Catch Me Who Can
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Catch Me Who Can'' was the fourth and last steam railway locomotive created by the inventor and mining engineer
Richard Trevithick Richard Trevithick (13 April 1771 – 22 April 1833) was a British inventor and mining engineer. The son of a mining captain, and born in the mining heartland of Cornwall, Trevithick was immersed in mining and engineering from an early age. He w ...
. It was an evolution of three earlier locomotives which had been built for
Coalbrookdale Coalbrookdale is a village in the Ironbridge Gorge in Shropshire, England, containing a settlement of great significance in the history of iron ore smelting. It lies within the civil parish called the Gorge. This is where iron ore was first s ...
,
Penydarren : ''For Trevithick's Pen-y-darren locomotive, see Richard Trevithick.'' Penydarren is a community and electoral ward in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough in Wales. Description The area is most notable for being the site of a 1st-century Roman fort, ...
ironworks and
Wylam Wylam is a village and civil parish in the county of Northumberland. It is located about west of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is famous for the being the birthplace of George Stephenson, one of the early railway pioneers. George Stephenson's Birth ...
colliery. Demonstration runs began in July 1808, and ''Catch Me Who Can'' was the first locomotive in the world to haul fare-paying passengers. ''Catch Me Who Can'' was constructed during 1808 by the engineers
John Urpeth Rastrick John Urpeth Rastrick (26 January 1780 – 1 November 1856) was one of the first English steam locomotive builders. In partnership with James Foster, he formed Foster, Rastrick and Company, the locomotive construction company that built the '' ...
and John Hazledine at their foundry in
Bridgnorth Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the 2011 Census was 12,079. Histor ...
,
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. It was demonstrated to the public at Trevithick's "Steam Circus", a circular track in
Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions. Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest mus ...
, just south of the present-day
Euston Square tube station Euston Square is a London Underground station at the corner of Euston Road and Gower Street, just north of University College London – its main entrance faces the tower of University College Hospital. The multi-interchange Euston station ...
, in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. Members of the public could pay to ride in carriages pulled by ''Catch Me Who Can'' around this track. During these demonstration runs, the locomotive reached a reported speed of between and . The circus closed following a
derailment In rail transport, a derailment occurs when a rail vehicle such as a train comes off its rails. Although many derailments are minor, all result in temporary disruption of the proper operation of the railway system and they are a potentially ...
caused by one of the rails breaking underneath the locomotive. While the advantages and applications of steam locomotives had been demonstrated, the venture was a financial failure that played a significant part in Trevithick's bankruptcy in 1809.


History


Design and construction

During the late 1700s and early 1800s, the inventor and mining engineer
Richard Trevithick Richard Trevithick (13 April 1771 – 22 April 1833) was a British inventor and mining engineer. The son of a mining captain, and born in the mining heartland of Cornwall, Trevithick was immersed in mining and engineering from an early age. He w ...
was the primary developer of the
steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...
. He wanted to present his new invention to the general public, and he looked for a suitable site to demonstrate his invention. He chose
Bloomsbury Bloomsbury is a district in the West End of London. It is considered a fashionable residential area, and is the location of numerous cultural, intellectual, and educational institutions. Bloomsbury is home of the British Museum, the largest mus ...
, directly south of the
Euston Road Euston Road is a road in Central London that runs from Marylebone Road to King's Cross. The route is part of the London Inner Ring Road and forms part of the London congestion charge zone boundary. It is named after Euston Hall, the family ...
, near
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
's
Euston Square Euston Square is a large square in the London Borough of Camden in Central London. It lies on Euston Road, and Euston railway station and Euston bus station are on its northernmost side. Although “Euston Square” strictly refers to the squ ...
. The site is believed to be under
University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...
’s Chadwick Building, which now houses the Centre for Transport Studies. A circular track in diameter was built, on which a locomotive and a small number of carriages would run. Members of the public could view and ride on this train for a fare of 1
shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 12 pence o ...
. Trevithick hoped this would be a commercial venture, as well as creating publicity and hopefully demand for more locomotives. Trevithick's fourth railway locomotive was built new for the Steam Circus. It was named ''Catch Me Who Can'' by the sister of
Davies Gilbert Davies Gilbert (born Davies Giddy, 6 March 1767 – 24 December 1839) was an English engineer, author, and politician. He was elected to the Royal Society on 17 November 1791 and served as President of the Royal Society from 1827 to 1830. He ...
. This new locomotive differed from the previous locomotive designs: instead of a horizontal cylinder, flywheel, and geared drive, Catch Me Who Can used a vertical cylinder encased in the
boiler A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, central h ...
, driving one pair of wheels directly. The cylinder was in diameter, with a stroke. The boiler was Trevithick's return-flue type, complete with an internal
firebox Firebox may refer to: *Firebox (steam engine), the area where the fuel is burned in a steam engine *Firebox (architecture), the part of a fireplace where fuel is combusted *Firebox Records Firebox Records was a Finnish record label based in S ...
. The locomotive was similar to an engine that Trevithick had built in 1803 to power a
dredger Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible reasons for dredging include improving existing water features; reshaping land and water features to alter drainage, navigability, and commercial use; constructing da ...
for use on the
Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
.


