USRA 0-8-0
Class of American two-cylinder 0-8-0 locomotives
The USRA 0-8-0 was a USRA standard class of steam locomotive designed under the control of the United States Railroad Administration, the nationalized railroad system in the United States during World War I. This was the standard heavy switcher locomotive of the USRA types, and had an wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, or "D" in UIC classification.
A total of 175 locomotives were built under USRA control; these were sent to the following railroads:
After the dissolution of the USRA, an additional 1,200 copies of the USRA 0-8-0 were built for many railroads, There is a known survivor of this Type, Republic Steel Corp. #285, which is an ALCO (Richmond) product built in 1925. It is now preserved at the Kentucky Railway Museum in New Haven, Kentucky. It is unknown if any more USRA 0-8-0s of this type exist.
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United States Railroad Administration
WWI-era temporary railroad nationalization program
The United States Railroad Administration (USRA) was the name of the nationalized railroad system of the United States between December 28, 1917, and March 1, 1920. It was the largest American experiment with nationalization, and was undertaken against a background of war emergency following American entry into World War I. During its brief existence, the USRA made major investments in the United States railroad system, and introduced standardized locomotive and railroad car classes, known as USRA standard. After the end of World War I, while some in the United States advocated for continuing nationalization, ultimately the railroads were returned to their previous owners in early 1920.
Background.
Although the carriers had made massive investments in the first years of the 20th century, there remained inadequacies in terminals, trackage, and rolling stock. Inflation struck the American economy, and when in 1906 Congress empowered the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) to set maximum shipping rates, the rail firms had difficulty securing revenue sufficient to keep pace with rising costs. The ICC did allow some increases in rates, however. Ownership of the United States rail network was divided among 441 distinct corporations. Investors had overexpanded the nation's trackage, so by late 1915 fully one-sixth of the railroad trackage in the country belonged to roads in receivership (bankruptcy). The national railway investment of $17.5 billion, of which more than half was funded by debt, had an estimated worth of $16 billion.
European nations engaged in World War I ordered $3 billion of munitions from United States factories; and most of this production was routed through a few Atlantic port cities. Terminal facilities in these cities were not designed to handle the resulting volume of export tonnage, though German destruction of Allied cargo ships was ultimately a bigger problem. Thousands of loaded railroad cars were delayed awaiting transfer of their contents to ships; they were essentially used as warehouses. This resulted in a shortage of railroad cars to move normal freight traffic. The United States' declaration of war on April 6, 1917, increased rail congestion by requiring movement of soldiers from induction points through training facilities to embarkation points.
The railroad unions (commonly called "brotherhoods"), desiring shorter working days and better pay, threatened strike action in the second half of 1916. To avert a strike, President Woodrow Wilson secured Congressional passage of the Adamson Act, which set the eight-hour work day as the industry standard. When the Supreme Court ruled the law constitutional, the carriers had no choice but to comply.
The railroads attempted to coordinate their efforts to support the war by creating the Railroads' War Board, but private action ran into anti-trust and other regulatory barriers. Observers noted, for example, that sometimes competitive practices prevailed that were not in the best interests of efficient mobilization. Also, government departments sought priority for shipment made on their behalf, and congestion in freight yards, terminals, and port facilities became staggering.
Finally, in December 1917 the ICC recommended federal control of the railroad industry to ensure efficient operation. The takeover measures were to go beyond simply easing the congestion and expediting the flow of goods; they were to bring all parties—management, labor, investors, and shippers—together in a harmonious whole working on behalf of the national interest. President Wilson issued an order for nationalization on December 26, 1917. This action had been authorized by the Army Appropriations Act of 1916. Federal control extended over the steam and electric railroads with their owned or controlled systems of coastwise and inland water transportation, terminals, terminal companies, terminal associations, sleeping and parlor cars, private cars, private car lines, elevators, warehouses, and telephone and telegraph lines.
Changes and new equipment.
Change happened swiftly. The railroads were organized into three divisions: East, West, and South. Uniform passenger ticketing was instituted, and competing services on different former railroads were cut back. Duplicate passenger services were reduced by eliminating more than 250 trains from eastern railroad schedules to allow increased numbers of freight trains to use crowded lines. Costly and employee-heavy sleeping car services were reduced and extra fares applied to discourage their use. Giving priority to coal trains reduced shortages of locomotive fuel. Ordering all empty box cars to be sent to wheat-producing areas improved the flow of food to European allies. USRA pooled all rolling stock, terminals, port facilities, and shops to reduce congestion in Chicago and New York City. All railroad companies serving those metropolitan areas were given trackage rights over all lines entering the area and equal access to terminal facilities. Available railroad rolling stock inventory of 61,000 locomotives, 2,250,000 freight cars, and 58,000 passenger cars were augmented by new production. Over 100,000 railroad cars and 1,930 steam locomotives were ordered at a cost of $380 million, all of new USRA standard designs. The new rolling stock consisted of up-to-date and standardized types, designed to be the best that could be produced to replace outdated equipment.
Before the new USRA standard locomotive types were built and released, locomotives that builders had on hand were issued to various railroads. 2-8-0 "Consolidation" locomotives built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for transport and use in France were made available. Then 2-10-0 "Decapod" locomotives built for Imperial Russia by both ALCO and Baldwin, but stranded in the US by the Russian Revolution of 1917, were also made available to the railroads. The USRA leased these locomotives.
Progression.
On March 21, 1918, the "Railway Administration Act" became law, and Wilson's 1917 nationalization order was affirmed. Wilson appointed his son-in-law, Secretary of the Treasury William Gibbs McAdoo, as Director General of the newly formed USRA.
The law guaranteed the return of the railroads to their former owners within 21 months of a peace treaty, and guaranteed that their properties would be handed back in at least as good a condition as when they were taken over. It also guaranteed compensation for the use of their assets at the average operational income of the railroads in the three years previous to nationalization. The act laid down in concrete terms that the nationalization would be only a temporary measure; before, it was not defined as necessarily so.
With the Armistice in November 1918, McAdoo resigned from his post, leaving Walker Hines as the Director General.
Winding down.
There was support among labor unions for continuing the nationalization of the railroads after the war. However, this position was not supported by Wilson nor the public generally. Because the United States was not a party to the Treaty of Versailles ending the war in 1919, which would have been the legal basis for returning the railroads to private ownership under the Railway Administration Act, legislation was drafted to effect the return.
Congress passed the Esch-Cummins Act (Railroad Transportation Act) in February 1920, which substantially increased the ICC's powers over the railroads, and the USRA's authority ended on March 1, 1920. The ICC was given powers to approve or reject railroad mergers, to set rates, to approve or reject abandonments of service, and additional oversight responsibilities. The government also made financial guarantees to the railroads after control was handed back to them, to ensure their financial survival after the restoration of control.
