In September 1825, Locomotion No. Historically, Savannah had held a significant advantage by being located at the mouth of the Savannah River. The speed of The Best Friend of Charleston was laughable by our standards, but in its day, it was audacious. The Best Friend of Charleston was the first American steam locomotive built for revenue service. On that day, it pulled a passenger train along a six-mile route. McCall was walking across the yard of . His death is a loss to the community at large. The Charleston Courier described the experience of riding the locomotive as flying "on the wings of wind at the speed of fifteen to twenty-five miles per hour, annihilating time and space." Best Train arrives at the State Museum. It made its first trip on December 25, 1830, and was received with much excitement. port and did not want to be outdone by the newfangled canal systems. Within three years, the rail road boasted of six locomotives, including the Phoenix, an engine constructed from the Best Friends remains. Closed However, Don Strack rescued the data and transferred it over to his UtahRails.net site (another fine resource). In 1830, only six (6) miles were finished; in 1831, nearly the entire road was put under contract; and, in October of 1833, the road was connected from Charleston to Hamburgh, a total of 136 miles. Available for both RF and RM licensing. The Best Friend of Charleston was a steam-powered railroad locomotive widely considered the first locomotive to be built entirely within the United States for revenue service. That gave it the distinction of operating the first regularly scheduled passenger train service in the United States. He joined Southern in late 1940 as a laborer at Finley Shop, Birmingham, washing side rods on steam engines for 33 cents an hour. A slave fireman closed up a safety valve on the boiler while the locomotive was stopped at a platform. What started out for John as an occasional weekend rendezvous as an engineer turned into a full-fledged continuing love affair. The original Best Friend made its six mile run Christmas Day, 1830, from Charleston to Hamburg, S.C., so named by local merchants who saw the train providing low-cost, dependable transportation, the Best Friend was build for the South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company, Southern Railway's earliest predecessor line. Theres no doubt much of the Best Friends success is due to John. Constructed in New York City at the West Point Foundry to run on the Charleston-Hamburg line, the Best Friend was christened by hopeful supporters on its Charleston arrival in October 1830. In 1998 a gentleman by the name ofAndre Kristopans put together a web page highlighting virtually every unit out-shopped by General Motors' Electro-Motive Division. 28329. Meeting the people, he said. This order was historically important as the first of these locomotives, Active (later renamed Locomotion No. (Steamboats had been going boom for years, so much so that many of our modern consumer protection laws can be traced directly back to efforts to protect steamboat passengers from a fiery death.). Transport Locomotive Rolling stock George Stephenson Steam locomotive Locomotive 50% (1/1) The Best Friend performed flawlessly and was credited as the first American-built steam locomotive to haul a trainload of paying customers on a common-carrier railroad. (Extremely) amateur history time! 1 is believed to have been the first locomotive to use coupling rods to connect its driving wheels together, an approach which considerably decreased the chance of slipping. And then she rode him like a train, choo choo bitch. Many people throughout the railway were convinced I had a glamorous job, John said. [10] In 1975 Darlington built its railway museum around Locomotion No. It survived until Amtrak in 1971. A second engine, the West Point, went into use on the Charleston-Hamburg line in March 1831 but never achieved the same speeds as those of the Best Friend. Stock photos, 360 images, vectors and videos . The Exhibit Car, a museum on wheels, tells the modern, innovative side of railroading and the continuing role Norfolk Southern and it operating subsidiaries, NW and SR, play in the development of the industry. Commissioned by the South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company, the Best Friend of Charleston was the first locomotive built in the United States for public service. 1 is most notable for being the first locomotive to haul a passenger train on a public railway than for the innovations in its design. On June 17, 1831, less than six months after its debut, the locomotive fell victim to one of the country's first serious railroad accidents. Advisory Committee, RACE: Are We So Different? Many were pulled up in the 1970's and 1980's although others were removed long before that. In the 1820s, the bustling seaport of Charleston experienced an alarming economic recession as settlements expanded inland and westward. On the returndarted forth like a live rocket, scattering sparks and flames on either sideand landed us all safe at the Lines before any of us had time to determine whether or not it was prudent to be scared.". At least 70 people have been killed and more than 30 wounded, some critically, after two gas stoves being used to cook breakfast by passengers on board a train in Pakistan exploded. At this time, Europeans were just beginning to experiment with the concept of a Rail Road; a new means of transportation that employed a locomotive propelled along rails by steam power. After arriving disassembled in Charleston it was rebuilt and ready for trails by November 2nd. The Best Friend Of Charleston Museum is a great place to learn about the train history of Charleston. 1930. This is The Best Friend of Charleston, Americas first passenger steam locomotive. [2], Locomotion 1 is such an important part of Darlington's history that it is depicted on the town's coat of arms,[13] and on the badges of its football and rugby clubs.