Save up to 70% off with image packs. When the Best Friend began to move again, a terrible explosion threw the boiler twenty feet into the air, killing the fireman, scalding the engineer, and injuring several workers. The only design changes are modern safety features and a slight difference in the width of the axles. John even designed the Best Friends carrier cars a boxcar to house the two coaches and tender and a flat car with a dog house that protects the engine. established in the country. As important as this first locomotive is to history, it might surprise you that it didnt last very long. Under Johns tutelage, the multiple tie and bolt machine and automatic spike driver were build and used extensively for jointed rail installation. Updates? 1930. It was also the first train to suffer a railroad explosion. Norfolk Southern will miss this special man whos been an invaluable link between its railroad and the communities we serve. Siegling, H. Carter. The explosion threw the engine 25 feet and killed the fireman. It produced the first locomotive boiler explosion in the United States. In doing so, it completely revolutionized America's transportation. The green and red replica an operating engine was built from the original blueprints in Southerns shops in late 1928 to celebrate the South CarolinaCanal and Rail Road Companys 100th anniversary. 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. [7] Locomotion No. Mrs. August Peters of 1217 North Hackberry was standing in her yard. [10] On 26 September, the day before the opening of the Stockton and Darlington Railway, the locomotive was taken on a trial run between Shildon and Darlington, with a number of the railway's directors aboard the railway's first passenger coach, known as Experiment. . The railroad's chief engineer, Horatio Allen, had been to England to test steam locomotives, as well as operate the. The city's newspaper, the Charleston Courier noted: "The one hundred and forty-one persons flew on the wings of wind at the speed of fifteen to twenty-five miles per hour, annihilating time and spaceleaving all the world behind. I enjoyed that job because it offered such variety, he said. It returned economic prosperity to Charleston and it instituted regularly scheduled steam passenger service. 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. 1 was preserved and put on display. Construction went quickly, having the advantages that the railway was a single set of slightly elevated tracks, was built almost entirely of wood, and was laid over relatively flat terrain. With this, the Best Friend of Charlestonbecame the first American-built steam locomotive to haul a train of passenger cars on a public railroad. After arriving disassembled in Charleston it was rebuilt and ready for trails by November 2nd. This order was historically important as the first of these locomotives, Active (later renamed Locomotion No. (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.) Unfortunately, locomotives of this era were not exactly constructed to any type of standards or overseen by regulations and after less than one year of service it suffered a boiler explosion. 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. It was used on the railway until 1850, after which it was converted into a stationary engine. The Best Friend of Charleston Made its first trip on Dec. 25, 1830. I liked what I was doing, but the time away from home got tedious. Luckily for both John and Lillian, his wife of 43 years, she has traveled with hem the past few years. [2], Locomotion No. Invitations for community visits are handled through the Public Relations Department, but John visits all new location st check the physical arrangements and to meet the representatives of sponsoring organizations. 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. The blast is said to have been caused by the fireman tying down the steam pressure release valve; he had grown tired of hearing it whistle, so to stop the noise he closed the valve permanently. In 1857, as a consequence of its historical importance, Locomotion No. On that day, the little steam engine Best Friend of Charleston chugged out of its namesake city on a six mile inaugural run. Enjoy all the splendor West Virginia's natural beauty has to offer while enjoying dinner by train on the West Virginia Central and other locations. Notify me by email when the comment gets approved. (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.). Forged in a New York foundry and transported in parts to Charleston by ship, the Best Friend was America's first locomotive built for regular passenger and freight service. An 18-wheeler collided with a train in Milam County, Texas, on Tuesday morning, February 23, causing several fuel tank cars to catch fire, reports said. His death is a loss to the community at large. Footage taken by Ryan Kyburz just after 7 . Rivanna Chapter, National Railway Historical Society (2005). In September 1825, Locomotion No. It is believed that Locomotion No. It is presently at the Locomotion museum in Shildon. Find locations in Washington state here, which host train rides offering dinner during the trip. 44, and Cole D. Walters' 2-4-2 No. from The Birmingham News newspaper - Nov 1961 / collection, from Railroading 36 - Nov 1970 / collection. But for John A. Smith, SR control engineer, Atlanta, and engineer of the little train the past 15 years, it was time to say good-bye. Within five months of the Best Friends debut, a second locomotive, the West Point, arrived in Charleston. A replica of the "Best Friend of Charleston" stretches its legs in September, 1983. 59.3K subscribers The Best Friend of Charleston was a steam-powered railroad locomotive. The Panic of 1819 wounded both Charleston and Savannah, two major export centers, and both cities looked for recovery. Though the first American-built steam locomotive to operate was the "Tom Thumb" in Maryland, it was only meant as a demo + never went into service.Just few months after its debut, the Best Friend of Charleston went into service as the first commercially operated steamer made in America (and the first to carry the . The locomotive was built for the South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company by the West Point Foundry of New York in 1830. 1. It was morning, March 18, 1912. But most importantly, his role as Best Friend engineer has triggered the squeal of children and adults as hes started the Best Friend down the track, generating nostalgia and excitement of that first run 153 years ago. [8][pageneeded], According to author H. C. Casserley, Locomotion No. The Charleston Courier breathlessly reported on the inaugural excursion and on the wondrous new reality of transportation in America: The one hundred and forty-one persons flew on the wings of wind at the speed of fifteen to twenty-five miles per hour, annihilating time and spaceleaving all the world behind. Remember how steam engines make that loud whistling noise? Stock photos, 360 images, vectors and videos . 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. Service. Disassembled for shipment by boat to Charleston, South Carolina, it arrived in October of that year and was unofficially named The Best Friend of Charleston. McCall was walking across the yard of . 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 Railways earliest predecessor line. It was assembled and tested. In 1833 the world's longest railroad was completed linking Charleston to Hamburg, South Carolina, just across the Savannah River from Augusta. [1] The resulting blast was said to have hurled metal fragments over a wide area and killed the fireman. The locomotive was built for the South Carolina C Both means of transportation were totally dependent upon weather and temperature conditions. But explosions became a recurring problem on the Charleston & Hamburg Railroad and elsewhere. 2015-2020 University of South Carolina aws, first locomotive built in the United States for public service, South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company, used slaves to work on the line, both as laborers and as firemen to regulate the steam engine, engine was rebuilt and rechristened the Phoenix, University of South Carolina, Institute for Southern Studies, https://www.scencyclopedia.org/sce/entries/best-friend-of-charleston/. It was assembled and tested. 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. My first question was, Whats the Best Friend? Charleston, S.C.: boiler exploded on America's first passenger locomotive, The Best Friend of Charleston, injuring the fireman and the engineer. Copyright 2007-2023 American-Rails.com. 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