Aftermath.
The Esch-Cummins Act maintained and expanded a complete railroad regulatory system after the war. During the 1920s the railroads, with rates and routes set by the ICC, were facing increasing competition from other modes of transportation: trucking and airplanes. These competing modes were basically unregulated at the time, and received extensive financial assistance from the federal government. This competition contributed to the railroads' decline in the 1920s and beyond, and which was amplified in the 1930s during the Great Depression.
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USRA 0-6-0
The USRA 0-6-0 was a USRA standard class of steam locomotive designed under the control of the United States Railroad Administration, the nationalized railroad system in the United States during World War I. This was the standard light switcher locomotive of the USRA types, and was of 0-6-0 wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, or "C" in UIC classification.
A total of 255 locomotives were built under USRA control; these were sent to the following railroads:
After the dissolution of the USRA, the Atlantic Coast Line, Chicago, Burlington and Quincy, Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railway, Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad and Texas and Pacific Railway ordered additional copies of the USRA 0-6-0 design, while the Missouri Pacific Railroad and the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway ordered only copies.
Preservation.
As of 2022, three USRA 0-6-0 copies are known to be preserved. Two are from the Wheeling and Lake Erie: 3960, which is awaiting a cosmetic restoration at the Age of Steam Roundhouse in Sugarcreek, Ohio, and 3984, which is undergoing an operational restoration at the Lorain and West Virginia Railway in Wellington, Ohio, and it is currently known as Nickel Plate Road 384. The third is 63, built by Alco in 1940 for the Alabama State Docks Commission. It has been on public display at the Kokosing Gap Trail in Mount Vernon, Ohio since 2002. 63 is currently in the best cosmetic shape of the three, but unfortunately, there are no plans to further restore it or make it operational.
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USRA standard
The USRA standard locomotives and railroad cars were designed by the United States Railroad Administration, the nationalized rail system of the United States during World War I. 1,870 steam locomotives and over 100,000 railroad cars were built to these designs during the USRA's tenure. The locomotive designs in particular were the nearest the American railroads and locomotive builders ever got to standard locomotive types, and after the USRA was dissolved in 1920 many of the designs were duplicated in number, 3,251 copies being constructed overall. The last steam locomotive built for a Class I railroad in the United States, an 0-8-0 built by the Norfolk and Western Railway in 1953, was a USRA design. A total of 97 railroads used USRA or USRA-derived locomotives.
Steam locomotive types.
The USRA developed designs for 0-6-0 and 0-8-0 switcher locomotives, 2-6-6-2 and 2-8-8-2 Mallet locomotives, and both light and heavy versions of the 2-8-2, 2-10-2, 4-6-2, and 4-8-2 types. The light versions were designed with an axle load of 54,000 lb (24,500 kg) permitting usage on the vast majority of railroads, while the heavy versions were designed to a maximum axle load of 60,000 lb (27,200 kg) for lines with more heavily constructed track.
The U.S.R.A. also distributed 2-10-0 Decapods of Russian design to railroads under its control.
USRA 0-6-0.
255 of the USRA 0-6-0 design were built, as well as many copies.
USRA 0-8-0.
175 of the USRA 0-8-0 design were built, and it was copied extensively thereafter.
USRA Light 2-8-2 "Mikado".
614 of the USRA Light Mikado type were constructed, making it the most populous USRA type.
USRA Heavy 2-8-2 "Mikado".
233 of the USRA Heavy Mikados were built.
USRA Light 2-10-2 "Santa Fe".
94 USRA Light Santa Fe locomotives were constructed.
USRA Heavy 2-10-2 "Santa Fe".
175 USRA Heavy Santa Fe locomotives were built.
USRA Light 4-6-2 "Pacific".
106 USRA Light Pacifics were constructed.
USRA Heavy 4-6-2 "Pacific".
20 USRA Heavy Pacifics were built.
USRA Light 4-8-2 "Mountain".
47 of the USRA Light Mountain type were built.
USRA Heavy 4-8-2 "Mountain".
15 USRA Heavy Mountains were constructed.
2-6-6-2.
30 of the USRA 2-6-6-2 type were built.
2-8-8-2.
106 of the USRA 2-8-8-2 locomotives were constructed. The Norfolk and Western Railway, in particular, continued building this type after the USRA period, developing and modernising it over time, as its Class Y. A N&W Y6B was the last conventional freight-hauling steam locomotive built in the United States.
Freight cars.
As part of the USRA, two common boxcar designs were developed: a single sheathed car and a double sheathed car. When the USRA boxcars were being designed there wasn't an industry consensus on which was better, so both were built. Freight car design was still in flux in the early part of the 20th century. As John White points out in "The American Freight Car", most cars were really composites, not completely wood or steel, and even after steel cars had become the norm, wood had its uses and advantages. Still, steel underframes had come to replace wood underframes, but as metallurgy improved, there were new designs developed that took advantage of the improved technology. USRA double sheathed boxcars had a fishbelly underframe while the USRA single sheathed cars did not.
In general, double sheathed boxcars are like girder bridges, so all the support needs to come from the frame. Those cars need a stronger frame, hence the fishbelly underframe. Single sheathed cars are like truss bridges, with the metal side bracing acting as the main structural support for the "bridge." While some engineers did not trust the steel bracing to support a single sheathed car and ordered fishbelly frames for strength, others valued the savings in weight and ordered cars with simpler frames like the USRA SS design.
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USRA 2-8-8-2
The USRA 2-8-8-2 was a USRA standard class of steam locomotive designed under the control of the United States Railroad Administration, the nationalized railroad system in the United States during World War I. These locomotives were of 2-8-8-2 wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, or (1'D)'D1' in UIC classification. A total of 106 locomotives were built to this plan for the USRA; postwar, it became a de facto standard design.
History.
While the 2-8-8-2 had been built in the United States since 1909, most development work had gone into making subsequent locomotives larger and heavier. The Norfolk and Western Railway however, had taken development in a different direction. By using smaller cylinders and higher boiler pressure, the result was a locomotive capable of powerful performance, and a turn of speed higher than the maximum of the ‘traditional’ designs.
The USRA 2-8-8-2 drew heavily on the Norfolk and Western Railway’s Y2 class locomotive design, as their delegate to the 2-8-8-2 design committee had brought a full set of blueprints.
Preservation.
While none of the original USRA 2-8-8-2’s are preserved, one of the copies is. Norfolk and Western 2050, a 1923 ALCO product of N&W's Y3a class, is on static display at the Illinois Railway Museum in Union, Illinois.
