Atlantic

Atlantic
The Atlantic preserved on static display at the B&O Railroad Museum
Power type	Steam
Builder	Phineas Davis
Build date	1832
Configuration	0-4-0
Gauge	4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm)
Weight	6.5 tons
Fuel type	anthracite coal
Boiler pressure	50 psi
Cylinders	2
Power output	63 hp
Tractive effort	1,570 pound force
Career	Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Nicknames	"Grasshopper"

Atlantic was the name of an early American steam locomotive built by Phineas Davis for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) in 1832.

Design and construction

Built at a cost of $4,500, the Atlantic weighed 6.5 tons and had two vertical cylinders. Ox teams were used to convey the engine to Baltimore, where it made a successful inaugural trip to Ellicott's Mills, Maryland, a distance of thirteen miles. Nicknamed the "Grasshopper" for its distinctive vertical pushrods, the locomotive carried 50 pounds of steam and burned a ton of anthracite coal on a 40-mile trip from Baltimore. Satisfied with this locomotive's operations, the B&O built 20 more locomotives of a similar design at its Mt. Clare shops in Baltimore.

Replica Atlantic

The Andrew Jackson, altered to resemble the Atlantic, on display at the New York World's Fair in 1939

In 1892, the B&O rebuilt another locomotive, originally named Andrew Jackson, to resemble the 1832 Atlantic. It was intended to be used as a heritage showpiece, and it was first exhibited at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois. It was exhibited again at the 1939 New York World's Fair and then in 1948-49 at the Chicago Railroad Fair as part of the latter fair's "Wheels A-Rolling" pageant.

References

• Chicago Railroad Fair Official Guide Book (1949).
• (1999) Steam Locomotive Roster. Retrieved February 15, 2006.
• White, John H., Jr. (1968). A history of the American locomotive; its development: 1830-1880. Dover Publications, New York, NY. ISBN 0-486-23818-0. p 71.

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