Manila Railroad 800 class USA

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Manila Railroad 800 class USA
MRR Vulcan 889 in the 1940s.png
Manila Railroad 889 in the mid-1940s.
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
Designer US Army Transportation Corps
Builder Vulcan Iron Works, USA
American Locomotive Company
Build date1944-45
Total produced40 (Vulcan)
5 (Alco)
Specifications
Configuration:
   Whyte 2-8-2
   UIC 1'D1'h2
Gauge 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm)
Leading dia. 26 in (660 mm)
Driver dia.48 in (1,219 mm)
Trailing dia. 30 in (762 mm)
Wheelbase
Length59 ft 5+12 in (18,123 mm)
Adhesive weight 36 t (79,000 lb)
Loco weight52 t (115,000 lb)
Tender weight44 t (97,000 lb)
Total weight96 t (212,000 lb)
Tender typeFour-axle tender
Fuel typeOil, coal
Fuel capacity18,000 lb (8,200 kg)
Water cap.5,000 US gal (19,000 L)
Firebox typeStandard fire-tube firebox
  Firegrate area35 sq ft (3.3 m2)
Boiler pressure185 psi (1,280 kPa)
Heating surface1,371 sq ft (127.4 m2)
  Tubes and flues1,256 sq ft (116.7 m2)
  Firebox115 sq ft (10.7 m2)
Superheater:
  TypeFire-tube
  Heating area374 sq ft (34.7 m2)
Cylinders 2, outside
Cylinder size 16 in × 24 in (406 mm × 610 mm)
Valve gear Walschaerts
Valve typePiston valves
Couplers Janney couplers
Performance figures
Maximum speed53 mph (85 km/h)
Tractive effort 20,100 lbf (89 kN)
Factor of adh. 3.98
Career
OperatorsLuzon Military Railway
Manila Railroad Company
Philippine National Railways
Number in class45
NumbersVulcan 851-890
Alco 891-895
NicknamesUSA, Vulcans
LocaleEntire MRR network
Delivered1944–45
First run1945
Withdrawn1989
Preserved0
Scrapped1956–90s
DispositionScrapped

The Manila Railroad 800 class USA were 45 United States Army Transportation Corps class S118 steam locomotives used by the Manila Railroad Company and the Philippine National Railways. Originally built by Vulcan Iron Works and the American Locomotive Works for the United States Army during the Second Philippines Campaign, they were later used to pull freight trains and temporary passenger trains. After the dieselization of the Manila Railroad network in the mid-1950s, they were relegated to work trains until the last unit was scrapped after appearing in a 1989 World War II movie.

Contents

Background

According to a 1952 report that would later gain fruition as the Mindanao Railway, around 75% of all steam locomotives used by the Manila Railroad have been destroyed during World War II between 1941 and 1945. [1] During this time period, the US Army ordered 45 USATC class S118 for the Philippines. [2] This is because the USATC S200 Class design does not fit with the narrow-gauge track in the country. 40 units were ordered from Vulcan Iron Works of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania while five were ordered from the American Locomotive Company. [3]

Design

The 800 class was the first to adopt the Janney coupler as its primary railway coupling mechanism. Locomotives built prior used buffers and chain couplers and were later fitted with Janney couplers during their reconstruction. [1] The locomotives were also given the nickname USA, after US Army markings on the tenders. There are no other known notable features, with the 2-8-2 Mikado type being a common freight locomotive wheel arrangement during the era. [3]

The 800 class' engine unit was lighter by 4,000 lb (1,800 kg) compared to other S118s. [3]

Service

The delivery and eventual journey of three named locomotives, two of which were named after Mark Twain characters, was one of the primary subjects of the 1945 documentary Hannibal Victory. The titular 10,000 short tons (9,100 t) Victory ship carried Nos. 866 Tom Sawyer , 867 Hannibella and 875 Huckleberry Finn from San Francisco to Luzon during the Second Philippines Campaign. [4] After the war in the Philippines ended, they were later made into freight trains as well as temporary passenger trains carrying so-called "zombie cars" or gondola cars converted to passenger cars with a tent as a roof. This practice continued well into the 1950s as noted in a 1952 report, though these were slowly replaced by new 7-series coaches. [1]