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2-8-0
Locomotive wheel arrangement
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 United States and elsewhere, this wheel arrangement is commonly known as a Consolidation, after the Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad’s "Consolidation", the name of the first 2-8-0.
The notation 2-8-0T indicates a tank locomotive of this wheel arrangement, the "T" suffix indicating a locomotive on which the water is carried in side-tanks mounted on the engine rather than in an attached tender.
The Consolidation represented a notable advance in locomotive power. After 1875, it became "the most popular type of freight locomotive in the United States and was built in greater quantities than any other single wheel arrangement."
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Overview.
Of all the locomotive types that were created and experimented with in the 19th century, the 2-8-0 was a relative latecomer.
The first locomotive of this wheel arrangement was possibly built by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR). Like the first 2-6-0s, this first 2-8-0 had a leading axle that was rigidly attached to the locomotive's frame, rather than on a separate truck or bogie. To create this 2-8-0, PRR master mechanic John P. Laird modified an existing 0-8-0, the "Bedford", between 1864 and 1865.
The 2-6-0 Mogul type, first created in the early 1860s, is often considered as the logical forerunner to the 2-8-0. However, a claim is made that the first true 2-8-0 engine evolved from the 0-8-0 and was ordered by the United States' Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad, which named all its engines. The name given to the new locomotive was "Consolidation", the name that was later almost globally adopted for the type. According to this viewpoint, the first 2-8-0 order by Lehigh dates to 1866 and antedates the adoption of the type by other railways and coal and mountain freight haulers.
From its introduction in 1866 and well into the early 20th century, the 2-8-0 design was considered to be the ultimate heavy-freight locomotive. The 2-8-0's forte was starting and moving "impressive loads at unimpressive speeds" and its versatility gave the type its longevity. The practical limit of the design was reached in 1915, when it was realised that no further development was possible with a locomotive of this wheel arrangement.
Usage.
As in the United States, the 2-8-0 was also a popular type in Europe, again largely as a freight hauler. The type was also used in Australia, New Zealand, and Southern Africa.
Australia.
The 2-8-0 locomotive was used extensively throughout Australia. It served on the broad gauge, and narrow gauge and was employed mostly as a freight locomotive, although it was often also employed in passenger service in Victoria.
The first Australian locomotive class with this wheel arrangement were the Queensland Railways C13 and C15, built as goods locomotives in 1879 by Baldwin Locomotive Works. Another lot of Consolidation engines consisted of 20 standard-gauge New South Wales Government Railways (NSWGR) J Class engines, which arrived from Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1891. The Js remained in service until 1915, when they were withdrawn. Wartime shortages between 1916 and 1920 had six engines re-entering service after being shopped and fitted with superheaters. The last engine of this class was finally withdrawn in 1934 and all were scrapped by 1937.
The next batch of NSW 2-8-0 locomotives to appear, between 1896 and 1916, was the T class engines. The class was delivered from one local and several overseas builders, 151 locomotives from Beyer, Peacock & Company, 84 from North British Locomotive Company, 10 from Neilson & Company, 30 from Clyde Engineering in Australia, and five from Dübs & Company. During World War II, 14 of these locomotives were equipped with superheaters, which raised their tractive effort from to .
From 1899, the Victorian Railways (VR) also used a range of broad-gauge 2-8-0 locomotives.
The first 2-8-0 engines in private service on the Midland Railway of Western Australia arrived in 1912. These were gauge locomotives. The five in the class operated until 1958. All were gone by 1963.
In 1912, some of the NSWGR T class types were also purchased by the private East Greta Railway, later to become the South Maitland Railway, but these were converted to 2-8-2 tank locomotives. The class proved to be successful throughout its long service life, until being retired from government revenue service in 1973.
During 1916, Commonwealth Railways acquired eight K class for the Trans-Australian Railway.
In 1924, a private coal company, J & A Brown in NSW, obtained three ex-British military Railway Operating Division ROD 2-8-0 locomotives. Brown later ordered another 10 of these locomotives, but only nine of that order arrived in Australia. The last was withdrawn in 1973.
Belgium.
To compensate for wartime losses, Belgian railways acquired 300 2-8-0 locomotives in 1946. They were built in North America, 160 by Montreal Locomotive Works in Canada, 60 by the Canadian Locomotive Company, and 80 by the American Locomotive Company in the United States. These machines proved to be very reliable and were used for mixed traffic until the end of the steam era, when number 29.013 hauled the last scheduled steam passenger train from Ath to Denderleeuw on 20 December 1966.
This locomotive survived in preservation and is used on special excursions. On 16 December 2006, number 29.013 re-enacted the last 1966 run on the same route.
Canada.
The Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) N-2-a, b, and c class locomotives were a class of altogether 182 "Consolidation" type locomotives, built by Montreal Locomotive Works between 1912 and 1914. They were numbered in the range from 3600 to 3799 and were used almost everywhere around the system. The order for these engines came about when CP needed bigger locomotives for their mainline since their current engines were wearing out and were too small for the loads that were being hauled. Most of the class were converted to oil-firing in later years.
One of the locomotives, No. 3716, is run and maintained in Summerland, BC as part of the Kettle Valley Steam Railway.
Finland.
Finland had five tender locomotive classes with a 2-8-0 wheel arrangement, the classes Tk1, Tk2, Tk3, Tv1, and Tv2. The class Tk1s were numbered from 271 to 290 and were nicknamed "Amerikan Satikka".
The class Tk2s were numbered 407 to 426 and 457 to 470. They were nicknamed "Satikka". Three were preserved, No. 407 at Närpes, No. 418 at Junction City, Oregon, in the United States, and No. 419 at Haapamäki. The class Tk3s were numbered 800 to 899, 1100 to 1118, and 1129 to 1170. They were built by Tampella, Lokomo, and Frichs. The class Tv1s were numbered 594 to 617, 685 to 741, 900 to 948, and 1200 to 1211. They were built by Tampella and were nicknamed "Jumbo". Four were preserved, No. 609 at Haapamäki, No. 933 at the Veturi museum at Toijala, No. 940 at Lapinlahti and No. 943 at Ylivieska. The class Tv2s were numbered from 618 to 637. They were nicknamed "Wilson". Only No. 618 was preserved, also at Haapamäki.
Finland had only one tank locomotive class with a 2-8-0 wheel arrangement, the class M1 consisting of one solitary locomotive numbered 66. It was not preserved.
Germany.
The 2-8-0 wheel arrangement enjoyed a brief period of popularity in Germany during the era of the "Länderbahnen" or State Railways, from about 1840 to 1920, prior to the establishment after the First World War of the "Deutsche Reichsbahn", the German National Railways. Under the classification system, all 2-8-0 locomotives were assigned to class 56 ("Baureihe" or BR 56), with different types receiving subclassifications. The earliest type was the Prussian G73 of 1893.
