museum, Miami, FL | display | ||
153 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | FEC | Gold Coast Railroad Museum, Miami, FL | display | ||
107(88) | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | GAN(FEC) | Albany Union Passenger Terminal, 100 W Roosevelt Ave, Albany, GA | cosmetic restoration | , | |
290 | USRAh | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | A&WP | Southeastern Railway Museum, Duluth, GA | restoration | |
750(80) | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | S&A(FEC) | Southeastern Railway Museum, Duluth, GA | display | ||
1355 | H-5 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | GN | Siouxland Historical Railroad Association, Sioux City, IA | restoration | |
886 (887) | P-31 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CRI&P | Wheels O' Time Museum, Dunlap, IL | display | |
4-6-2 | 15" | Kiddiland, Melrose Park, IL | operational | ||||
938 | P-33 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CRI&P | Illinois Railway Museum, Union, IL | display | from Fort Worth |
3415 | 3400 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | AT&SF | Abilene & Smoky Hill RR, Abilene, KS | operational | photos, |
3416 | 3400 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | AT&SF | Brit Spaugh Park, Great Bend, KS | display | |
3424 | 3400 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | AT&SF | Highway Park, Kinsley, KS | display | |
152 | K-2A | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | L&N | Kentucky Railway Museum, New Haven, KY | operational | official steam locomotive of KY |
5300 | P7 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | B&O | B&O Railroad Museum, Baltimore, MD | display | Named President Washington |
202 | K-2 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | WM | Hagerstown City Park, Hagerstown, MD | display | |
470 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | MEC | park next to RR yard, Waterville, ME | display | ||
110 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | Little River | Little River Railroad, Coldwater, MI | operational | ||
3003 | 4-6-2 | 15" | Detroit Zoo, Detroit, MI | display | gasoline, | ||
5632 | K-4-b | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | GTW | near water tower, Durand, MI | display | |
730 | H-3 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | MSP&SSM | Penstar Complex, Gladstone, MI | display | cosmetically restored at E&LS; shops, Escanaba |
5030 | J-3-a | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | GTW | R.A. Greene Park, Jackson, MI | display | |
2719 | H-23 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | MSP&SSM | Lake Superior Transportation Museum, Duluth, MN | operational | from Altoona, Chippewa Valley Railroad, , , , , , , |
2153 | Q-3 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | NP | Minnesota Transportation Museum, St. Paul, MN | stored | from East Grand Forks |
2156 | Q-3 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | NP | Minnesota Transportation Museum, St. Paul, MN | restoration | |
5529 | K-1-d | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CNR | Museum of Transportation, St. Louis, MO | display | |
2164 | Q-3 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | NP | Camp Hancock State Historic Site, Bismarck, ND | display | |
735 | H-3 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | MSP&SSM | Roosevelt Park, Minot, ND | display | asbestos removed in 2004 |
3666 | P-2 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | B&M | harbor, Portsmouth, NH | sunk | |
1293 | G5d | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CPR | Ohio Central Railroad, Sugarcreek, OH | operational | used for special trips or non-public runs, |
1278 | G5d | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CPR | Ohio Central Railroad Shops, West Lafayette, OH | awaiting restoration | suffered crownsheet failure |
578 | E2a | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | N&W | Ohio Railway Museum, Worthington, OH | display | |
905 | P-33 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CRI&P | Fuqua Park, Hwy 81 & Beech Ave., Duncan, OK | display | |
3203 (197) | P-2 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | UP(OR&N) | SP Brooklyn roundhouse, Portland, OR | restoration | new cab |
425 | G-1 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | BM&R (GM&N) | RBM&N headquarters, Port Clinton, PA | operational | |
2317 | G3c | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CPR | Steamtown National Historic Site, Scranton, PA | operational | |
3713 | P-4 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | B&M | Steamtown National Historic Site, Scranton, PA | restoration | |
