German Crampton locomotive Badenia of the Baden State Railway, built in 1863
A Crampton locomotive is a type of steam locomotive designed by Thomas Russell Crampton and built by various firms from 1846. The main British builders were Tulk and Ley and Robert Stephenson and Company.
Notable features were a low boiler and large driving wheels. The crux of the Crampton patent was that the single driving axle was placed behind the firebox, so that the driving wheels could be very large. This helped to give this design a low centre of gravity, so that it did not require a very broad-gauge track to travel safely at high speeds. Its wheel arrangement was usually 4-2-0 or 6-2-0.
Design variations[]
Because the single driving axle was behind the firebox, Crampton locomotives usually had outside cylinders. However, some inside cylinder versions were built using indirect drive, then known as a jackshaft. The inside cylinders drove a crankshaft located in front of the firebox and the crankshaft was connected to the driving wheels by outside rods. Some long-wheelbase 0-4-0Ts were also built using this crankshaft system. The boiler feed-pump was often driven from the crankshaft as well because many Cramptons were built before the injector was invented.
Another peculiarity on some Crampton locomotives was the use of a boiler of oval cross-section, to lower the centre of gravity. It would nowadays be regarded as bad engineering practice because the internal pressure would tend to push the boiler into a circular cross-section and increase the risk of metal fatigue.
Usage[]
Preserved French Crampton locomotive No 80 Le Continent of the Paris à Strasbourg railway, built in 1852
Crampton locomotives were used by some British railways and speeds of up to 120 km/h (75 mph) were achieved on the LNWR. They were more popular in France, southern Germany and the US. In France the expression "prendre la Crampton" meant to catch an express, and in the argot of the Saint Cyr military academy, footplate staff were known as "officiers de Crampton" (and this as late as 1971). One of the French examples has been preserved in the Cité du Train (the French Railway Museum) at Mulhouse and is still in working order. This is number 80 of the Chemin de Fer de l'Est, the Paris-Strasbourg line, which is named "Le Continent".
Locomotive list[]
The approximate numbers of Crampton-type locomotives built in Europe were:
- Great Britain: 51
- France: 127
- Germany: 135
Manufactured in Great Britain[]
Built by: Tulk and Ley, all of 4-2-0 wheel arrangement:
| Works no. | Date built | Railway | Name/no. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 1847 | Namur and Liege Railway | Namur |
| 11 | 1847 | Namur and Liege Railway | Liege |
| 1847 | Namur and Liege Railway | ||
| 12? | 1847 | London and North Western Railway, Southern Division | 200 London |
| 14 | 1847 | Dundee and Perth and Aberdeen Junction Railway | Kinnaird |
| 1847 | Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway | 35 Pegasus | |
| 1848 | Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway | 36 Phlegon | |
| 17 | 1854 | Maryport and Carlisle Railway | 12 |
Built by: Robert Stephenson and Company Robert Stephenson and Company built a number of Crampton type locomotives for the South Eastern Railway and the London, Chatham and Dover Railway. These were all of 4-2-0 wheel arrangement with inside cylinders and indirect drive. The inside cylinders drove a crankshaft located in front of the firebox and the crankshaft was coupled to the driving wheels by outside rods.
SER No. 136 Folkstone with intermediate crankshaft at the Great Exhibition in 1851.
| Works no. | Date built | Railway | No./Name |
|---|---|---|---|
| 785 | 1851 | South Eastern Railway | 134 |
| 786 | 1851 | South Eastern Railway | 135 |
| 787 | 1851 | South Eastern Railway | 136 Folkstone |
| 788 | 1851 | South Eastern Railway | 137 |
| 789 | 1851 | South Eastern Railway | 138 |
| 790 | 1851 | South Eastern Railway | 139 |
| 791 | 1851 | South Eastern Railway | 140 |
| 792 | 1851 | South Eastern Railway | 141 |
| 793 | 1851 | South Eastern Railway | 142 |
| 794 | 1851 | South Eastern Railway | 143 |
| 1851 | Prussian Eastern Railway | England | |
| 1851 | Prussian Eastern Railway | ||
| 1851 | Prussian Eastern Railway | ||
| 1851 | Prussian Eastern Railway | ||
| 1851 | Prussian Eastern Railway | ||
| 1851 | Prussian Eastern Railway | ||
| 1381 | 1862 | London, Chatham and Dover Railway | Coquette |
| 1382 | 1862 | Echo | |
| 1383 | 1862 | Flirt | |
| 1384 | 1862 | Flora | |
| 1385 | 1862 | Sylph |
Built by: Bury, Curtis, and Kennedy, all 4-2-0 except Liverpool which was 6-2-0.