Indonesia.
In response to the increasing need for freight and passenger transports on the Buitenzorg–Bandung–Banjar line, the Java Staatsspoorwegen at the time ordered 42 "Consolidation" locomotives from 4 different engine manufacturers, including Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM), Hanomag, Hartmann and Werkspoor, came in 1914, 1915 and 1921, classified as SS Class 900 (901–942). These locomotives were made to fulfill the requirements that submitted by SS, being able to haul 550 tons of freight with speeds of up to 50 km/h (31 mph) or 30 km/h (18.6 mph) on lines with a gradient of 4% or 1 in 25. In order to be able to negotiate 150 meters curve radius, the leading wheels adopted Adam axle system which could enable to turn radially by 70 mm. As for the fourth driving wheels, adopted "Golsdorf" axle system (patented by Karl Golsdorf), this make the outer driving wheels able to move laterally by 100 mm. As by result, it's not only able to turn at 150 meters curve radius, but speeds up to 75 km/h (46.6 mph) was made possible from its initial of 50 km/h (31 mph). Based on record in 1938, the SS Class 900/DKA 50s ever been used to haul the "Eendaagsche Express" or One Day Express train on Bandung–Banjar southern-west line replacing the SS Class 1250 (DKA DD52) due to resource and asset saving policies during Great Depression and SS Class 1700/DKA C30s which were considered to be inefficient in serving the increasingly congested volume of freights and passenger transport. In 1939, the "Eendaagsche Express" shortened the time journey for Bandung–Yogyakarta–Surabaya to only 11 hours. These locomotives worked on Bandung–Purwakarta–Batavia line and also assigned to work the eastern express trains in East Java on –Surabaya line in tandem with SS Class 1100 (DKA C27). To make the SS 900s have the characteristics of express locomotive, each unit received the modification of two pair of smoke deflectors. In the need of increasing freight transport in South Sumatra, the Java Staatsspoorwegen allocated 4 of them to serve coal transport from Bukit Asam to Kertapati. Not quite a long, the South Sumatra division of SS or so called "Zuid-Sumatra Staatsspoorwegen" (ZSS) were also ordered 11 of these from two German engine manufacturers, 5 were imported from Hartmann in 1925 and the rest of 6 from Hanomag in 1926.
Preservation.
During Japanese occupation in 1942, all Dutch East Indies railway locomotives were renumbered based on Japanese numberings, this including the SS Class 900s were renumbered to D50s and this numbering system still used after the Independence of Indonesia by "Djawatan Kereta Api" (DKA) or Department of Railways of the Republic of Indonesia up to now. During Indonesian National Revolution some of SS Class 900/DKA D50 were used among the others to haul trains belonging to Republican fighters and the Dutch military. In some records, some of them were destroyed in action due to the conflict. While the SS911 or DKA D50 11 was captured by 2nd Company of "1e Bataljon, 15 Regiment Infanterie" of Dutch Marines during Operation Kraai in Yogyakarta. After the acknowledgement of Indonesian sovereignty by Dutch in 1949, the SS Class 900 were transferred to "Djawatan Kereta Api". In 1976, most of D50s were found regularly in Jember, East Java which many of them had been dumped out and seemed to be derelict. While the rest of them are still used regularly in South Sumatra pulling some coal trains. Out of 61 units, only DKA D50 11 (ex-SS911) survived and now preserved as static display in Transportation Museum of Taman Mini Indonesia Indah.
Italy.
In Italy, the state-controlled railways company "Ferrovie dello Stato" (FS), after comparing two models of 2-8-0 engine in 1906 (a simple-expansion [simplex] locomotive purchased from Baldwin and a compound type assembled by German and Italian builders) opted for a simplex 2-8-0 as basic power for its freight and mixed trains. Production of such locomotives, classified Gr. 740 in Italy, began in 1911 and stopped four years later when Italy entered the First World War.
Thereafter, Italian industry was devoted to producing military equipment, so FS bought locomotives from North American firms. From 1917 to 1922, American Locomotive Company and Montreal Locomotive Works built 400 2-8-0 locomotives for Italy but only 393 were delivered. The FS classified these engines as Gr. 735 and used them for freight and passenger services. After the war, the supply of Italian-built Gr. 740 resumed. Both Gr. 740 and Gr 735, very similar in performance, remained in service until the end of the 1960s.
Japan.
The Baldwin supplied the first three 2-8-0 9000 class locomotives for export to Japan in 1893, in use of Hokkaido Colliery and Railway Company, which were taken over Japanese Government Railway under Railway Nationalization Act of 1906.
Among several classes, most successful examples were 770 of JNR Class 9600, built from 1913 to 1926. Some independent shortlines had equivalent locomotives to 9600 both factory-new and secondhand from JNR, the last example was Yubari Colliery and Railway No. 21, built in 1941 by Kawasaki. Despite obsolescence and early replacement by 2-8-2 D51, 9600s were still widely utilized thanks to high performance and appropriate route availability. The last example, No. 79602, kept longevity until March 1976, making the very final steam traction in service on JNR. No. 79602 was nearly preserved, however, sadly, subsequently destroyed by arson attack at Oiwake MPD.
New Zealand.
Several 2-8-0 locomotives were supplied to New Zealand by the Baldwin Locomotive Works of Philadelphia in the United States. Six O Class locomotives were built for the New Zealand Railways in 1885.
The Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company, which operated the Wellington-Manawatu line, had four similar locomotives built by Baldwin, two in 1888, one in 1894 and one in 1896. The WMR locomotives of 1894 and 1896, No. 12 and No. 13, were Vauclain compound locomotives, the first in New Zealand and the first narrow-gauge compounds in the world. While standard gauge compounds usually had the low-pressure cylinder mounted below the high-pressure cylinder on each side, this was often reversed on narrow-gauge locomotives, which had the larger low-pressure cylinders mounted above the high-pressure cylinders to provide greater clearance at platforms.
In 1908, when the WMR was nationalized, these locomotives were classified into three NZR subclasses because of detail differences, the two 1888 locomotives as OB class, the 1894 locomotive as OA class, and the 1896 locomotive as OC class.
North Korea.
The Korean State Railway have locally built 500-series (used by rubber recycling plant) and 810 series Japanese built narrow gauge (762mm) 2-8-0 locomotives. The 810 series was likely retired in 2006 and 500-series may still be operating.
Russia.