[14]. Satisfied the railroad and its star locomotive were ready for service, Allen treated Charlestonians to a Christmas Day spectacle by initiating service on December 25, 1830. businessman who wanted to make sure that their city remained a vital [9], The completed Locomotion No.1 was transported by road from Newcastle to Darlington in September 1825. Constructed in New York City at the West Point Foundry to run on the Charleston-Hamburg line, the Best Friend was christened by hopeful supporters on its Charleston arrival in October 1830. Salvageable parts from the Best Friend were used in constructing a new locomotive, named the Phoenix. Among the many artifacts chronicling the company's 153-year history are a locomotive bell, railroad maps, stock books and the mail contract with the Confederate government. South Carolina State Museum . The Best Friend is usually scheduled along with the Norfolk Southerns Exhibit Car, every weekend from late march until Late October, for an array of community actives in NSs 21-state system. Designed by Elegant WordPress Themes | Powered by WordPress, on The Best Friend of Charleston: Short-Lived, Long Legacy, Apollo April at the South Carolina State Museum. During the test runs, frequent derailments occurred 28 in fact before John realized the tread on the wheels needed to be one half inch wider to negotiate the track. [2] The boiler had a blastpipe in the chimney. The train was small, but the statement was loud, proclaiming the dawn of the age of rail in the Carolinas. With the decrease in commerce, Charleston merchants began aggressively investigating avenues to revitalize the floundering economy. Handicapped children from three area schools came to ride, he said One teacher told me later she was convinced, by their facial expressions, that two deaf children hear a sound when I blew the Whistle. There were four 4 feet (1.2m) diameter driving wheels. All written content, photos, and videos copyright American-Rails.com (unless otherwise noted). 894 16. Rivanna Chapter, National Railway Historical Society (2005). After the incident the railroad salvaged parts from theBest Friendto construct thePhoenix, which remained in use until the start of the Civil War in 1861. It produced the first locomotive boiler explosion in the United States. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Just A Car Guy: Southern's Best Friend of Charleston replica is unloaded from its two specialized transport cars for an event at Abingdon, VA. Another milestone was set down by the little puffer Best Friend of Charleston. In October, 1830 the SCC&RR received its order after it had been delivered aboard the shipNiagara. However, Don Strack rescued the data and transferred it over to his, If you are researching anything EMD related please visit, If you are researching active or abandoned corridors you might want to check out the, C&O's George Washington (Train): Timetable, Route, Consist. It is believed that Locomotion No. One is at the Best Friend Museum in Charleston, and the other is at our very own South Carolina State Museum. A vertical boiler mounted on a four-wheel carriage, the Best Friend was built by the West Point Foundry of New York and put into service on a broad-gauge line from Charleston to Hamburg, S.C., by the South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company on Dec. 25, 1830. The company charter was accepted in 1834 and amended in 1835 to grant bank privileges. [11] Cree had tied down the arm of a safety valve, which caused the boiler pressure to rise to the point of explosion. It was assembled and tested. [7] Locomotion No. 301 Gervais Street [10] Locomotion always returned to its static display in Darlington,[15] the headquarters of the Stockton and Darlington Railway Company. Of note, there is also another, non-operable, replica on display at the South Carolina State Museum, in Columbia. It is difficult to truly articulate just how much material can be found at this website. The following information is provided for citations. Live by the train, die by the train. The railroad's chief engineer, Horatio Allen, had been to England to test steam locomotives, as well as operate theStourbridge Liondesign being tested on the Delaware & Hudson Canal Company in 1829 (officially, the first such locomotive ever operated in the U.S. but was built in England). the steam locomotive by Richard Trevithick of England who showcased his The Best Friend of Charleston was a steam-powered railroad locomotive which is widely acclaimed as the first locomotive to be built entirely within the United States for revenue service and produced the first locomotive boiler explosion in the United States. On June 17, 1831 the fireman of the Best Friend of Charleston closed a steam valve because he was annoyed by the constant whistling sound it made. 12 - 5 p.m. Locomotion No. On the return we reached Sans-Souci in quick and double quick time, stopped to take up a recruiting party-darted forth like a live rocket, scattering sparks and flames on either side-passed over three salt creeks hop, step and jump, and landed us all safe at the Lines before any of us had time to determine whether or not it was prudent to be scared. established in the country. Locomotives like the Best Friend work by using the pressure produced by steam. The locomotive had its formal debut on Christmas Day 1830, pulling passenger cars from Charleston to Dorchester. (As opposed to the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad chartered three years before the Charleston & Hamburg, but completed years after where builders were challenged by a double set of tracks, iron rails laid on granite piers, and mountainous terrain requiring numerous major bridges and tunnels.) 641 6. Reportedly, a fireman accidentally caused the explosion when he closed the steam pressure release valve. John Steven's was granted the first charter for a steam powered railroad in America in March 21, 1823. The South Carolina Canal & Rail Road Company was chartered in 1827 and began constructing its first track running from Charleston to Branchville. Moving goods like cotton from South Carolinas upstate to Charleston (SCs main market) had to be done along the few existing roads or by navigating dangerous rivers. , Active ( later renamed Locomotion No and transferred it over to UtahRails.net. Within three years, the bustling seaport of Charleston Museum is a great place learn... 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