Northern Pacific
The Northern Pacific Railway was the first railroad to order a 2-8-8-4. The first was built in 1928 by ALCO; at the time, it was the largest locomotive ever built, and it was equipped with the largest firebox ever applied to a steam locomotive, some 182 square feet (16.9 m2) in area. The purpose of this was to burn Rosebud coal, a very low-quality coal the NP could obtain very cheaply on-line. Unfortunately, that firebed was too large for the available draft, and the fire burned poorly. The problem was mitigated by blocking off the first few feet of the grates. Baldwin built eleven more for the NP in 1930.
Read more about this topic: 2-8-8-4
Famous quotes containing the words northern and/or pacific:
“‘What is the world, O soldiers?
It is I,
I, this incessant snow,
This northern sky;”
—Walter De La Mare (1873–1956)
“The doctor of Geneva stamped the sand
That lay impounding the Pacific swell,
Patted his stove-pipe hat and tugged his shawl.”
—Wallace Stevens (1879–1955)