In Russia, the 2-8-0 wheel arrangement was represented by the prerevolutionary Sch (Shuka-pike) class. These two-cylinder compound locomotives without superheaters were declared the standard Russian freight locomotive in 1912, but since they were relatively low-powered, they were only useful on easier lines without steep gradients such as the Saint Petersburg-Moscow route.
South Africa.
Five 2-8-0 locomotive classes saw service in South Africa, all of them initially acquired by the Cape Government Railways (CGR), which classified all but two as 8th Class. All of them were variations on the same design, used saturated steam, and had cylinders with overhead slide valves, actuated by inside Stephenson valve gear.
While subjecting the "Consolidation"s to exhaustive testing on all types of traffic and under varying conditions, some trouble was experienced with the leading pony truck and it was dropped in favour of a four-wheeled bogie in later orders for more eighth class locomotives. All subsequent Cape eighth class locomotives were therefore built with a 4-8-0 "Mastodon" wheel arrangement.
South West Africa.
In 1907 and 1910, the "Staatsbahn Keetmanshoop" (Keetmanshoop State Railway) in German South West Africa placed 21 tank locomotives in service. After the first World War, when all railways in the territory came under the administration of the South African Railways in 1922, five locomotives of the batch of 1910 survived. They were not classified or renumbered, but were referred to as the eight-coupled tanks.
In 1911, nine tender locomotives were placed in service by the "Staatsbahn Lüderitzbucht-Keetmanshoop" (Lüderitzbucht-Keetmanshoop State Railway). After the first World War, all nine locomotives came onto the roster of the SAR, where they were referred to as the eight-coupled tenders.
Sweden.
The unusual M3t Turbine Steam Locomotive was of this type. 90 of the Swedish E (0-8-0) class were rebuilt between 1935 and 1951 and given a lead truck, designated the class E2.
Turkey.
Turkey was a neutral country during the Second World War and to retain Turkish goodwill, Great Britain supplied several locomotives to the Turkish Railways, where they were classified 8F.
Two of these 8F class locomotives were brought back from Turkey early in 2011 and one of them is on display at the National Railway Museum in Shildon, England.
United Kingdom.
The 2-8-0 gradually became the standard heavy-freight steam locomotive type in the United Kingdom during the first half of the 20th century, replacing the 0-8-0 types that had appeared as mineral locomotives in the 1890s. These had themselves been a replacement for these heavier tasks of the 0-6-0 locomotives used for freight since the mid 19th century. The 0-6-0 remained a common type for lighter use and on branch lines, but the 0-8-0 largely disappeared in favour of the better-riding 2-8-0.
The first 2-8-0 to be 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 Class B 0-8-0 compound locomotives to 2-8-0, classes E and F.
With coal trains increasing in size and scale, the GWR needed to develop a more powerful locomotive to meet these requirements, on what were relatively short haul routes. Thus in 1906, Chief Engineer G.J. Churchward took the basic design of his GWR 2800 Class, and adapted it. After proposing a 2-8-2T design, Churchward developed the UK's first 2-8-0 tank engine, the 4200 class.
In 1911, John G. Robinson of the Great Central Railway (GCR) introduced his very successful GCR Class 8K for heavy freight. 129 of these were originally built by the GCR. During the First World War, the design was adopted by the Ministry of Munitions and it became the standard locomotive of the Railway Operating Division of the Royal Engineers as the ROD 2-8-0. Altogether, 521 of these ROD locomotives were built during the war. After the war, large numbers of these were purchased by the LNWR and GWR, while some were also sold to a private Australian coal company, J&A Brown in New South Wales. Altogether, 273 were purchased by the LNWR during the early 1920s.
Other successful 2-8-0 designs were built in the UK. The GNR Class O1 and O2 were introduced by Nigel Gresley of the Great Northern Railway in 1913 and 1918, respectively, and the Class 7F by Henry Fowler of the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway in 1914. Whilst most British 2-8-0 designs were intended for heavy freight, the GWR 4700 Class were designed for heavy mixed-traffic work, but were initially employed mainly on fast overnight freight trains; later they were used on express excursions in the summer.
The most successful British 2-8-0 class was the Class 8F, designed in 1935 by William Stanier for the London, Midland and Scottish Railway. By 1946, 852 had been built. During the Second World War, the War Department originally chose the class 8F as its standard freight locomotive, and large numbers of them saw service overseas, notably in the Middle East.
The Class 8F was superseded after 1943 by the cheaper WD Austerity 2-8-0 for war service. A total of 935 of these were built and again, many saw service overseas.
United States.
In the United States, only a few railroads purchased "Consolidation" types when Baldwin Locomotive Works first introduced its version. Even the Baltimore & Ohio railroad, which eventually had nearly 180 2-8-0 locomotives in regular service by 1885, did not purchase any of this type until 1873. The Buffalo, Rochester and Pittsburgh Railway, which eventually became part of B&O, purchased 15 of this type from Brooks Locomotive Works in 1883.
The 2-8-0 design was given a major boost in 1875, when the Pennsylvania Railroad made it their standard freight locomotive, and 1875 was also when the Erie Railroad began replacing its 4-4-0s in freight service with 2-8-0s. The railroads had found that the 2-8-0 could move trains twice as heavy at half the cost of its predecessors. From a financial standpoint at the time, the choice of the 2-8-0 as new freight locomotive was therefore clear.
The S160 Class of the United States Army Transportation Corps was built by American manufacturers and was designed for use in Europe for heavy freight work during the Second World War. A total of 2,120 of this class was built and they worked on railroads across the world. Production of the 2-8-0 type in the United States totalled more than 23,000 locomotives, of which 12,000 were export versions.
Preservation.
Great Northern Railway Consolidation No. 1147 is on display in a park in Wenatchee, Washington.
Great Northern Railway Consolidation No. 1246 is in storage in southern Oregon.
Maine Central class W 2-8-0 locomotives numbered 501 and 519 were officially property of the European and North American Railway (E&NA) as a condition of the lease of that company by the Maine Central Railroad. While all other Maine Central steam locomotives were scrapped when replaced by diesel locomotives, these two survived as a lease obligation until Maine Central purchased E&NA in 1955. The advantages of preservation were recognized by that date, so No. 501 is awaiting restoration to operating condition at the Conway Scenic Railroad in Conway, New Hampshire, and No. 519 was on display at the Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Southern Pacific No. 895, a 2-8-0 "Consolidation" locomotive built by ALCO in 1913 is on static display at Roseland Park in Baytown, Texas. SP No. 895 was retired after 44 years of service and donated by Southern Pacific Railroad to the Robert E. Lee High School Key Club, then towed on temporary tracks to its current location at Roseland Park in April, 1957.
