''Pioneer'' is the name of the first
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 ...
locomotive to operate in
Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
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. It was built in 1837 by
Baldwin Locomotive Works for the
Utica and Schenectady Railroad
The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected greater New York and Boston in the east with Chicago and St. Louis in the Midw ...
(U&S) in
New York, then purchased used by
William B. Ogden
William Butler Ogden (June 15, 1805 – August 3, 1877) was an American politician and railroad executive who served as the first Mayor of Chicago. He was referred to as "the Astor of Chicago." He was, at one time, the city's richest citizen.
...
for the
Galena and Chicago Union Railroad (G&CU, the oldest predecessor of
Chicago and North Western Railway
The Chicago and North Western was a Class I railroad in the Midwestern United States. It was also known as the "North Western". The railroad operated more than of track at the turn of the 20th century, and over of track in seven states befor ...
). The locomotive arrived in Chicago by schooner on October 10, 1848, and it pulled the first train westbound out of the city on October 25, 1848.
History
When the locomotive was built by Baldwin #184 in 1837 for the U&S which gave it the name ''Alert''. It worked almost a decade before it was sold in 1848 to the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad. The G&CU renamed the locomotive ''Pioneer'' and used it in the construction of the G&CU until 1850, at which time the locomotive was loaned to the
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad for work laying the first track in Chicago that summer. The Pioneer was returned and became its road work locomotive. After the G&CU was merged into the
Chicago and North Western (C&NW), the locomotive remained in service, until it was retired in 1875 at West Chicago, IL
[Chicago North Western Historical Society]
The locomotive has been preserved and is on display at the
Chicago History Museum
Chicago History Museum is the museum of the Chicago Historical Society (CHS). The CHS was founded in 1856 to study and interpret Chicago's history. The museum has been located in Lincoln Park since the 1930s at 1601 North Clark Street at the int ...
.
References
{{Reflist
* Chicago Historical Society,
History Lab Collections - Riding the Rails'. Retrieved October 25, 2005.
* Rivanna Chapter, National Railway Historical Society (2005),
'. Retrieved October 25, 2005.
* SteamLocomotive.com (November 1, 2004),
Chicago Area Steam'. Retrieved October 25, 2005.
* History Channel,
Deep Sea Detectives'. Retrieved July 3, 2008.
Individual locomotives of the United States
4-2-0 locomotives
Chicago and North Western Railway locomotives
Early steam locomotives
History of Chicago
Preserved steam locomotives of Illinois