This report however meant the demise of steam traction as the Manila Railroad transitioned into diesel power starting in 1954. The locomotives were later retired from mainline service on August 12, 1956 as these were rendered "obsolete" by the media covering the subject. [5] They were then relegated to work trains and were eventually scrapped over the course of the next decades. The last known appearance of the locomotive was in the 1989 Japanese war film Harimao about the Japanese occupation of Malaya. The film featured one of the Vulcans as well as Manila Railroad 45 class No. 62. They were presumed to be scrapped in the years after since neither of these locomotives exist. [6]

Legacy

The PNR 900 class diesel locomotives has its numbering follow this class instead of the traditional four-digit scheme used by the Manila Railroad. [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philippine National Railways</span> Railway company in the Philippines

The Philippine National Railways (PNR) is a state-owned railway company in the Philippines which operates one commuter rail service between Metro Manila and Laguna, and local services between Sipocot, Naga and Legazpi in the Bicol Region. It is an attached agency of the Department of Transportation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">4-6-2</span> Locomotive wheel arrangement

Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-6-2 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles and two trailing wheels on one axle. The 4-6-2 locomotive became almost globally known as a Pacific type.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">0-6-0</span> Locomotive wheel arrangement

Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 0-6-0 represents the wheel arrangement of no leading wheels, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles and no trailing wheels. This was the most common wheel arrangement used on both tender and tank locomotives in versions with both inside and outside cylinders.

Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-10-2 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels, ten powered and coupled driving wheels, and two trailing wheels. In the United States of America and elsewhere the 2-10-2 is known as the Santa Fe type, after the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway that first used the type in 1903.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2-8-2</span> Locomotive wheel arrangement

Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-8-2 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, usually in a leading truck, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles and two trailing wheels on one axle, usually in a trailing truck. This configuration of steam locomotive is most often referred to as a Mikado, frequently shortened to Mike.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WD Austerity 2-8-0</span>

The War Department (WD) "Austerity" 2-8-0 is a type of heavy freight steam locomotive that was introduced in 1943 for war service. A total of 935 were built, making this one of the most-produced classes of British steam locomotive. They were nicknamed Ozzies by the railwaymen.

The United States Army Transportation Corps S160 Class is a class of 2-8-0 Consolidation steam locomotive, designed for heavy freight work in Europe during World War II. A total of 2,120 were built and they worked on railroads across much of the world, including Africa, Asia, all of Europe and South America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Army Transportation Corps class S118</span>

The United States Army Transportation Corps (USATC) S118 Class is a class of 2-8-2 steam locomotive. Built to either 3 ft, 1,000 mmmetre gauge or 3 ft 6 in gauge, they were used in at least 24 different countries across the World.

The Manila Railroad 300 class of 1914 were cog locomotives used for the Antipolo line and the Aringay–Baguio branch of the PNR North Main Line. These were also known in the railroad's mechanical department as the R class.

Manila Railway <i>Manila</i> class

The Manila Railway Manila class of 1885 were a class of five 0-4-0 saddle tank locomotives built by the British manufacturer Hunslet Engine Company, and were the first locomotive class in Philippine service. Three of these locomotives were built as light-duty switchers for the Manila Tranvia system while two more were built for the Ferrocarril de Manila a Dagupan inter-city rail services in the 1890s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manila Railroad 45 class</span>

The Manila Railroad 45 class of 1919 were twenty-one 4-6-0 Ten-wheeler steam locomotives. Twenty locomotives were built by American light duty locomotive manufacturer H.K. Porter, Inc. between 1919 and 1921 for the Manila Railroad Company (MRR). The so-called Porters were the most successful steam locomotive class in Philippine service. They carried express trains for passengers as well as short-range maintenance trains for 70 years and served both the MRR and its successor, the Philippine National Railways. However, like all tender engines from the Manila Railroad era, the last locomotive was scrapped in the 1990s without a single unit preserved.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manila Railroad 200 class</span>

The Manila Railroad 200 class were 2-10-2 Santa Fe steam locomotives operated by the Manila Railroad Company (MRR), predecessor of the Philippine National Railways. They were built alongside the 4-8-2 Mountain-type 170 class by the American Locomotive Company at its Brooks facility between 1921 and 1922. During its service at the MRR, it carried heavy freight trains on the South Main Line between Manila and the Bicol Region.

