It was of about the same diameter, but not much more than half as high. It stood upright in the car, and was filled, above the furnace, which occupied the lower section, with vertical tubes. The cylinder was but three-and-a half inches in diameter, and speed was gotten up by gearing.
No natural draught could have been sufficient to keep up steam in so small a boiler; and Mr. Cooper used therefore a blowing-apparatus, driven by a drum attached to one of the car wheels, over which passed a cord that in its turn worked a pulley on the shaft of the blower Cooper's success was such as to induce him to try a trip to Ellicott's Mills; and an open car, the first used upon the road, already mentioned, having been attached to his engine, and filled with the directors and some friends, the speaker among the rest, the first journey by steam in America was commenced.
The trip was most interesting. The curves were passed without difficulty at a speed of fifteen miles an hour; the grades were ascended with comparative ease; the day was fine, the company in the highest spirits, and some excited gentlemen of the party pulled out memorandum books, and when at the highest speed, which was eighteen miles an hour, wrote their names and some connected sentences, to prove that even at that great velocity it was possible to do so. The return trip from the Mills - a distance of thirteen miles - was made in fifty-seven minutes.
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If you require a personal response, please use our contact page. Personal information will not be shared or result in unsolicited email. The genesis of the railroads in the United States prompted Cooper to look towards alternatives to horse traction, as steam locomotives were deemed far superior. The legacy of Cooper lives on today in the form of the private institution Cooper Union of Advancement of Science and Art, which he founded in The success of the Tom Thumb led to an expansion of railroads throughout the country, therefore, connecting the east and west coasts in via the first transcontinental railroad.
The trials of the locomotive in Maryland helped the country realize that steam locomotives were the way of the future, as it was evident they were more effective than horse traction.
This led to populating the west as the railroad made it easier to transport goods and passengers, as previously, the only options were either marine or trails, which were each treacherous and time consuming in their own right. The Tom Thumb led to subsequent locomotive innovations, such as the John Bull and Atlantic just to name a few.
Advancement of this locomotive powered the American industrial revolution, and helped to build the industrialized, modern country of today. Tom Thumb was not built for actual service, however, it was a test bed to demonstrate the effectiveness of steam power to the owners of the railroad. Unfortunately, the locomotive was decommissioned shortly after its trials, and salvaged for parts, as none of the original pieces of the locomotive remained intact.
However, the locomotive was built catering towards its operation, rather than historical accuracy. To visit the Tom Thumb replica and other relics of early American railroading, visit their website at borail. Johnson, and his apprentice James Millholland who later went on to design and engineer numerous steam locomotives.
For instance, how the system works is by counting the number of leading wheels those found on the front of the locomotive or pilot , then the number of driving wheels those found directly under the boiler , and finally the number of trailing wheels those found under the locomotive's cab , all separated by dashes. The locomotive weighed less than a ton, which is how it gained its nickname as the "Tom Thumb".
Cooper had it designed to burn standard coal as fuel source anthracite, specifically. It was also decided to have a traditional horse-powered train of passengers race the little steamer to see just how effective it was in service. As legend goes, when the race began the "Tom Thumb" rather quickly began outpacing its live counterpart and was able to achieve a top speed of between 10 to 15 mph.
However, during the race the locomotive's blower belt came off the pulley, which caused it to lose its steam pressure eventually allowing the horse to catch up, pass, and win the contest. After the race the locomotive took railroad dignitaries across the entire main line to Ellicott Mills and back.
During that time it was continually tested in terms of determining how to properly, and somewhat safely the term is used lightly , operate steam power. Additionally, if Cooper had made drawings and diagrams of the design they have also since been lost. In the locomotive was salvaged for parts and disappeared forever.
Four decades later Cooper did make some rough sketches of the "Tom Thumb" when he was given credit for what he had done.
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