1361 | K4s | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | PRR | Steamtown National Historic Site, Scranton, PA | restoration | |
3750 | K4s | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | PRR | Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania, Strasburg, PA | display | was temporarily numbered 1737 after retirement |
5288 (516) | J-7-b | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CNR | TVRM, East Station, Chattanooga, TN | display | from Steamtown |
501 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CB&Q (FW&D) | R. Wright Armstrong Park, Childress, TX | display | ||
3417 | 3400 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | AT&SF | 3417ORG, Hulen Park, Cleburne, TX | restoration | |
500 (1316) | 137t | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | TSRR (AT&SF) | Texas State Railroad, Rusk, TX | operational | |
3423 | 3400 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | AT&SF | Railroad & Pioneer Museum, Temple, TX | display | moved to restored downtown depot |
1238 | G5c | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | AC(CPR) | Westinghouse spur, Verona, VA | stored serviceable | from Jack Showalter, Staunton, to Science Museum of Virginia, Richmond |
1286 | G5d | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | AC(CPR) | Westinghouse spur, Verona, VA | stored serviceable | from Jack Showalter, Staunton, to Science Museum of Virginia, Richmond |
3206 | P-1 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | UP(OR&N) | Spokane Co. Fairgrounds/Expo Center, Spokane, WA | display | |
2152 | Q-3 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | NP | Northern Pacific Railway Museum, Toppenish, WA | display | from Auburn, WA |
736 | H-3 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | MSP&SSM | Telulah Park, Appleton, WI | display | |
2714 | H-22 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | MSP&SSM | Lakeside Park, Fond Du Lac, WI | display | |
2718 | H-23 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | MSP&SSM | National Railroad Museum, Green Bay, WI | display | |
60008 (4496) | A4 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | BR(LNER) | National Railroad Museum, Green Bay, WI | display | Named Dwight D. Eisenhower, Three cylinder, |
4-6-2 | 16" | Whiskey River | Little A-Merrick-A Amusement Park, Marshall, WI | operational | named Oakland Acorn | ||
4-6-2 | 16" | Whiskey River | Little A-Merrick-A Amusement Park, Marshall, WI | operational | named Daylight, formerly Gene Autry from Melodie Ranch | ||
1919 | 4-6-2 | 16" | Whiskey River | Little A-Merrick-A Amusement Park, Marshall, WI | operational | named Lee W. Merrick | |
1924 | 4-6-2 | 15" | Milwaukee County Zoo, Milwaukee, WI | operational | |||
2713 | H-21 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | MSP&SSM | Depot Park, Stevens Point, WI | display | |
5270 | J-7-a | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CNR | City of M. Natural Park, Moncton, NB | display | |
593 | J-8-a | 4-6-2 | 42" | CNR(NR) | RY Society of Newfoundland, Corner Brook, NF | display | |
701 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | Temisk & N. ON | S of ONR station, Englehart, ON | display | ||
5107 | J-4-d | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CNR | CN station, Kapuskasing, ON | display | |
1201 | G5a | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CPR | Canada Science and Technology Museum, Ottawa, ON | stored | |
5588 | K-3-b | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CNR | Windsor Waterfront Park, Windsor, ON | restoration | Southern Ontario Locomotive Restoration Society, , |
2231 | G1v | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CPR | Canadian Railway Museum, Delson, QC | display | |
2341 | G3d | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CPR | Canadian Railway Museum, Delson, QC | display | |
5550 | K-2-b | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CNR | Canadian Railway Museum, Delson, QC | display | |
60010 | A4 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | LNER | Canadian Railway Museum, Delson, QC | display | Named Dominion of Canada, Three cylinder |
702 | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | QNS&L (ONR) | QNS&L Headquarters, Sept-Iles, QC | display | ||
5114 | J-4-d | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CNR | Regional Park RR Mus, Mellville, SK | display | |
2634 | G2u | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CPR | Western Dev Mus, Moose Jaw, SK | display | |
5080 | J-4-a | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CNR | Exhibition Grounds, Prince Albert, SK | display | |
5093 | J-4-c | 4-6-2 | 4'-8½" | CNR | Union Station/Casino, Regina, SK | display |
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