Chesapeake and Ohio class T-1

The Chesapeake and Ohio T-1 was a class of forty 2-10-4 steam locomotives built by the Lima Locomotive Works in Lima, Ohio in 1930 and operated until the early 1950s.

C&O T-1 class
T-1 locomotive No. 3021 operating in 1941
Type and origin Power type Steam Designer Advisory Mechanical Committee Builder Lima Locomotive Works Order number 1122 Serial number 7516–7555 Build date 1930 Total produced 40
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 2-10-4  • UIC 1′E2′ h2 Gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Leading dia. 33 in (838 mm) Driver dia. 69 in (1,753 mm) Trailing dia. 36 in (914 mm) 43 in (1,092 mm) (trail axle) Tender wheels 36 in (914 mm) Minimum curve 338 ft (103 m) radius / 17° Wheelbase 99 ft 5+3⁄4 in (30.32 m) (Total) Length 111 ft 5+1⁄8 in (33.96 m) Width 11 ft 3 in (3.43 m) Height 16 ft 7 in (5.05 m) Frame type Built-up Axle load 75,000 lb (38 short tons) Adhesive weight 373,000 lb (186.5 tons) Loco weight 566,000 lb (283 tons) Tender weight 415,000 lb (207.5 tons) Total weight 981,000 lb (490.5 tons) Tender type 23-RA Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 30 tons (60,000 lb) Water cap. 23,500 US gallons Sandbox cap. 72 cu ft (2.0 m3) Firebox: ​  • Grate area 121 sq ft (11.2 m2) Boiler: ​  • Model Fire Tube  • Diameter 108 in (2,743 mm)  • Tube plates 21 ft (6 m) Boiler pressure 265 psi (1933-) 260 psi (As built) Safety valve Pop, 3+1⁄2 in (89 mm) 4 per locomotive Feedwater heater Worthington 6-S 12,000 US gal / hr capacity Heating surface: ​  • Firebox 477 sq ft (44 m2)  • Arch tubes 168.5 sq ft (16 m2)  • Tubes and flues 5,978 sq ft (555 m2)  • Total surface 6,623.5 sq ft (615 m2) Superheater: ​  • Type Type E  • Heating area 3,030 sq ft (281 m2) Cylinders Two Cylinder size 29 in × 34 in (737 mm × 864 mm) Valve gear Baker-long travel Valve type Piston Valve travel 9 in (229 mm) Valve lap 1+15⁄16 in (49 mm) Valve lead 3⁄16 in (5 mm) Loco brake Pneumatic, Schedule 6-ET Train brakes Pneumatic
Performance figures Maximum speed 60 mph (97 km/h) Power output 5,200 hp (3,900 kW) @ 41 mph (66 km/h) (drawbar) Tractive effort 93,350 lbf (Engine) 15,275 lbf (Booster) 108,625 lbf (Total) Factor of adh. 4.00 (Engine) 4.32 (Booster)
Career Operators Chesapeake and Ohio Class T-1 Numbers 3000–3039 Retired 1952–1953 Disposition All scrapped

History and design

The Chesapeake and Ohio tested an Erie Railroad Berkshire locomotive, then stretched the design by adding one more driving axle, creating the 2-10-4. The T-1s were equipped with a trailing truck booster that exerted 15,275 pounds of tractive effort. They could pull the same train as a 2-8-8-2 H-7 and do it faster. The locomotives mainly operated between Russell, Kentucky to Toledo, Ohio, with a few ending up in eastern Virginia. They were rated at 13,500 tons or 160 loaded coal hoppers. They also sported the most heating surface of any two-cylinder steam locomotive, with a combined heating surface of 9,654 square feet (896.9 m²).

Despite their overall success, their long-wheelbase made it difficult to maintain a proper counterbalancing scheme as the drivers wore unevenly in service. Later in their careers, as their built up frames began to work loose, the T-1s rode roughly and pounded the track to the point that a special gang stood by at the bottom of one long grade to repair the damage.^[1]

In 1942, the Pennsylvania Railroad based 125 of their J1 class 2-10-4s off of the T-1s with slight modifications.

Accident

On May 12, 1948, no. 3020 suffered a boiler explosion due to a low water level near Chillicothe, Ohio. The engineer, fireman and front brakeman were killed.^[2]

Disposition

The C&O began retiring the T-1 locomotives in 1952 in favor of diesel locomotives, and by 1953, all had been retired. None were preserved.

See also

• Chesapeake and Ohio class H-8
• Chesapeake and Ohio class K-4

References

1. "The World of Steam Locomotives". steamlocomotive.com. Retrieved 2022-01-15.
2. "The 1948 Steam Locomotive Boiler Explosion Outside of Chillicothe, Ohio". YouTube. 17 April 2020. Retrieved 2022-01-15.