"Since this was 1904, what in the world would the B&O "Historic Exhibit" have had on display?"--CJVRR

I don't know specifically what would have been at the Exposition of 1904, but it very likely would have consisted of most of what would have been at the Chicago Exposition of 1893, which was famous (for us) as the fair which also showed off New York Central 999 following that run to 112 1/2 near Batavia, New York. That show consisted of a lot of what later was at the Centennial Exhibition in 1927, which eventually became the nucleus of the B&O Railroad Museum in the 1950s. Equipment likely would have included the Thatcher Perkins (which carried the number 117 for many years as an exhibit), No. 25 (the currently operable William Mason), and No. 600 (J. B. Jervis, the big 2-6-0 that had been intended as a mountain passenger locomotive). The Hayes Camel 4-6-0 would likely have been there, perhaps the 0-8-0 Memnon, along with early original engines like the Atlantic and the Adriatic. It's also likely the Pangborn models (full sized wooden replicas of other early equipment) would have been represented. And that "largest locomotive in the world" is none other than a brand new Old Maude, then No. 2400, built by Alco that year for the B&O and the first Mallet in America.

Too bad Old Maude didn't make it into preservation; indeed, the whole historic collection was threatened for a time by none other than George Emmerson, the B&O's chief mechanical officer of the time, noted for his championing of water tube fireboxes and for designing and building the very first duplex-drive locomotive. Seems he didn't think too much of the older equipment, seeing it only as so much scrap metal that could be melted down. There is reason to believe his scrapping of Old Maude and the last of the B&O's original Howard Street Tunnel electrics got the attention of then president Daniel Willard, and lead to the preservation of the remaining historical artifacts.

Now, if only some others later had held on to the last T-3 4-8-2 (last locomotive built at Mount Claire), and an EM-1 2-8-8-4, and what the heck, let's include a Big Six 2-10-2 and a Q-4 2-8-2, these last two representative of standard power on "the mother of American railroads."

Fixed that for ye......

Arrgh!--Thanks anyway!!

What is the story on that “Mallet Mountain Climber” shown alongside the “Rocket” in one photo?

"What is the story on that “Mallet Mountain Climber” shown alongside the “Rocket” in one photo?"

Working from memory, this was the first Mallet for service in America (original operating territory was Sand Patch), and while it turned out to be a progenitor of the semi-articulated type (both the true compound Mallet and the later simple version), this particular engine was something of a one-off job. She was powerful enough to replace double-headed 2-8-0s on that line, and successfully demonstrated the Mallet concept for American railroads.

The B&O's first "production" Mallets were its class LL-1 0-8-8-0s, some of which became EL-5 2-8-8-0s. These machines, in both original and rebuilt forms, spent a lot of time with other EL-class engines as helpers out of Rowlesburg, W.Va.

Reportedly, one other series of Mallets was inspired by the Old Maude (which was named for a cantankerous cartoon mule of the period), and those were the 0-6-6-0s of the Denver & Salt Lake. All of those, and some later versions of the same, were later rebuilt as 2-6-6-0s--and some of them ran on successor Denver & Rio Grande at least into the late 1940s.

As for Old Maude herself, she was eventually renumbered to No. 7000 if I recall correctly, and wound up at the end in hump service at Keyser, W.Va. She was scrapped around 1940 or the late 1930s--a historically significant machine that one would argue should have been preserved.

http://www.calvertcentral.com/articulated.html

New in 1904; classification on the B&O was DD-1. B&O used a classification system somewhat similar to that of the Pennsylvania Railroad, in that a locomotive of two units would have the classifications of the two units as separate locomotives. The DD-1, for instance, was two 0-6-0s (class D), the LL-1 was two 0-8-0s, and the various EL classes were a 2-8-0 and an 0-8-0, just as Pennsy's electric GG-1 was a pair of 4-6-0s.

http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/bo2400sa.jpg

http://abpr.railfan.net/abprphoto.cgi?j ... anColl.jpg

Supposedly In service about 1931, but the flat ground in the background and the engine's overall polished appearance, including white tires, suggests the B&O Centennial exhibition (The Fair of the Iron Horse) in 1927; looks like she's would be in hump service by this time with those footboards, and she now has electric lights. This is about how she would have looked at the time of her retirement:

http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/bo2400s.jpg

Class LL-1--and take note of that number, and the puny power reverse cylinder in front of the firebox:

http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/bo/bo-s2401ago.jpg

An impressive locomotive, but not one to win any beauty contests:

http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/bo7024s.jpg

http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/bo7046sa.jpg

Some got leading trucks, but not all:

http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/bo7049s.jpg

http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/bo7040sa.jpg

The workhorse Mallets on the B&O were a series of quite similar locomotives in classes EL-1, EL-2, EL-3, and EL-5, plus some former Seaboard Air Line 2-8-8-2s that were rebuilt to 2-8-8-0s, in class EL-6. All were originally compounds, and most were rebuilt as simples in the 1920s--but again, not quite all:

No. 7122 is a compound EL-3:

http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/bo7122s.jpg

No. 7137 is also an EL-3, but is now a simple engine, as is 7139:

http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/bo7137s.jpg

http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/bo7139s.jpg

No. 7311 and 7304 are former SAL 2-8-8-2s, their heritage showing in different proportions (including 63-inch drivers, high compared to the 57-inchers of B&O's own), and a different, squarish cab. Both have also been rebuilt to simple operation. With their higher drivers, these were the fastest articulateds on the B&O until the coming of the fabulous EM-1 2-8-8-4s in 1944 and 1945:

http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/bo7311s.jpg

http://www.northeast.railfan.net/images/bo7304s.jpg

Turns out there is a book on the Old Maude (or Old Maud--both spellings seem to be in use):

http://www.amazon.com/Americas-Pioneer- ... 0977793109

She was also the LAST "new" 4-8-2 to be put into service on U.S. rails.

Les

Thanks for posting this. What I would have given to been there to see such a wonderful display.

A little side note about Chicago Bridge and Iron during WW II:

http://www.thezephyr.com/prairieshipyard.htm







We have visited that site where the shipyard used to be.



My wife and son at the monument in Seneca Illinois.

Steve