Baltimore & Ohio No. 545 "A.J Cromwell", built in 1888, is preserved at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, Maryland.
The Southern Pacific Railroad's locomotive No. 2562 was built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1909, serial No. 29064. It is on exhibit in the Arizona Railway Museum in Chandler, Arizona. The locomotive and its tender are listed in the National Register of Historic Places, reference No. 09000511.
The Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad's class 759 locomotive No. 761 was built around 1890. When active, it was used on the railroad's mainline between Chicago and the west. No. 761 is plinthed next to the historic Wickenburg, Arizona, train depot that is now the town's visitor center.
Santa Fe class 769 locomotive No. 769 is currently on static display in Madrid, New Mexico, but is awaiting a future restoration to run on the Santa Fe Southern Railway.
Denver and Rio Grande Western No. 346 is operational at the Colorado Railroad Museum. Rio Grande No. 318 is also on static display at the same museum.
Denver and Rio Grande Western No. 315 is operational and owned by the Durango Historical Society.
The Colorado & Southern (C&S) narrow-gauge No. 60 is on display in Idaho Springs, Colorado, while C&S No. 71 is in Central City, Colorado.
A Ks1 class 2-8-0, No. 630, is run and maintained in Chattanooga, Tennessee, by the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum. In 2014, this locomotive participated in the Norfolk Southern 21st Century Steam program.
In 1962, the Arcade & Attica Railroad purchased an ALCO-build locomotive from the Boyne City Railroad in Michigan. The locomotive, now numbered 18, is billed as the last operating steam excursion in New York State.
Three out of the four SC-1 hogs from the Lake Superior and Ishpeming survived being scrapped. Engine No. 33 has been restored by the Hocking Valley Scenic Railway, before being purchased by the Age of Steam Roundhouse in Sugarcreek, Ohio, where it operates today. Engine No. 35 has been on static display at the Illinois Railway Museum in Union, Illinois since 1985.
In 1991, the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad, based in Cumberland, Maryland, acquired SC-1 class No. 734. The locomotive was restored to operating condition and cosmetically changed to look like an original Western Maryland 2-8-0. The locomotive was renumbered 734 in honor, so to speak, of the H-7 (Nos. 701-764) class of 2-8-0 that the Western Maryland harbored and of which none was preserved, although it has an overall appearance of an H-8. Over the years it was overworked and according to the WMSR 734 is in very poor mechanical condition. It was pulled from service officially in 2016. As of 2023, Mountain Thunder, as No. 734 is nicknamed, is awaiting funds for evaluation to determine if overhaul and restoration is possible.
In the late 1980s, four ex-LS&I 2-8-0s were purchased by the Grand Canyon Railway based in Williams, Arizona. They were Nos. 18, 19, 20, and 29. Only No. 29 remains in Williams, undergoing its 1,472-day inspection, while No. 18 is undergoing a rebuild at the Colebrookdale Railroad in Boyertown, Pennsylvania, No. 19 is on static display in Frisco, Texas, and No. 20 is on static display in Allan, Texas.
Other preserved Ex-LS&I 2-8-0s include No. 21, which is being rebuilt in Baraboo, Wisconsin, No. 22, which is on static display at the Mid-Continent Railway Museum in North Freedom, Wisconsin, No. 23, which is being rebuilt at the Empire State Railway Museum in Phoenicia, New York, and No. 24, which is on static display at the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
UPRR No. 561 is on static display along US Highway 81 in Columbus, Nebraska.
UPRR No. 423 is on static display on 10th street in Gering, Nebraska.
UPRR No. 6072 is on static display at Wyman park in Fort Riley, Kansas.
Baldwin Locomotive Works No. 40, built in December 1925 for the Lancaster and Chester Railroad in South Carolina, and later purchased by the Cliffside Railroad in North Carolina, now pulls scenic excursion trains at the New Hope and Ivyland Railroad in New Hope, Pennsylvania, which opened in August, 1966.
Great Western No. 60, built in August 1937 by the American Locomotive Company in Schenectady, New York, is currently operated on the Black River and Western Railroad in Ringoes, New Jersey. No. 60 originally operated on the Great Western Railway of Colorado.
Baldwin Steam Locomotive No. 1702, built in 1942 for the United States Army, was purchased by the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad (GSMR) of Bryson City, North Carolina, in the mid-1990s for use on its scenic railway excursions. After a decade of service, No. 1702 was retired in 2004. In October 2012, a partnership formed between GSMR and Swain County to provide funding to restore the locomotive. In 2013, a complete restoration was launched and the locomotive returned to service during summer 2016.
Pennsylvania Railroad No. 1187, of the class R, later H3, is on display at the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania in Strasburg, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. This class is described in detail in the book "Set Up Running: The Life of a Pennsylvania Railroad Engineman 1904-1949".
The Valley Railroad, operating in Connecticut as the Essex Steam Train and Riverboat, has one 2-8-0, No. 97 built in 1923 by the American Locomotive Company’s Cooke Machine Works in Paterson, New Jersey for use in Cuba. It stayed at Cooke until the Works’ closure in 1926 and started service on the Birmingham and Southeastern Railroad in Alabama as No. 200. It ran various excursions on the Vermont Railway and New Haven Railroad in the late 1960s under a private owner. No. 97 arrived in Essex in 1970 initially operating between 1973 and 2010. It returned to service in October 2018.
Virginia & Truckee No. 29 is currently operational on the Virginia and Truckee Railroad headquartered in Virginia City, Nevada.
Two USATC "General Pershing" locomotives survive in the United States. No. 28 is currently undergoing repair to run again at the Texas State Railroad in Palestine, Texas, and No. 101 is on static display at the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay, Wisconsin.
References.
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USRA Heavy Mountain
The USRA Heavy Mountain was a USRA standard class of steam locomotive designed under the control of the United States Railroad Administration, the nationalized railroad system in the United States during World War I. This was the standard light freight locomotive of the USRA types, and was of 4-8-2 wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, or 2′D1′ in UIC classification.
A total of 15 locomotives were built under the auspices of the USRA.
Neither the originals built by the USRA or any of the subsequent copies were preserved, being scrapped between 1940 and 1959.
References.
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USRA Light Mountain
The USRA Light Mountain was a USRA standard class of steam locomotive designed under the control of the United States Railroad Administration, the nationalized railroad system in the United States during World War I. This was the standard light freight locomotive of the USRA types, and was of 4-8-2 wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, or 2′D1′ in UIC classification.
A total of 47 locomotives were built under the auspices of the USRA.
Original owners.
Copies.
None of the originals built by the USRA or any of the subsequent copies were preserved, being scrapped from 1943 to 1959.
References.