| Works no. | Date built | Railway | No./Name |
|---|---|---|---|
| 355 | 1848 | London and North Western Railway, Southern Division | 245 Liverpool |
| ? | 1848 | South Eastern Railway | 68 |
| ? | 1848 | South Eastern Railway | 69 |
| ? | 1848 | South Eastern Railway | 72 |
| ? | 1848 | South Eastern Railway | 74 |
| ? | 1848 | South Eastern Railway | 75 |
| ? | 1848 | South Eastern Railway | 78 |
Built by: E. B. Wilson and Company
| Works no. | Date built | Railway | Name/no. |
|---|---|---|---|
| ? | 1847 | North British Railway | 55 |
| ? | 1847 | Eastern Counties Railway | 108 |
| ? | 1847 | Eastern Counties Railway | 109 |
| ? | 1847 | Eastern Counties Railway | 110 |
| ? | 1847 | Eastern Counties Railway | 111 |
| ? | 1847 | Eastern Counties Railway | 112 |
| ? | 1847 | Aberdeen Railway | 26 |
| ? | 1847 | Aberdeen Railway | 27 |
Built by: R and W Hawthorn
| Manufacturer | Works no. | Date built | Railway | Name/no. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R and W Hawthorn | 1006 | 1858 | East Kent Railway | Lake |
| R and W Hawthorn | 1007 | 1858 | East Kent Railway | Sondes |
| R and W Hawthorn | 1008 | 1858 | East Kent Railway | Faversham |
| R and W Hawthorn | 1009 | 1858 | East Kent Railway | Chatham |
| R and W Hawthorn | 1010 | 1858 | East Kent Railway | Sittingbourne |
| R and W Hawthorn | 1011 | 1858 | East Kent Railway | Crampton |
Built by: various builders
Midland Railway locomotive No 130, built by Kitson, Thompson & Hewitson in 1848
Fire Queen built by A. Horlick & Co. in 1848 for the Padarn Railway, preserved at the Penrhyn Castle Railway Museum
| Builder | Works no. | Date built | Railway | Name/no. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nasmyth, Gaskell and Company | 53 | 1846 | South Eastern Railway | 92 |
| LNWR Crewe Works | ? | 1847 | London and North Western Railway, Northern Division | 176 Courier |
| Kitson and Company | ? | 1848 | Midland Railway | 130 |
| Kitson and Company | ? | 1848 | Midland Railway | 131 |
| Timothy Hackworth | ? | 1848 | London, Brighton and South Coast Railway | 56 |
| Timothy Hackworth | ? | 1848 | London, Brighton and South Coast Railway | 58 |
| A. Horlock and Co | - | 1848 | Padarn Railway | Fire Queen |
| A. Horlock and Co | - | 1848 | Padarn Railway | Jenny Lind |
| R. B. Longridge and Company | ? | 1851 | Great Northern Railway | 200 |
Manufactured in France[]
| Builder | Works no. | Date built | Railway | Name/no. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Société Ch.Derosne et Cail | 139–150 (12) | 1849 | Chemins de fer du Nord | 122 Crampton to 133 Linné |
| Société J. F. Cail & Cie | 188–199 (12) | 1852 | Chemins de fer de l'Est | 79 Le Globe to 90 L’Amérique |
| Société J. F. Cail & Cie | 219–230 (12) | 1853–54 | Chemins de fer du Nord | 134 Pradier to 145 Van Eyck |
| Société J. F. Cail & Cie | 329–340 (12) | 1854 | Template:Interlanguage link multi | 301 to 312 |
| Société J. F. Cail & Cie | 387–392 (6) | 1855 | Template:Interlanguage link multi | 313 to 318 |
| Société J. F. Cail & Cie | 414–429 (16) | 1855 | Chemins de fer du Nord | 146 Alibert to 161 Volney |
| Société J. F. Cail & Cie | 544–555 (12) | 1857 | Template:Interlanguage link multi | 319 La France to 330 La Grèce |
| Société J. F. Cail & Cie | 443 | 1856 | Chemin de fer du Nord | 162 Alma |
| Société J. F. Cail & Cie | 444 | 1856 | Chemin de fer du Nord | 163 Inkerman |
| Schneider et Cie | 196–210 (15) | 1856 | Chemins de fer de l'Est | 174 Eupatoria to 188 Taganrok |
| André Koechlin et Cie | 820–829 (10) | 1864 | Chemins de fer de Paris à Lyon et à la Méditerranée | 31 Sylphie to 40 Moucheron |
Manufactured in Germany[]
| Builder | Works no. | Date built | Railway | Name/no. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| J. A. Maffei | ?–? (4) | 1853 | Pfälzische Eisenbahnen | 26 to 29 |
| Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Karlsruhe | ?–? (2) | 1854 | Baden State Railway | 67 Adler and 68 Falke |
| Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Karlsruhe | ?–? (8) | 1854–56 | Baden State Railway | 69 Comet to 78 Basel |
| Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Karlsruhe | ?–? (8) | 1854–56 | Baden State Railway | 69 Adler to 78 Falke |
| Maschinenfabrik Esslingen | ?–? (14) | 1855–63 | Pfälzische Eisenbahnen | 36–41, 46–49, 60–63 |
| Ausbesserungswerk Karlsruhe [de] | ?–? (3) | 1856 | Baden State Railway | 1, 2, and 4 |
| J. A. Maffei | ?–? (12) | 1857–58 | Bayerische Ostbahn | A1 to A12 |
| Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Karlsruhe | ?–? (8) | 1858–59 | Baden State Railway | Rheinfelden to Pfalz |
| Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Karlsruhe | ?–? (8) | 1863 | Baden State Railway | Badenia to Offenburg |
See also[]
- Long Boiler locomotive
- 6-2-0 for Crampton locomotives in the USA