Operations

In spite of his goal of introducing steam locomotion to the public, Trevithick built a high wooden fence around the demonstration track, concealing it from view to all but those who paid to enter. This may have been done as a means of increasing revenue. ''Catch Me Who Can'' became the world’s first locomotive to haul fare-paying passengers. Some claimed that performance of the locomotive was inferior to that of a
horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...
over a 24 hour endurance test. Trevithick claimed that ''Catch Me Who Can'' could travel over in that time. The locomotive was reported to have reached a top speed of on the circular track and Trevithick was of the opinion that it was capable of on straight track. Operation of ''Catch Me Who'' was hindered by the soft ground that the track was laid on. Trial runs began around 24 July 1808, but almost immediately the ground under the track sank, causing the iron rails to break as the 8-ton locomotive passed over them. Trevithick had the track taken up and timber baulks laid under it to provide a more stable footing. By 28 July, almost all the track had been relaid and the train ran again soon afterwards. Within two months of its original opening, the locomotive again derailed. By then, fewer people were paying the shilling fare. Trevithick had spent all of his savings on setting up the Steam Circus, and he could not pay to have the railway fixed, and it closed.


Impact

In the long term, the Steam Circus was not a fruitless venture. Trevithick had become the first person to successfully prove that a steam locomotive on iron rails was feasible. It would be another 20 years before Trevithick’s concept was fully realised at the Rainhill Trials of 1829, at which the pioneering railway engineers
George Stephenson George Stephenson (9 June 1781 – 12 August 1848) was a British civil engineer and mechanical engineer. Renowned as the "Father of Railways", Stephenson was considered by the Victorians a great example of diligent application and thirst for ...
and
Robert Stephenson Robert Stephenson Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS HFRSE FRSA Doctor of Civil Law, DCL (16 October 1803 – 12 October 1859) was an English civil engineer and designer of locomotives. The only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railway ...
successfully demonstrated the potential of their locomotive ’’Rocket’’.


Illustrations

In 2008, the curator of the
National Museum of Science and Industry The Science Museum Group (SMG) consists of five British museums: * The Science Museum, London, Science Museum in South Kensington, London * The Science and Industry Museum in Manchester * The National Railway Museum in York * The Locomotion Mu ...
, John Liffen, announced that the most widely-known depiction of ''Catch Me Who Can'' and the Bloomsbury demonstration track was likely a twentieth century forgery. Other depictions based on this influential work were in turn misleading. There are few reliable illustrations of the locomotive. Even before this, the lack of reliable information about ''Catch Me Who Can'' had long been acknowledged.


Replica

A replica is under construction by the Trevithick 200 charity at the
Severn Valley Railway The Severn Valley Railway is a heritage railway in Shropshire and Worcestershire, England. The heritage line runs along the Severn Valley from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster, following the course of the River Severn for much of its route, and c ...
workshops, close to the site where the original locomotive was built. As of July 2017 work towards completion of the engine continues with the braking mechanism being the only major item left to complete. The replica engine can be seen outside near to the entrance of the Severn Valley Railway at Bridgnorth station."Industrial Heritage: Bridgnorth celebrates the birth of the railway."
''BBC News'', 29 October 2014.


See also

*
History of rail transport in Great Britain to 1830 The history of rail transport in Great Britain to 1830 covers the period up to the opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, the world's first intercity passenger railway operated solely by steam locomotives. The earliest form of railwa ...


References


External links


1808 - Trevithick's ''Catch Me Who Can''
(Incorrectly gives site as Torrington Square instead of UCL Chadwick Building)
''Catch-Me-Who-Can'', 1808
(Incorrectly gives site as Euston Square instead of UCL Chadwick Building)

site of Trevithick's 1808 steam circus, now underneath the UCL Chadwick Building.

an earlier plan of the area.

(Incorrectly gives site as Euston Square instead of UCL Chadwick Building)
www.steam-circus.info - Compilation of research on the exact location of the Steam Circus, with some new ideas
{{early-steam-locos Early steam locomotives Steam locomotives of Great Britain English inventions Individual locomotives of Great Britain Richard Trevithick Scrapped locomotives