The largest single class of steam locomotive in the world is the 0-10-0 Russian locomotive class E steam locomotive with around 11,000 manufactured both in Russia and other countries such as Czechoslovakia, Germany, Sweden, Hungary and Poland. The Russian locomotive class O numbered 9129 locomotives built between 1890 and 1928. The German DRB Class 52 2-10-0 Kriegslok which consisted of approximate 7000 units. The British GWR 5700 class numbered about 863 units. The DX class of the London and North Western Railway numbered 943 units, including 86 engines built for the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway.
United Kingdom
Great Western Railway No. 6833 Calcot Grange, a 4-6-0 Grange class steam locomotive, at Bristol Temple Meads station, Bristol, England. Note the Belpaire (square-topped) firebox.
Before the 1923 Grouping Act, the picture in the UK was mixed. The larger railway companies built locomotives in their own workshops but the smaller ones and industrial concerns ordered them from outside builders. A large market for outside builders was abroad because of the home-build policy exercised by the main railway companies. An example of a pre grouping works was the one at Melton Constable that maintained and built some of the locomotives for the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway. Other works included one at Boston (an early GNR building) and Horwich works.
Between 1923 and 1947, the "Big Four" railway companies (the Great Western Railway, the London, Midland and Scottish Railway, the London and North Eastern Railway and the Southern Railway) all built most of their own locomotives. Generally speaking, they only bought locomotives from outside builders when their own works were fully occupied (or as a result of government-mandated standardisation during wartime).
From 1948, British Railways allowed the former "Big Four" companies (now designated "Regions") to continue to build their own designs, but also created a range of standard locomotives which supposedly combined the best features from each region. Although a policy of "dieselisation" was adopted in 1955, BR continued to build new steam locomotives until 1960 (the last being named Evening Star).
Some independent manufacturers produced steam locomotives for a few more years, the last British-built industrial steam locomotive being constructed by Hunslet in 1971. Since then, a few specialised manufacturers have continued to produce small locomotives for narrow gauge and miniature railways, but as the prime market for these is the tourist and heritage railway sector, the demand for such locomotives is limited. In November 2008, a new build main line steam locomotive, the 60163 Tornado, was tested on UK mainlines for eventual charter and tour use.
Australia
The 200th steam locomotive built by Clyde Engineering (TF 1164) from the Powerhouse Museum collection
In Australia, Clyde Engineering of Sydney and also the Eveleigh Workshops built steam locomotives for the New South Wales Government Railways. These include the C38 class 4-6-2; the first five were built at Clyde with streamlining, the other 25 locomotives were built at Eveleigh (13) in Sydney, and Cardiff Workshops (12) near Newcastle. In Queensland, steam locomotives were locally constructed by Walkers. Similarly the South Australian state government railways also manufactured steam locomotives locally at Islington in Adelaide. The Victorian Railways constructed most of their locomotives at their Newport Workshops and Bendigo while in the early days locomotives were built at the Phoenix Foundry in Ballarat. Locomotives constructed at the Newport shops ranged from the nA class 2-6-2T built for the narrow gauge, up to the H class 4-8-4, the largest conventional locomotive ever to operate in Australia, which weighed 260 tons. However, the title of largest locomotive in Australia goes to the 263-ton NSWGR AD60 class 4-8-4+4-8-4 Garratt (Oberg:1975), which were built by Beyer-Peacock in the United Kingdom.
Sweden
In the 19th and early 20th centuries, most Swedish steam locomotives were manufactured in England. But later on, most steam locomotives were built by local factories including NOHAB in Trollhättan and ASJ in Falun. One of the most successful types was the class "B" (4-6-0), inspired by the Prussian class P8. Many of the Swedish steam locomotives were preserved during the Cold War in case of war. During the 1990s, these steam locomotives were sold to non-profit associations or abroad, which is why the Swedish class B, class S (2-6-4) and class E2 (2-8-0) locomotives can now be seen in England, the Netherlands, Germany and Canada.
United States
California Western Railroad #45 (builder #58045)), Built by Baldwin in 1924, number 45 is a 2-8-2 "Mikado" locomotive. It is still in use today on the Skunk Train
Railroad locomotive engines in the United States have nearly always been built in and for United States railroads with very few imports, except in the earliest days. This is true because of the basic differences of markets in the United States which initially had many small markets located large distances apart; much different than Europe's much higher density markets. Locomotives that were cheap and rugged and could go over large distances over cheaply built and maintained tracks were the early requirements. Once the manufacture of engines was established on a wide scale there was very little advantage to buying an engine somewhere else that would have to be customized anyway to fit the local requirements and track conditions. Improvements in engine design of both European and U.S. origin could be and were incorporated by manufacturers when they could be justified in a generally very conservative and slow changing market. With the notable exception of the USRA standard locomotives, set during World War I, in the United States, steam locomotive manufacture was always semi-customised. Railroads ordered locomotives tailored to their specific requirements, though basic design features were always present. Railroads developed some specific characteristics; for example, the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Great Northern had a preference for the Belpaire firebox. In the United States, large-scale manufacturers constructed locomotives for nearly all rail companies, although nearly all major railroads had shops capable of heavy repairs and some railroads (for example, the Norfolk and Western Railway and the Pennsylvania Railroad, which had two erecting shops) constructed complete locomotives in their own shops.[citation needed] Companies manufacturing locomotives in the US included Baldwin Locomotive Works, American Locomotive Company (ALCO), and Lima Locomotive Works.
Steam locomotives required regular, and compared to a diesel-electric engine, frequent service and overhaul (often at government-regulated intervals in Europe and the U.S.) Many alterations and upgrades regularly occurred during overhauls. New appliances were added, unsatisfactory features removed, cylinders improved or replaced. Almost any part of the locomotive, including boilers, was replaced or upgraded. When the service or upgrades got too expensive the locomotive was traded off or retired.[citation needed] On the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad two 2-10-2 locomotives were dismantled; the boilers were placed onto two new Class T 4-8-2 locomotives and the residue wheel machinery made a pair of Class U 0-10-0 switchers with new boilers. Union Pacific's fleet of 3-cylinder 4-10-2 engines were converted into two-cylinder engines in 1942, because of high maintenance problems.
The Duchess Of Sutherland 6233 Steam Locomotive
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