Pennsylvania Railroad class D16
class of American 4-4-0 locomotive
Class D16 on the Pennsylvania Railroad was their final development of the 4-4-0 "American" type of steam locomotive.
A total of 429 of these locomotives were built at the PRR's Juniata Shops, spread across five subclasses; some had 80 in (2,030 mm) diameter driving wheels for service in level territory, while others had 68 in (1,730 mm) drivers for mountainous terrain.
In the pre-1895 scheme, these locomotives were second class L.
Construction continued until 1910, and the locomotives, aided by a rebuild program from 1914, remained in service in large numbers until the 1930s, a small number surviving into the 1940s. One locomotive, #1223, was preserved and is currently on display.
Design
These locomotives were originally conceived as an enlargement of the earlier class P (later reclassified D14) and were an extremely large and powerful locomotive for the period. Breaking with the traditional 4-4-0 layout with a low-slung boiler and the firebox between the frames, the class L design had a large Belpaire firebox above the frames and a large high-mounted boiler. The high center of gravity proved to offer an exceptional high-speed ride.
The design was the product of three men; general superintendent of motive power Frank D. Casaneve, chief mechanical engineer Axel S. Vogt, and chief of motive power Theodore N. Ely, Casaneve supervising the overall design, Vogt perfecting the mechanical details and Ely paying more attention to the appearance and external detail.
Two versions were conceived, reflecting the variety of terrain the PRR traversed; a high-drivered version for flat terrain with 80 in (2,030 mm) wheels and a low-drivered version for hilly terrain with 68 in (1,730 mm) wheels. The versions had tractive effort ratings of 17,500 lbf (77.84 kN) and 20,600 lbf (91.63 kN), respectively.
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