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USRA Light Mikado
Class of American two-cylinder 2-8-2 locomotives
The USRA Light Mikado was a USRA standard class of steam locomotive designed under the control of the United States Railroad Administration, the nationalized railroad system in the United States during World War I. This was the standard light freight locomotive of the USRA types, and was of 2-8-2 wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, or 1′D1′ in UIC classification.
A total of 614 locomotives were built under the auspices of the USRA, with a further 641 copies built after the end of the USRA's control. The first, for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, was completed in July 1918 and given #4500. The locomotives were considered well designed and modern, and were popular and successful. Large numbers remained in service until replaced by diesel locomotives. It was also called the McAdoo Mikado after William Gibbs McAdoo, head of the USRA.
Built.
With later copies, over 50 railroads used the type, including the following:
Preservation.
Nine USRA Light Mikados both originals and copies are preserved.
References.
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4-8-0
Locomotive wheel arrangement
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-8-0 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, usually in a leading truck or bogie, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles and no trailing wheels. In North America and in some other countries the type was usually known as the Twelve-wheeler.
Overview.
The first 4-8-0 locomotive is believed to have been the "Centipede", a tender locomotive built by Ross Winans in 1855 for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in the United States of America, where it remained in service for nearly twenty years. It appears to have been delivered in a cab-forward type of configuration that was modified to a Camel configuration in 1864. On a Camel locomotive the cab was mounted atop the boiler, unlike the later Camelback locomotive whose cab straddled the boiler which first appeared around 1877.
The nickname Mastodon is often mistakenly used to describe the 4-8-0 wheel arrangement and was derived from the unofficial name of the first 4-8-0 locomotive of the Central Pacific Railroad in the United States, the wood-fired CPR no. 229, which was designed and built in 1882 by the railroad's master mechanic, Andrew Jackson (A.J.) Stevens, at the railroad's Sacramento works in California. However, several period publications instead use the nickname Mastodon to refer to the 4-10-0. These publications refer to the 4-8-0 as the Twelve-wheeler.
Usage.
Australia.
The 4-8-0 wheel arrangement saw service in Australia from 1900. In Tasmania, the privately owned Emu Bay Railway ordered four 4-8-0 tender locomotives for their gauge system. In 1911, another locomotive was delivered from the North British Locomotive Company. Two of these locomotives are preserved.
A new class of 4-8-0 locomotive, the T class, designed in South Australia for use on the narrow gauge gauge system of the South Australian Railways, was introduced in 1903. It proved to be a suitable workhorse and by 1917 there were 78 locomotives in the class. In 1921 and 1922, the Tasmanian Government also purchased six of these narrow gauge South Australian locomotives and, during 1922 and 1923, five of the class were converted to gauge for use on the broad gauge system of the South Australian. These were converted back to narrow gauge in 1949. During the Second World War, the Commonwealth Railways obtained four of these South Australian narrow gauge locomotives on loan. Several of these locomotives are preserved.
The Queensland Government Railways (QGR) introduced its C16 class of 4-8-0 locomotives in 1903, built at its Ipswich workshops. Altogether 152 of these locomotives were in service by 1917. Beginning in 1920, a number of the QGR C16 class locomotives were equipped with superheaters on an experimental basis, but since their slide valves were not suited to superheated steam and became prone to steam leaks due to excessive wear, they were soon converted back to use saturated steam. During the Second World War, the Commonwealth Government also acquired eleven C16 class locomotives on loan. Only one example of this class was preserved.
The QGR's superheated C17 class entered service from 1920. The Commonwealth Railways also ordered 22 locomotives of the same design for their narrow gauge rail system, designated the NM class. In total, the C17 class eventually numbered 227 locomotives, of which twenty are preserved.
In 1922, the QGR ordered 22 new 4-8-0 locomotives and designated them the C19 class. They were the largest conventional-type locomotives to operate on the QGR.
Austria.
In Austria, the 4-8-0 wheel arrangement was used for express locomotives. The Class 570 locomotive was introduced in 1915 and the class 113 locomotive of the Austrian Federal Railways was introduced in 1923. From 1938, both classes were re-designated as Class 33 on the Deutsche Reichsbahn.
Bechuanaland.
In 1897, four Cape 7th Class 4-8-0 locomotives were ordered by the Cape Government Railways (CGR) from Neilson and Company for use on the new Vryburg to Bulawayo line of the fledgling Bechuanaland Railway Company (BR). The line through Bechuanaland Protectorate was still under construction and was operated by the CGR on behalf of the BR at the time. The locomotives were eventually returned to the CGR and were designated Class 7A on the South African Railways in 1912.
France.
In France, the 4-8-0 wheel arrangement was used on two locomotive classes. The first was in 1907 by the "Chemins de fer de Paris à Lyon et à la Méditerranée" (PLM). These locomotives were intended for goods trains, as well as passenger trains on the more difficult routes. They were Baudry type compound locomotives, similar to the De Glehn type, but with their low pressure cylinders set at 60% cut-off. All of them originally used saturated steam, but some were later equipped with superheaters while all the others were provided with feedwater heaters. These locomotives had a maximum speed limit of and were designed to be able to haul 1,177 long tons at . A total of 282 were built. The PLM had prepared designs for another much larger 4-8-0 locomotive by 1913, but it did not materialise as a result of the outbreak of the First World War.
The second 4-8-0 locomotive to appear in France was the famous 240P class of the "Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Français" (SNCF), with "240" in this instance referring to the French classification of wheel arrangement according to the number and arrangement of axles rather than wheels. Technically, these locomotives were developments of some of the earliest 4-6-2 Pacific locomotives in Europe that were built for the "Chemin de Fer de Paris à Orléans" (PO). The 240P class was considered to be one of André Chapelon's finest designs and benefited from his thorough understanding of thermodynamics and his appreciation of the need to consider the entirety of the steam circuit. The locomotive was a four-cylinder compound, fitted with Lentz-Dabeg poppet valves.
Coupled with an elegant French style tender, the second batch of the 240P class was aesthetically much more pleasing. With a power output of , the 240P class was reputed to have the highest power-to-weight ratio of any steam locomotive. Discussion continues as to how robust they were mechanically, for example whether the size of the bearings was too near the bone, or whether they were simply worked to death during the difficult war years. None have survived in preservation.
Hungary.
In the 1920s, the "Magyar Államvasutak" (Hungarian State Railways or MÁV) adopted the 4-8-0 type as their standard mixed-traffic locomotive in the shape of the 424 class, which was built between 1924 and 1958. Of these, 365 were built for Hungary and 149 for foreign systems, including the Yugoslav Railways, the Soviet Union and North Korea. In Yugoslavia, they were designated the "Jugoslovenske Železnice" (JŽ) class 11. The last of the Hungarian locomotives were withdrawn from service in 1984.
