Washington County / Maine Central 4-4-0 "American" Type Locomotives

Class 1 (Locobase 2151)

Data from 1899 Brooks catalogue.

Builder info from B.Rumary, 25 Kingscombe, Gurney Slade, Radstock, BA3 4TH, ENGLAND and Jeremy Lambert as supplied by Allen Stanley in March 2004. Works #2948-2950, produced in April 1898.

The Washington County Railroad Company ran in Maine as an independent line until its takeover by the Maine Central in 1911. According to a list compiled by Mr. Bradley L. Peters in 1976 and preserved on http://www.trainnet.org/Libraries/Lib002/MEC-CO.TXT (visited 5 Aug 2004), it was chartered in 1893 and its major lines opened in 1898. Altogether it operated 115 miles connecting Ellsworth, Machias, and Eastport

The class shown shared the same firebox and had the same number of fire tubes as the 5 Ten-Wheelers that went into production just before in Brooks' Dunkirk Works; see Locobase 2983.

Obviously there was little use for a small 4-4-0 in the MEC as each of these locomotives operated for a little over 20 years, after which they were scrapped.

Road # Year Changed to new # MEC Scrapped

1 21 in 1900 117 Sept 1921

2 22 in Nov 1905 118 Feb 1920

3 23 in Jan 1907 119 Sept 1921

It's possible that #10 (works #3275) was of the same class although it had 63" drivers. That locomotive became #24in 1906 and 120 when the MEC took it over. Its scrap date was considerably earlier -- June 1916.

Class 77 (Locobase 11112)

Data from Schenectady Locomotive Works, Illustrated Catalogue of Simple and Compound Locomotives (Philadelphia: J B Lippincott, 1897), pp. 28-29.

Schenectady's catalogue says that the engine was "...in service on the fast heavy seaside passenger trains between Portland and Bar Harbor, Me."

Specifications
Class177
Locobase ID215111112
RailroadWashington County (MEC)Maine Central (MEC)
Whyte4-4-04-4-0
Road Numbers1-3 / 21-23 / 117-11977
GaugeStdStd
BuilderBrooksSchenectady
Year18981897
Valve GearStephensonStephenson
Locomotive Length and Weight
Driver Wheelbase8' 9.17'
Engine Wheelbase22.67'24.08'
Ratio of driving wheelbase to overall engine wheebase 0.35 0.38
Overall Wheelbase (engine & tender)48.92'46.67'
Axle Loading (Maximum Weight per Axle)
Weight on Drivers70800 lbs72000 lbs
Engine Weight107000 lbs111800 lbs
Tender Light Weight85000 lbs
Total Engine and Tender Weight192000 lbs230450 lbs
Tender Water Capacity4000 gals3400 gals
Tender Fuel Capacity (oil/coal)8.5 tons tons
Minimum weight per yard of rail on which locomotive could run59 lb rail60 lb rail
Geometry Relating to Tractive Effort
Driver Diameter62"68"
Boiler Pressure180 psi160 psi
Cylinders (dia x stroke)18" x 24"19" x 24"
Tractive Effort19189 lbs17328 lbs
Factor of Adhesion (Weight on Drivers/Tractive Effort) 3.69 4.16
Heating Ability
Firebox Area134 sq. ft156 sq. ft
Grate Area21.80 sq. ft18.32 sq. ft
Evaporative Heating Surface14901828
Superheating Surface
Combined Heating Surface14901828
Evaporative Heating Surface/Cylinder Volume210.79232.10
Computations Relating to Power Output (More Information)
Robert LeMassena's Power Computation39242931
Same as above plus superheater percentage39242931
Same as above but substitute firebox area for grate area2412024960
Power L156846005
Power MT353.98367.74

Credits

Introduction and specifications provided by Steve Llanso of Sweat House Media.