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A steam dummy or dummy engine, in the United States and Canada, was a steam locomotive enclosed in a
Baldwin Locomotive Works manufactured steam dummies or steam motors for many American tramways. Baldwin exported to places such as Sydney, Australia - where they were known as ' steam tram motors' - and New Zealand, where two, both built in 1891, survive at museums today.
H. K. Porter, Inc. preferred the term "noiseless steam street motor" in their 20th-century catalog, although they used the term "dummy" (in quotes) in the 19th century. In the 20th century, they offered 0-4-0 and 0-4-2 wheel arrangements. In the 19th century, they also offered a double-ended dummy with a 2-4-2 wheel arrangement. Porter recommended using anthracite or coke as a fuel in order to avoid smoke. Side flaps to hide the mechanism were optional. Operating speeds between were reported by 19th-century users.
In the UK, the Great Western Railway equipped two engines each from the 2021 and 517 classes with coach bodywork between 1906 and 1911.
A steam dummy or dummy engine, in the United States and Canada, was a steam locomotive enclosed in a wood
Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin ...
en box structure made to resemble a railroad
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
passenger coach
A passenger railroad car or passenger car (United States), also called a passenger carriage, passenger coach (United Kingdom and International Union of Railways), or passenger bogie (India) is a railroad car that is designed to carry passen ...
. Steam dummies had some popularity in the first decades of railroading in the U.S., from the 1830s but passed from favor after the Civil War
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
.
Overview
It was thought that the more familiar appearance of a coach presented by a steam dummy, as compared to a conventional steam locomotive, would be less likely to frightenhorse
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 ...
s when these trains had to operate in city streets. Later it was realized that it was actually the noise and motion of the operating gear of a steam engine that frightened horses, rather than the unfamiliar outlines of a steam engine.
Production
Baldwin Locomotive Works manufactured steam dummies or steam motors for many American tramways. Baldwin exported to places such as Sydney, Australia - where they were known as ' steam tram motors' - and New Zealand, where two, both built in 1891, survive at museums today.
H. K. Porter, Inc. preferred the term "noiseless steam street motor" in their 20th-century catalog, although they used the term "dummy" (in quotes) in the 19th century. In the 20th century, they offered 0-4-0 and 0-4-2 wheel arrangements. In the 19th century, they also offered a double-ended dummy with a 2-4-2 wheel arrangement. Porter recommended using anthracite or coke as a fuel in order to avoid smoke. Side flaps to hide the mechanism were optional. Operating speeds between were reported by 19th-century users.
In the UK, the Great Western Railway equipped two engines each from the 2021 and 517 classes with coach bodywork between 1906 and 1911.
See also
* Doodlebug * Multiple unit *Steamrailmotor
Railmotor is a term used in the United Kingdom and elsewhere for a railway lightweight railcar, usually consisting of a railway carriage with a steam traction unit, or a diesel or petrol engine, integrated into it.
Steam railcars
Overview
In th ...
*Tram engine
A tram engine is a steam locomotive specially built, or modified, to run on a street, or roadside, tramway track.
Legal requirements
In the steam locomotive era, tram engines had to comply with certain legal requirements, although these varie ...
References