Manila Railway <i>Dagupan</i> class Railway Class

The Manila Railway Dagupan class of 1890 were thirty 0-6-2 side tank locomotives. Thirty locomotives were built for the Manila Railway Company between 1888 and 1890. They were the first true mainline locomotives in service of the Ferrocarril de Manila a Dagupan inter-city rail line, succeeding two of five Manila class light-duty locomotives. One of these locomotives, No. 17 Urdaneta, survives today on static display on an open-air museum in Dagupan, Pangasinan.

The Manila Railroad 160 class was a class of four Double Mogul Kitson-Meyer Pannier tank locomotives. It was the only articulated locomotive in service with the Manila Railway and the succeeding Manila Railroad, both predecessors to the Philippine National Railways. The class was built in 1914 for mixed services on the steep Antipolo line, and were transferred to the South Main Line to Lucena, Quezon and Pagsanjan, Laguna by 1917. After their controversial run, the locomotives were retired in 1925, shortly after the arrival of their replacements such as the Manila Railroad 200 class.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manila Railway 100 class</span>

The Manila Railway 100 class, of 1906 were five 4-4-2 Atlantic-type steam locomotives built by the North British Locomotive Company. They were the flagship locomotives of the Manila Railway during the late 1900s and throughout the 1910s, being the first tender-hauling locomotives in Philippine service. They hauled the Baguio Special, an express service between Manila and Baguio via Damortis station in Rosario, La Union.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manila Railroad 170 class</span> Philippine steam locomotive class from 1922

The Manila Railroad 170 class were ten 4-8-2 Mountain steam locomotives operated by the Manila Railroad Company (MRR), predecessor of the Philippine National Railways. They were built alongside the 2-10-2 Santa Fe-type Manila Railroad 200 class by the American Locomotive Company at its Brooks facility between 1921 and 1922. During its service at the MRR, it carried passenger trains on the South Main Line between Manila and the Bicol Region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PNR North Main Line</span> Rail service between the NCR and Central Luzon, Philippines

The PNR North Main Line is one of the two trunk lines of the Philippine National Railways in the island of Luzon, the other being the PNR South Main Line. The line during its maximum extent led to various cities and municipalities in Central Luzon and the Ilocos Region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manila Railway 70 class</span>

The Manila Railway 70 class of 1908 were at least twenty 0-6-2 combination side- and well-tank locomotives built by the North British Locomotive Company. It was first operated as mainline locomotives in the late 1900s and early 1910s by the Manila Railway Company, primarily to support its growing network and replace the aging Dagupan class engines. They were used on all the lines of the networks of both the Manila Railway and its succeeding incarnation, the Manila Railroad. Since the 1920s, some locomotives were retired then either scrapped or given to sugarcane plantations. The last unit, No. 79, survived with the Pampanga Sugar Development Company as late as 1989.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manila Railroad Company</span> Historical rail transport operator

The Manila Railroad Company (MRR) was a Filipino state-owned enterprise responsible for the management and operation of rail transport in the island of Luzon. It was originally established by an Englishman named Edmund Sykes as the private Manila Railway Co., Ltd. on June 1, 1887. British engineer Horace L. Higgins was then assigned at the helm in Manila as its first general manager. On July 7, 1906, a separate private entity named the Manila Railroad Company of New Jersey was established. The two companies continued to own the Luzon railroad network until February 4, 1916 when the Insular Government acquired both companies and absorbed them into the new Manila Railroad.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Motive Power and Rolling Stock. Report of Survey of the Manila Railroad Company and the Preliminary Survey of Railroads for Mindanao (Report). De Leuw, Cather and Company; Manila Railroad Company. July 1952. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  2. "Locomotive Engineers Journal". 90. Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen. 1956. Retrieved February 9, 2021.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. 1 2 3 4 Smith, Jonathan. "Manila Railroad steam locomotives". Iowa State University . Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  4. Palmer, Alfred; Russel, Robert (1945). Hannibal Victory - Railroad to the Philippines Ship Documentary WWII COLOR FILM 41370 (4:3 360p). U.S. Maritime Commission, via Periscope Film. Retrieved September 17, 2021.
  5. "The Passing of the Steam Engine". This Week. August 12, 1956. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  6. Baskett, Michael (March 19, 2008). The Attractive Empire: Transnational Film Culture in Imperial Japan. University of Hawai'i Press. ISBN   9780824864606.