The Winslow mail. (Winslow, Ariz.) 1893-1926, 1925-05-26
THE 1OOTH ANNIVERSARY OF
THE LOCOMOTIVE.


cry of America, few have done
more to advance human progress
than the locomotive, the hundredth
birthday of which is being observed
this year.
The first public railway in the
world was opened for traffic in
England on Sept. 27, 1925. This
road was built under parliamentary
powers, conveying passengers as
well as coal and goods. 1t was a
great day when George Stephen
sons historic locomotive, preceded
by a rider on horseback carrying a
flag, hauled a train containing
thirty-four cars at speed of ten
to twelve miles an hour.
While 1925 will be publicly ac-
cepted as marking 100 years of rail-
way operation, there will be
number of celebrations in the i'm
mediately following years through
out North America. Conflicting
claims have appeared as to what
constitutes the first railway. In
point of time the Pennsylvania rail
road is the oldest in the United
States, by virtue of it's charter be-
ing granted on March 81, 1923. 1t
did not, however, start to operate
until Sept. 20, 1882. Col. John
Stevens is the father of the Penn
sylyania, as he is the father of the
American locomotive Having seen
the imperfect steamboat of John
Fitch plying ON the Delaware, he
became interested in steam propul-
sion, and experimental on this for
the next thirty years. In 1925,
Stevens constructed a locomotive
with multitubular boiler which he
operated for several years on
circular track upon his estate. It
carried half a dozen passengers at
the rate Of twelve miles an hour.
This is believed to have been the
first locomotive in America driven
by steam upon track.
An example of the disbelief in
the new steam traction is illustrat-
ed by a test of speed between
horse-drawn vehicle on an operat-
ing line of iron track and the first
steam drawn car staged at that
time. A mechanical genius named
Peter Cooper had completed an en-
CINE known as tom Thumb"
After months of endeavor he final
ly, on Aug. %, 1880, got a trial of
it on the Baltimore & Ohio road
against the regular horse-drawn
vehicle. The engine quickly DEM
onstrated it's superior speed and
power, and the new mode of trans
portation was accepted. In years
of operation the Baltimore & Ohio
is the oldest on this continent, and
will celebrate it's centennial in 1927.
While steam railroad was first
operated in 1925, engines driven by
this power date back as far as
1904. Between 1904 and 1925, the
following inventors had been ex-
perimenting in England, France
and Germany: Watt, Cugnot, He'd
ley, Blenkinsop, Hackworth, Trev-
thick and Stephenson. The last
named built satisfactory working
engine in 1914, named Butcher"
Trevithick's engine travelled on
rails at Merthyn Tydfil in 1904. But
it was only after 1880 that the
steam-driven engine can be said to
have been an important factor in
aiding civilization.
From this time on there was con-
tinuous progress in mechanical
traction, and although the first To-
comotives were small and crude,
their employment as an agent of
transportation marks one of the
worlds greatest advances. In the
course of a century, vast wilder
ness on this continent has been
changed from gloomy untrodden
forests, dismal swamps and path
less prairies into the abode of q
high civilization. Prosperous states
teeming with populous towns, fer
tile farms, blooming gardens and
comfortable homes have arisen
P~o,oo roor;0,,c vryboro eoroego mon opd