Puffing Billy (locomotive)
Encyclopedia
Puffing Billy is an early railway steam locomotive
, constructed in 1813-1814 by engineer William Hedley
, enginewright Jonathan Forster and blacksmith Timothy Hackworth
for Christopher Blackett
, the owner of Wylam
Colliery near Newcastle upon Tyne
, in the United Kingdom. It is the world's oldest surviving steam locomotive. It was the first commercial adhesion
steam locomotive, employed to haul coal
chaldron wagons from the mine at Wylam
to the docks at Lemington-on-Tyne
in Northumberland
.
, the demand for horses by the army made them very expensive to obtain. The engines remained in service for many years and were not retired until as late as 1862.
In 1862, Edward Blackett
, the owner of Wylam Colliery, lent Puffing Billy to the Patent Office Museum in South Kensington
, London
(later the Science Museum
). He later sold it to the museum for £200. It is still on display there. Its sister locomotive, Wylam Dilly
, is preserved in the Royal Museum in Edinburgh
.
A replica has been built and was first run in 2006 at Beamish Museum
.
rods extended upwards to pivoting beams, connected in turn by rods to a crankshaft
beneath the frames, from which gears drove and also coupled the wheels allowing better traction.
The engine had a number of serious technical limitations. Running on cast iron Wagonway
plates, its eight-ton weight was too heavy and broke them, encouraging opponents of locomotive traction to criticise the innovation. This problem was alleviated by redesigning the engine with four axles so that the weight was spread more evenly. The engine was eventually rebuilt as a four-wheeler when improved edge rails track was introduced around 1830. It was not particularly fast, being capable of no more than 5 mph (8 km/h).
, who lived locally, and its success was a key factor in promoting the use of steam locomotives by other collieries in north-eastern England.
It also entered the language as a metaphor for an energetic traveller, and phrases like "puffing like Billy-o" and "running like Billy-o" are thought to derive from the locomotive's name.
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...
, constructed in 1813-1814 by engineer William Hedley
William Hedley
William Hedley was one of the leading industrial engineers of the early 19th century, and was very instrumental in several major innovations in early railway development...
, enginewright Jonathan Forster and blacksmith Timothy Hackworth
Timothy Hackworth
Timothy Hackworth was a steam locomotive engineer who lived in Shildon, County Durham, England and was the first locomotive superintendent of the Stockton and Darlington Railway.- Youth and early work :...
for Christopher Blackett
Blackett of Wylam
The Blacketts of Wylam were a branch of the ancient family of Blackett of Hoppyland, County Durham, England and were related to the Blackett Baronets....
, the owner of Wylam
Wylam
Wylam is a small village about west of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is located in the county of Northumberland.It is famous for the being the birthplace of George Stephenson, one of the early rail pioneers. George Stephenson's Birthplace is his cottage that can be found on the north bank of the...
Colliery near Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
, in the United Kingdom. It is the world's oldest surviving steam locomotive. It was the first commercial adhesion
Rail adhesion
The term adhesion railway or adhesion traction describes the most common type of railway, where power is applied by driving some or all of the wheels of the locomotive. Thus, it relies on the friction between a steel wheel and a steel rail. Note that steam locomotives of old were driven only by...
steam locomotive, employed to haul coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
chaldron wagons from the mine at Wylam
Wylam
Wylam is a small village about west of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is located in the county of Northumberland.It is famous for the being the birthplace of George Stephenson, one of the early rail pioneers. George Stephenson's Birthplace is his cottage that can be found on the north bank of the...
to the docks at Lemington-on-Tyne
Lemington
Lemington is a housing area and electoral ward of Newcastle upon Tyne in North East England.-History:Lemington has a strong industrial history. It is famous for its brick glassworks cone, built in 1787...
in Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
.
History
It was one of a number of similar engines built by Hedley, the resident engineer at Wylam Colliery, to replace the horses used as motive power on the tramway. In 1813 Hedley built for Blackett's colliery business on the Wylam Colliery line 2 prototypes, "Puffing Billy" and "Wylam Dilly"; they were rebuilt in 1815 and then both served successfully until at least 1830. Due to the Napoleonic WarsNapoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, the demand for horses by the army made them very expensive to obtain. The engines remained in service for many years and were not retired until as late as 1862.
In 1862, Edward Blackett
Blackett of Wylam
The Blacketts of Wylam were a branch of the ancient family of Blackett of Hoppyland, County Durham, England and were related to the Blackett Baronets....
, the owner of Wylam Colliery, lent Puffing Billy to the Patent Office Museum in South Kensington
South Kensington
South Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London. It is a built-up area located 2.4 miles west south-west of Charing Cross....
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
(later the Science Museum
Science Museum (London)
The Science Museum is one of the three major museums on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is part of the National Museum of Science and Industry. The museum is a major London tourist attraction....
). He later sold it to the museum for £200. It is still on display there. Its sister locomotive, Wylam Dilly
Wylam Dilly
Wylam Dilly is one of the two oldest surviving railway locomotives in the world; it was built circa 1815 by William Hedley and Timothy Hackworth. Wylam Dilly was initially designed for and used on the Wylam Waggonway to transport coal. It is currently on display in the Royal Museum in Edinburgh...
, is preserved in the Royal Museum in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
.
A replica has been built and was first run in 2006 at Beamish Museum
Beamish Museum
Beamish, The North of England Open Air Museum is an open-air museum located at Beamish, near the town of Stanley, County Durham, England. The museum's guiding principle is to preserve an example of everyday life in urban and rural North East England at the climax of industrialisation in the early...
.
Design
Puffing Billy incorporated a number of novel features, patented by Hedley, which were to prove important to the development of locomotives. PistonPiston
A piston is a component of reciprocating engines, reciprocating pumps, gas compressors and pneumatic cylinders, among other similar mechanisms. It is the moving component that is contained by a cylinder and is made gas-tight by piston rings. In an engine, its purpose is to transfer force from...
rods extended upwards to pivoting beams, connected in turn by rods to a crankshaft
Crankshaft
The crankshaft, sometimes casually abbreviated to crank, is the part of an engine which translates reciprocating linear piston motion into rotation...
beneath the frames, from which gears drove and also coupled the wheels allowing better traction.
The engine had a number of serious technical limitations. Running on cast iron Wagonway
Wagonway
Wagonways consisted of the horses, equipment and tracks used for hauling wagons, which preceded steam powered railways. The terms "plateway", "tramway" and in someplaces, "dramway" are also found.- Early developments :...
plates, its eight-ton weight was too heavy and broke them, encouraging opponents of locomotive traction to criticise the innovation. This problem was alleviated by redesigning the engine with four axles so that the weight was spread more evenly. The engine was eventually rebuilt as a four-wheeler when improved edge rails track was introduced around 1830. It was not particularly fast, being capable of no more than 5 mph (8 km/h).
Legacy
Puffing Billy was an important influence on George StephensonGeorge Stephenson
George Stephenson was an English civil engineer and mechanical engineer who built the first public railway line in the world to use steam locomotives...
, who lived locally, and its success was a key factor in promoting the use of steam locomotives by other collieries in north-eastern England.
It also entered the language as a metaphor for an energetic traveller, and phrases like "puffing like Billy-o" and "running like Billy-o" are thought to derive from the locomotive's name.