Adelaide, Unley & Mitcham Tramway 0-4-0 Locomotives in Australia

Class 1 (Locobase 10030)

Data from Park Benjamin (Ed), Appleton's Cyclopedia of Applied Mechanics (New York: D Appleton & Company, 1884), p. 344. See also the Tramway Museum, St Kilda, Adelaide, South Australia website at [], last accessed 11 April 2011; and "Adelaide and Mitcham Tramway", South Australian Advertiser, 10 February 1879, p. 6, archived on The Trove website at [], last accessed 9 July 2021. Works number was 4343 in May 1878.

Baldwin steam tram cars are described in 10029. This separate motor was to be coupled to a tram car. It was quite short and was laid out with the operator's position just ahead of the front axle and the vertical boiler just behind. Baldwin sold over 100 of the steam motors in the late 1870s.

Painted a "canary color", this particular example was a trial "horse" for the AU&M Horse Tramway. The South Australian Leader painted the test run in very bright colors in one long paragraph that Locobase breaks into more readable chunks:

" the motor was attached to one of the Company's carriages. Steam was got up by the aid of coke and the engine was sent up and down the street to show how easily it could be handled and with what facility its progress could be checked when desired. It was certainly under such perfect control that while going at a high rate of speed it was several times brought almost suddenly to a standstill within the distance of its own length.

"When it was finally attached to the car containing the visitors, and started upon its journey, it travelled with great ease and smooth ness not with a noiseless motion, but without emitting smoke. The noise of the exhaust steam was so well muffled that the progress of the motor was not like that of a locomotive engine except for a few puffs

on a pinch,and the smoke was so well consumed that none was perceptible from the funnel, although the fumes from the coke were occasionally objectionable to those who sat on the seats of the roof. This may possibly be obviated by raising the funnel, or by some other contrivance, or the outside seats will be less popular than the inside.

"When in ordinary use the motor will be firmly attached to the car, or will have a buffer, which seemed to be required on Friday. On the run down to Unley the sharp curves in the streets and squares were turned with ease and at scarcely reduced speed, and when a fractious horse in a woodcart threatened to obstruct the line the motor was brought to a standstill in much quicker time than a galloping pair of horses could be pulled up on an ordinary road.

"Several times the steam-car slackened speed, and was eased off, but very good tune was made throughout the journey. A rather long delay ensued in watering-up for the return trip,but we presume that this is not a matter that will affect the traveller, and will be attended to by the Engineer without attracting observation when the steam-car is in fall operation. Several horses shied at the strange occupant of the road, but did not seem to be much alarmed at its appearance, and no doubt they will get accustomed to it in time."

But, the adelaide trammuseum site explains that the one signficant defect described in the SAN report doomed the #1: " With the upper decks of the horse trams being open to the elements, passengers naturally found the smoke and soot produced as a very unpleasant feature of the journey."

So the experiment failed on that line "and conventional horse traction was instead used for all regular services."

There was a happy ending, though. "The steam tram was sold by 1885 for use in Sydney where a large steam tram system had been developed."