PRR L1s
Encyclopedia
Class L1s on the Pennsylvania Railroad
comprised 574 2-8-2
"Mikado" type steam locomotive
s constructed between 1914 and 1919 by the railroad's own Juniata Shops (344 examples) as well as the Baldwin Locomotive Works
(205) and the Lima Locomotive Works
(25).
It was the largest class of 2-8-2 locomotives anywhere, although other railroads had more Mikados in total.
The L1s shared the boiler and many other components with the K4s
4-6-2 "Pacific" type, giving a total of 999 locomotives with many standard parts.
Although the L1s type was quite successful, it was very much eclipsed in PRR service by the larger and more powerful I1s/I1sa
2-10-0
"Decapods", which arrived in service only two years after the L1s and were very suited to the PRR's mountain grades and heavy coal and mineral trains, and by the 1923 introduction of the M1
4-8-2
"Mountains" which took on the best high-speed freight runs. Large numbers of the class were stored out of service during the Great Depression
, only to return to service during World War II
.
's successful Heavy Mikado
standard design, which was built to the total of 957 locomotives.
As built, however, the class was lacking much in the way of modern appliances due to the PRR's conservatism; features missing included a mechanical stoker, power reverse, and a feedwater heater
, although most of the class were later given a stoker and all received power reverse.
s were replaced with steel, footboard pilots replaced the pointed passenger-style previously fitted, and oil-burning headlights were replaced by electric lights.
Power reverse gear was fitted slowly to the entire class per an order of the Interstate Commerce Commission
, the task being complete by the early 1930s. Fitting this gear required moving the air tanks from the right-hand side of the boiler to the front deck, thus providing an easy visual indication of the modification. The tanks on the left-hand side of the boiler remained in their original location.
Most (but by no means all) of the class were eventually fitted with mechanical stokers; by 1947, 512 locomotives were stoker-equipped, 39 still hand-fired, and the remaining ten were oil-fired, the latter being an experiment tried during the coal-miners' strikes of that period.
The PRR experimented with booster engine
s on the L1s class as it did with the K4s Pacifics, but apart from a few test installations never proceeded with this modification. Also not generally fitted was the PRR's trainphone
system, although early installations were tested on at least one L1s.
A more serious modification was performed to L1s #2861, which was fitted with an experimental Emerson water-tube firebox at the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
's Mount Clare Shops
.
Like most PRR locomotives, class L1s was subject to the post-World War II swapping of the locations of the headlamp and turbo-generator. The headlamp was placed in front of the stack on top of the smokebox, in the generator's former location, while the tubogenerator was mounted on the upper smokebox front in the location formerly occupied by the headlamp. This was for ease of maintenance; the turbogenerator needed work much more frequently than the headlight, so it was given the location with easier access.
Many of the class were fitted with cab signal equipment, the electronics for which were largely contained in a wood box affixed to the right-hand side running board in front of the reversing gear and aft of the smokebox.
in 1941; two were sold to the Cambria and Indiana Railroad
in the same year. Three locomotives were sold to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
in 1945. In 1948, two locomotives were sold to the Interstate Railroad
and two to the Detroit, Toledo and Ironton Railroad
.
, which remained in service until almost the end of steam operations, hauled one of the last steam-powered passenger trains on the PRR: a railfan
special between Enola Yard
and Northumberland, Pennsylvania
. Shortly after that service it was added to the PRR's historic locomotive collection in the Northumberland roundhouse, and followed most of that collection to the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania
where it remains today a static exhibit. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
in 1979.
Offer a complete original design L-1 fast freight locomotive in HO scale
. Product number 37976.
Bowser Manufacturing
offers a metal kit, originally offered by Penn Line Manufacturing
, of the L1s locomotive in H0 scale.
In N scale
, GHQ offered a kit to convert a Kato
USRA Light Mikado
into a L1s.
Pennsylvania Railroad
The Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
comprised 574 2-8-2
2-8-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-8-2 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle , eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle...
"Mikado" type steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s constructed between 1914 and 1919 by the railroad's own Juniata Shops (344 examples) as well as the Baldwin Locomotive Works
Baldwin Locomotive Works
The Baldwin Locomotive Works was an American builder of railroad locomotives. It was located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, originally, and later in nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania. Although the company was very successful as a producer of steam locomotives, its transition to the production of...
(205) and the Lima Locomotive Works
Lima Locomotive Works
Lima Locomotive Works was an American firm that manufactured railroad locomotives from the 1870s through the 1950s. The company took the most distinctive part of its name from its main shops location in Lima, Ohio. The shops were located between the Baltimore & Ohio's Cincinnati-Toledo main line...
(25).
It was the largest class of 2-8-2 locomotives anywhere, although other railroads had more Mikados in total.
The L1s shared the boiler and many other components with the K4s
PRR K4s
The Pennsylvania Railroad's K4s 4-6-2 "Pacific" was their premier passenger-hauling steam locomotive from 1914 through the end of steam on the PRR in 1957....
