. American railway transportation . The Old Ironsides, 1832. that within two years from the time when the first trackswere laid American builders had demonstrated their abil-ity to construct locomotives adapted to the requirementsimposed by American conditions. Among the firms whichearly undertook locomotive construction was the onefounded in Philadelphia by Matthias Baldwin, whose first THE MECHANISM OF THE RAILWAY 41 engine, the Old Ironsides, appeared in 1832. Tip toJune 1, 1908^ the Baldwin Locomotive Works constructed32,803 locomotives, and is now building 2,600 to 2,700each year. The inf
. American railway transportation . The Old Ironsides, 1832. that within two years from the time when the first trackswere laid American builders had demonstrated their abil-ity to construct locomotives adapted to the requirementsimposed by American conditions. Among the firms whichearly undertook locomotive construction was the onefounded in Philadelphia by Matthias Baldwin, whose first THE MECHANISM OF THE RAILWAY 41 engine, the Old Ironsides, appeared in 1832. Tip toJune 1, 1908^ the Baldwin Locomotive Works constructed32,803 locomotives, and is now building 2,600 to 2,700each year. The influence of George Stephenson, of England, andof his celebrated locomotive the Rocket, was felt inthe United States, but considering the undeveloped con-. De Witt Clinton Engine and Tkain, 1S31. dition of American industries in 1830, a surprisinglysmall number of English engines were imported. Theneeds of our railroads were mainly supplied by our ownfoundries and shops. Nor were British models followedto much extent. American designers follow^ed new linesin order to meet novel conditions. They were so success-ful in making engines that would work on curves andclimb grades that American locomotives soon began to besold in England. As compared with the locomotives with which weare now familiar, those built in 1830 seem tiny andcuriously designed. The first locomotives constructedfor actual service weighed from 3 to 5 tons; the weightof the De Witt Clinton was 3^ tons. The Englishengines imported were double that weight and provedtoo heavy for the tracks with rails of wood surfaced withstrap iron. The John Bull engine, shown in the illus-tration, was imported in 1831 for use on the Camden andAmboy line, the line connecting ^ew York and Phi
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjec, booksubjectrailroads
