Class 30 (Locobase 6964)

Data from G & SI 1922 and IC 9 - 1928 Locomotive Diagram books supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection. This Consolidation class might have been among the first to operate on the line. Four of the engines (31, 32, 33, and 37) -- Baldwin works #15135, 15856 (1896) and 17691, 18364 (1900) -- appear to be the only locomotives kept by the IC when that railroad took over the G & SI.

As it trended southwest from Jackson, the G & SI divided Mississippi roughly in half as it headed to the new town of Gulfport. If the three branches -- Gulfport to Handsboro (4 mi), Maxie to Columbia (48 mi), and Saratoga to Laurel (41 mi) -- are included, total line mileage was 253 miles. Fifteen years after its charter was awarded, the G & SI opened the Gulfport to Hattiesburg section (70 mi) on 1 January 1897.

Sam Lindsey, writing on http://www.samlindsey.com/Logging/GSI/GSI_History ... (accessed 9 October 2005), summarizes the substantial benefits that Mississippi derived from supporting this line: "...the railroad more than fulfilled its promise. It gave the state a deep-water harbor, more than doubled the population of towns along its route, built the City of Gulfport and made Hattiesburg a railroad center."

The line operated as a subsidiary of the Illinois Central beginning in the mid-1920s; the IC later erased the G & SI's independent identity in 1946.

Class 601, 603 (Locobase 7015)

Data from IC 1911 Locomotive Data and 1913a Locomotive Diagrams supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection.

The first two Consolidations in this large class had 51" drivers. Obviously the IC preferred the greater speed possible with taller drivers over the tractive effort increase afforded by smaller drivers. The look of the profile is unusual in that the gap between the first two driving axles is 6' 9" while the spacing between the last 3 driving axles is 5' and 5'. Perhaps that was necessitated by the inside valve gear layout. The firebox lay over the last two axles.

Class 639 (Locobase 5336)

Data from table in AERJ July 1903. Also see IC 1911 Locomotive Data and 1913a Locomotive Diagrams supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection.

This was a big example of a turn-of-the-century Consolidation in North America; in every respect it occupied the top 5% in weight and dimensions. The Belpaire firebox heating surface included 31 sq ft of arch tubes. Page 34 of The Scientific American's Reference Book of 1905 by Albert Allis Hopkins, Alexander Russell Bond (p 34) quotes R Wells of the IC as saying that the specifications of this class was that they could haul 2,000-ton trains over a ruling grade of 38 ft to the mile (0.75%).

The authors also indulged in a speculation over how many of the 2-8-0s could pull the ocean liner Oceanic at 22 1/2 mph. The answer was 8 on land, but the resistance offered by water limited the locomotives to walking speed if they were to tow the ship on the water.

Class 641 (Locobase 6975)

Data from the IC 1913ca Locomotive Diagram book supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection.

A quartet of Cookes (works #28686-28689) among all the IC Consolidations. These were later superheated; see Locobase 6976.

Class 641 - s (Locobase 6976)

Data from the IC 1913ca Locomotive Diagram book supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection.

Like the other IC superheated upgrades, this quartet was fitted with Baker valve gear. Unlike the others, however, the small boiler meant a relatively large sacrifice of heating surface area when the superheater was added. Locobase figures that a relatively low axle loading meant that the upgrade put more power into branch-line operations where most other locomotives couldn't go.

Class 648 (Locobase 6980)

Data from the IC 1911 Locomotive Data book supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection.

Like the Cooke trio, these were lightly loaded locomotives that operated on branch-line freights. Unlike the Cookes, these much smaller engines were not superheated later.

Class 651 (Locobase 6970)

Data from the IC 1913ca Locomotive Diagram book supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection.

The diagram shows that Rogers delivered all of these Consolidations except 687-698, which Schenectady supplied in 1903. Tube counts varied among batches: 651-670, 687-698, 705-730, and 761-785 held 335 2" tubes; 671-680 and 699-704 had 331; and 731-760, for some reason, had 294 tubes.

Compared to other US 2-8-0s of the time, the IC engines were in the top third of heating surface areas, but had relatively shallow fireboxes. They were in the middle of the pack in terms of adhesion weight. The IC's superheated update is shown in Locobase 6971.

Class 651 -s (Locobase 6971)

Data from the IC 4 - 1930 Locomotive Diagram book supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection.

This upgrade was similar to that of the IC 651-class Moguls described in Locobase 6969 in using the same number of similar-diameter flues for the superheater. They were longer, which increased superheater area. But this was a more extensive changeover. Slide valves were replaced by 9" piston valves; these were driven by Baker radial valve gear. As superheated Consolidations went, this design was about average.

Class 793 (Locobase 6972)

Data from the IC 4 - 1930 Locomotive Diagram book supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection.

The IC added to its Consolidation stud with this long series from Brooks. The first batch -- works #30052-30076, road #812-836 -- came in 1904. 38148-38169 arrived in 1905 as 844-865, 40360-40392 as 866-904 in 1906, 42431-42437 and 43424-43455 completed the series as 793-799 and 909-940. Most later received thermic syphons, which added 52.2 sq ft to the 177 sq ft of firebox heating surface.

Class 941 (Locobase 6973)

Data from the IC 4 - 1930 Locomotive Diagram book supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection. Works numbers were 33739-33740, 33768-33769, 33798-33799, 33809, 33838 in September 1909; 33965-33970 in October; 34036-34037, 34061-34062 in November; 35832, 35973-35975, 35983, 35985 in January 1911; 36077-36083, 36104-36112, 36147-36153 in February; 36158-36159, 36177-36180 in March.

The last of a large holding of Consolidations were these Baldwins of considerably larger dimensions. Note the boiler's tube count, which at over 400 tubes, is one of the most crowded. Many of these were superheated; see Locobase 6974.

Class 941 - s (Locobase 6974)

Data from the IC 4 - 1930 Locomotive Diagram book supplied in May 2005 by Allen Stanley from his extensive collection.

The large boiler of the original saturated-steam Baldwin Consolidations shown in Locobase 6973 proved relatively capacious when the IC superheated this class. As a result, superheater area was proportionately larger than many other upgrades. At the same time, the relatively puny firebox heating surface gained 48 sq ft of syphons. They retained the 12"-diameter piston valves.