4-6-2 "Pacific" type, giving a total of 999 locomotives with many standard parts.
Although the L1s type was quite successful, it was very much eclipsed in PRR service by the larger and more powerful I1s/I1sa
PRR I1s
The Pennsylvania Railroad's class I1s steam locomotives were the largest class of 2-10-0 "Decapods" built in the United States, with 598 built 1916–1923 . These locomotives were the premier freight locomotive type on the system until World War II, and they remained in service until the end of...
2-10-0
2-10-0
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-10-0 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, ten powered and coupled driving wheels on five axles, and no trailing wheels...
"Decapods", which arrived in service only two years after the L1s and were very suited to the PRR's mountain grades and heavy coal and mineral trains, and by the 1923 introduction of the M1
PRR M1
M1 is a class of steam locomotive of the Pennsylvania Railroad . It was a class of heavy mixed-traffic locomotives of the 4-8-2 "Mountain" arrangement, which uses four pairs of driving wheels with a four-wheel guiding truck in front for stability at speed and a two-wheel trailing truck to support...
4-8-2
4-8-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-8-2 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle...
"Mountains" which took on the best high-speed freight runs. Large numbers of the class were stored out of service during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, only to return to service during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Design
The L1s design was state-of-the-art for its time and comparable with the best being produced for any other road. In fact, the specifications of the L1s and the Santa Fe's similar 3160 class locomotives were the basis for the USRAUSRA
USRA may refer to:*United States Railroad Administration , the nationalized rail system during World War I**The USRA standard locomotives built by this administration...
's successful Heavy Mikado
USRA Heavy Mikado
The USRA Heavy Mikado was a USRA standard class of steam locomotive designed under the control of the United States Railroad Administration, the nationalized railroad system in the United States during World War I. These locomotives were of 2-8-2 wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, or 1′D1′...
standard design, which was built to the total of 957 locomotives.
As built, however, the class was lacking much in the way of modern appliances due to the PRR's conservatism; features missing included a mechanical stoker, power reverse, and a feedwater heater
Feedwater heater
A feedwater heater is a power plant component used to pre-heat water delivered to a steam generating boiler. Preheating the feedwater reduces the irreversibilities involved in steam generation and therefore improves the thermodynamic efficiency of the system...
, although most of the class were later given a stoker and all received power reverse.
Modifications in service
The class remained largely as built until the 1920s. At that time, piston and valve tailrods were removed, wooden pilot beamPilot (locomotive)
In railroading, the pilot is the device mounted at the front of a locomotive to deflect obstacles from the track that might otherwise derail the train. In some countries it is also called cowcatcher or cattle catcher....
s were replaced with steel, footboard pilots replaced the pointed passenger-style previously fitted, and oil-burning headlights were replaced by electric lights.
Power reverse gear was fitted slowly to the entire class per an order of the Interstate Commerce Commission
Interstate Commerce Commission
The Interstate Commerce Commission was a regulatory body in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads to ensure fair rates, to eliminate rate discrimination, and to regulate other aspects of common carriers, including...
, the task being complete by the early 1930s. Fitting this gear required moving the air tanks from the right-hand side of the boiler to the front deck, thus providing an easy visual indication of the modification. The tanks on the left-hand side of the boiler remained in their original location.
Most (but by no means all) of the class were eventually fitted with mechanical stokers; by 1947, 512 locomotives were stoker-equipped, 39 still hand-fired, and the remaining ten were oil-fired, the latter being an experiment tried during the coal-miners' strikes of that period.
The PRR experimented with booster engine
Booster engine
A booster engine for steam locomotives is a small two-cylinder steam engine back-gear-connected to the trailing truck axle on the locomotive or, if none, the lead truck on the tender. A rocking idler gear permits it to be put into operation by the engineer...
s on the L1s class as it did with the K4s Pacifics, but apart from a few test installations never proceeded with this modification. Also not generally fitted was the PRR's trainphone
Trainphone
Trainphone was the Pennsylvania Railroad's system for voice communication between train crews on moving trains and with dispatchers, tower operators and similar. It was also used by the Kansas City Southern, and to some lesser extent on the Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range. It did not use radio, but...
system, although early installations were tested on at least one L1s.
A more serious modification was performed to L1s #2861, which was fitted with an experimental Emerson water-tube firebox at the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
's Mount Clare Shops
Mount Clare Shops
The Mount Clare Shops is the oldest railroad manufacturing complex in the United States, located in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1829. Mt. Clare was the site of many inventions and innovations in railroad technology. It is presently the site of the...
.
Like most PRR locomotives, class L1s was subject to the post-World War II swapping of the locations of the headlamp and turbo-generator. The headlamp was placed in front of the stack on top of the smokebox, in the generator's former location, while the tubogenerator was mounted on the upper smokebox front in the location formerly occupied by the headlamp. This was for ease of maintenance; the turbogenerator needed work much more frequently than the headlight, so it was given the location with easier access.