Ireland.
For a short period, the Great Southern and Western Railway in Ireland and its successor, the Great Southern Railways, operated two inside-cylinder 4-8-0T shunting locomotives. Intended for shunting at Dublin Kingsbridge (now Heuston) and for banking on the steep gradient out of Cork Glanmire Road (now Kent), the first locomotive emerged from the company's Inchicore workshops in 1915 and the second in 1924. They proved unsuccessful, being expensive to operate and unsuitable for sharp curves, and were withdrawn in 1928 and 1931 respectively.
On the Irish three-foot gauge, the Londonderry and Lough Swilly Railway operated two 4-8-0 tender locomotives. Built by Hudswell Clarke, they were introduced in 1905 and withdrawn in the 1930s and 1940s. The two were the only tender locomotives ever to operate on that gauge in Ireland and, with two subsequent 4-8-4 tank engines from the same manufacturer, were considered to be the most powerful which ever worked on any Irish narrow-gauge railway.
Mexico.
4-8-0 locomotives in Mexico were almost entirely built in the United States. The first locomotives were provided by the Southern Pacific Railroad to independent and subsidiary railroads such as the Cananae, Rio Yaqui & Pacifico and Sud Pacifico de Mexico. The Sud Pacifico de Mexico used, in total, 14 of the Southern Pacific's 4-8-0s, including a few from CRY&P, all constructed at Schenectady between 1889 and 1895.
The National Railways of Mexico had four classes of 4-8-0. The first two orders were relatively small locomotives from Brooks in 1897. In 1924, a much larger locomotive was ordered, the PR-7, numbers 5-A to 2856 and weighing 127 tons. Unusually among American-built 4-8-0s, these were intended for express passenger service and therefore had much larger drivers than 4-8-0s operating in the United States, at 67 inches diameter. The cylinders had an unusually square bore and stroke of 28 x 28 inches. Because the firebox was wide and above the frames, the tops of the last set of drivers projected into the firebox, something which was only possible due to them being oil fired.
In 1935, a further five locomotives were built with larger boilers, which increased the evaporative heating surface by 357 square feet and the superheater surface by 172 square feet. These were designated PR-8, numbers 3000 to 3004. At 144 tons, the PR-8 was the heaviest conventional 4-8-0 ever built. The Norfolk & Western's M2, which is often credited as being the heaviest conventional 4-8-0, weighed less than the PR-8.
New Zealand.
New Zealand's first 4-8-0 locomotive was built in the Addington Railway Workshops of the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR) in 1899 and designated B class. Four more were completed that same year and one more in 1901, while Sharp, Stewart and Company built four more over the next two years.
Ten BA class locomotives were built by the NZR at its Addington shops between 1911 and 1913, and thirty BB class locomotives were built by A & G Price in New Zealand between 1915 and 1918. One each of the BA class and BB class have been preserved, BA no. 552 and BB no. 144. Both are in Auckland at the Parnell Depot of Mainline Steam, an organisation devoted to the restoration and operation of historic New Zealand Railways mainline steam locomotives.
Rhodesia.
Between 1899 and 1903, 52 Cape 7th Class 4-8-0 locomotives were built for the Beira and Mashonaland and Rhodesia Railways (BMR) that later became a constituent part of the Rhodesia Railways (RR). These locomotives were acquired by Southern Rhodesia at the time when railways were still expanding from the Cape Colony via Bechuanaland Protectorate into Southern Rhodesia in the southwest, from Beira in Mozambique to Umtali in the east, and while the Second Boer War was still in progress. At the time, the system was composed of four smaller railways, all of them still largely under construction, that were eventually all linked up in 1902. These were the fledgling Bechuanaland Railways (BR), the Mashonaland Railways (MR), the Rhodesia Railways Northern Extensions (RRM) and the BMR. The locomotives were ordered in five batches from three British manufacturers, 24 from Neilson, Reid and Company in 1899 and 1900, eight from Kitson and Company between 1901 and 1903, and twenty from North British Locomotive Company in 1903. In 1915, five of the Neilson, Reid locomotives were sold to the South African Railways, where they were designated Class 7D.
South Africa.
All Mastodon locomotives that saw service in South Africa were built for .
Following a decision by the Cape Government Railways (CGR) to acquire eight-coupled goods locomotives, a complete design for such a locomotive was prepared at the Salt River works in Cape Town under the supervision of Locomotive Superintendent H.M. Beatty. This became the Cape 7th Class 4-8-0, the legendary locomotive that played a part in the construction of a large part of the railways into the interior of Africa south of the equator.
In 1902 and 1903, the CGR and CSAR placed a number of Cape 8th Class 4-8-0 locomotives in service. Initially designed in 1901 as a 2-8-0 Consolidation by H.M. Beatty, some trouble had been experienced with the leading pony trucks of the first locomotives and it was dropped in favour of a four-wheeled bogie in later orders for more locomotives.
Because of the limited coal and water range of the existing fleet of Natal Government Railways (NGR) tank locomotives, Locomotive Superintendent D.A. Hendrie was tasked to produce a locomotive of greater power and capable of longer distances without refuelling or rewatering, to work the main line's steep 1 in 30 gradients. The result was the NGR Class B, the first NGR tender locomotive to be built in quantity.
At the end of the Second Boer War, the CSAR inherited 35 4-10-2T Reid Tenwheeler tank locomotives from the IMR and designated them Class E. The CSAR found them to have an inadequate coal and water supply for trips of any length and, beginning in 1905, 29 of them were converted to 4-8-0 tank-and-tender locomotives by removing the trailing bissel bogie, the fifth pair of driving wheels and the coal bunker, shortening the main frame and adding tenders reclaimed from various scrapped locomotives. In 1912, these locomotives were reclassified as Class 13 on the SAR.
In 1906, the CGR placed a single experimental 10th Class 4-8-0 locomotive in service on the Cape Eastern System. Designed by H.M. Beatty and built by Kitson and Company, it was in most respects a larger and more powerful version of Beatty's last Cape 8th Class of 1904, the Class 8F on the SAR. Despite its good performance, the design was never repeated since some trouble was experienced with the firebox. In 1912, it was designated Class Experimental 6 on the SAR.
Between 1926 and 1929, when a shortage of suitable shunting locomotives developed as a result of increasing traffic throughout the country and particularly on the Witwatersrand, the SAR rebuilt 21 of its Class A 4-8-2T locomotives to Class 17 4-8-0 tank-and-tender locomotives. They were modified by removing the trailing bissel bogie and the coal bunker, shortening the