Many of the class were fitted with cab signal equipment, the electronics for which were largely contained in a wood box affixed to the right-hand side running board in front of the reversing gear and aft of the smokebox.
Sale to other railroads
Some L1s locomotives were sold by the PRR to other railroads. Four were sold to the Lehigh and New England RailroadLehigh and New England Railroad
The Lehigh and New England Railroad was a connection from northeastern Pennsylvania towards the Poughkeepsie Bridge across the Hudson River. Originally planned as a continuous line east to Boston, plans were later cut back to a section west of the river....
in 1941; two were sold to the Cambria and Indiana Railroad
Cambria and Indiana Railroad
The Cambria and Indiana Railroad is a railway company that is located in the southeastern part of Indiana County, Pennsylvania in the United States...
in the same year. Three locomotives were sold to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway
The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often abbreviated as Santa Fe, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The company was first chartered in February 1859...
in 1945. In 1948, two locomotives were sold to the Interstate Railroad
Interstate Railroad
The Interstate Railroad was a railroad in the southwest part of the U.S. state of Virginia. It extended from the Clinchfield Railroad at Miller Yard in northeastern Scott County north and west to Appalachia and north to the main yard at Andover, with many branches to the north into the mountains...
and two to the Detroit, Toledo and Ironton Railroad
Detroit, Toledo and Ironton Railroad
The Detroit, Toledo and Ironton Railroad was a railroad that operated between its namesake cities of Detroit, Michigan and Ironton, Ohio via Toledo between 1905 and 1983.-Early history:...
.
Preservation
L1s #520PRR 520
PRR 520 is a Pennsylvania Railroad L1s steam locomotive located in the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania, outside of Strasburg, Pennsylvania in the United States. It was built in 1916 and had its boiler replaced after an explosion in 1942...
, which remained in service until almost the end of steam operations, hauled one of the last steam-powered passenger trains on the PRR: a railfan
Railfan
A railfan or rail buff , railway enthusiast or railway buff , or trainspotter , is a person interested in a recreational capacity in rail transport...
special between Enola Yard
Enola Yard
Enola Yard is a large rail yard located in East Pennsboro Township, Pennsylvania, along the western shore of the Susquehanna River at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. It was the world's largest freight yard through 1956. The yard continues to operate today at lower traffic levels.-History:The yard was...
and Northumberland, Pennsylvania
Northumberland, Pennsylvania
Northumberland is a borough in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 3,714 at the 2000 census.-History:Northumberland was founded in 1772. The land that became Northumberland was purchased from the Iroquois in the first Treaty of Fort Stanwix in 1768, and the...
. Shortly after that service it was added to the PRR's historic locomotive collection in the Northumberland roundhouse, and followed most of that collection to the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania
Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania
The Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania is a railroad museum in Strasburg, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.The museum is located on the east side of Strasburg along Pennsylvania Route 741...
where it remains today a static exhibit. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1979.
Models
MarklinMärklin
Gebr. Märklin & Cie. GmbH or Märklin is a German toy company. The company was founded in 1859 and is based at Göppingen in Baden-Wurttemberg. Although it originally specialised in doll house accessories, today it is best known for model railways and technical toys...
Offer a complete original design L-1 fast freight locomotive in HO scale
HO scale
HO or H0 is the most popular scale of model railway in the world.According to the NMRA standard S-1.2 predominantly used in North America, in HO scale, represents 1 real foot ; this ratio works out to about 1:87.1. According to the MOROP standard NEM 010 predominantly used in Europe, the scale is...
. Product number 37976.
Bowser Manufacturing
Bowser Manufacturing
Bowser Manufacturing is a United States manufacturer of model railroad equipment, located in Montoursville, Pennsylvania, USA.The company was founded in 1948 by Bill Bowser in California. Since 1961 it has been owned by the Lewis English family and located in Pennsylvania...
offers a metal kit, originally offered by Penn Line Manufacturing
Penn Line Manufacturing
Penn Line Manufacturing was a United States manufacturer of model railroad equipment, produced in Boyertown, Pennsylvania, USA.-History:The company's history began in 1947, when founded by Albert M. Mercer, K. Linwood Stauffer and Robert Faust...
, of the L1s locomotive in H0 scale.
In N scale
N scale
N scale is a popular model railway scale/track gauge. Depending upon the manufacturer , the scale ranges from 1:148 to 1:160. In all cases, the gauge is . The term N gauge refers to the track dimensions, but in the UK in particular N gauge refers to a 1:148 scale with track gauge modelling...
, GHQ offered a kit to convert a Kato
Kato Precision Railroad Models
Kato Precision Railroad Models is a Japanese manufacturer of model railroad equipment in N and HO scales...
USRA Light Mikado
USRA Light Mikado
The USRA Light Mikado was a USRA standard class of steam locomotive designed under the control of the United States Railroad Administration, the nationalized railroad system in the United States during World War I...
into a L1s.