 A contemporary drawing of Rocket Stephenson's Rocket was an early steam locomotive of 0-2-2 wheel arrangement, built in Newcastle at the Forth Street Works of Robert Stephenson and Company in 1829. Image File history File links Stephensons_Rocket_drawing. ...
Image File history File links Stephensons_Rocket_drawing. ...
Stephensons Rocket taken in London Science Museum Taken by User:William M. Connolley on 2004/03/13. ...
Stephensons Rocket taken in London Science Museum Taken by User:William M. Connolley on 2004/03/13. ...
Science Museum The Science Museum on Exhibition Road, Kensington, London, is part of the National Museum of Science and Industry. ...
One of the last mainline steam locomotives built in the UK: British Railways Standard Class 9F 2-10-0 no. ...
In Whyte notation, a 0-2-2 is a railroad steam locomotive that has two coupled driving wheels followed by two and two trailing wheels, with no leading wheels . ...
Locomotive wheel arrangement is how the wheels of the locomotive are arranged by type, position, and connections. ...
Robert Stephenson and Company was set up in 1823 in Forth Street, Newcastle-upon-Tyne in England by George Stephenson, his son Robert, with Edward Pease and Michael Longridge (the owner of the ironworks at Bedlington ). It was the first company set up specifically to build railway engines, as part...
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 1829 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...
Design innovations
A common misconception is that Rocket was the first steam locomotive. In fact the first steam locomotive to run on tracks was built by Richard Trevithick 25 years earlier, but his designs were not developed beyond the experimental stage. Then followed the first commercially successful twin cylinder steam locomotives built by Matthew Murray in Holbeck for the Middleton Railway between Middleton and Leeds, West Yorkshire. George Stephenson, as well as a number of other engineers, had built steam locomotives before. Rocket was in some ways an evolution, not a revolution. Rail tracks. ...
Richard Trevithick Richard Trevithick (April 13, 1771 – April 22, 1833) was a British inventor, engineer and builder of the first working railway steam locomotive. ...
Matthew Murray was a steam engine and machine tool manufacturer, who designed and built the first commercially viable steam locomotive, the twin cylinder The Salamanca in 1812. ...
Holbeck is a district of Leeds, West Yorkshire, through which passes the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. ...
The Middleton Steam Railway is the worlds oldest working railway. ...
Middleton is a Leeds district 6 km (4 miles) south of Leeds City Centre. ...
For other uses, see Leeds (disambiguation). ...
Coat of Arms of South Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, that has a population of 2. ...
George Stephenson George Stephenson For the British politician, see George Stevenson. ...
Rocket's claim to fame is that it was the first 'modern' locomotive, drawing together several recent strands of technological improvement, some tried elsewhere and some still experimental, to produce the most advanced locomotive of its day, and the template for most steam locomotives since. In fact, the standard steam locomotive design is often called the "Stephensonian" locomotive. Great Western Railway No. ...
Rocket used a multi-tubular boiler, which made for much more efficient and effective heat transfer between the exhaust gases and the water. Previous locomotive boilers consisted of a single pipe surrounded by water. Rocket had 25 copper tubes running the length of the boiler to carry the hot exhaust gases from the firebox. This was a significant development, as it greatly increased the amount of steam produced, and subsequent designs used increased numbers of boiler tubes. Rocket also used a blastpipe, feeding the exhaust steam from the cylinders into the base of the chimney so as to induce a partial vacuum and pull air through the fire. Credit for the invention of the blastpipe is disputed between Sir Goldsworthy Gurney and Timothy Hackworth. The blastpipe worked well on the multi-tube boiler of Rocket but on earlier designs with a single pipe through the boiler it created so much suction that it tended to rip the top off the fire and throw burning cinders out of the chimney, vastly increasing the fuel consumption.[1] A fire-tube boiler is a type of boiler in which hot gases from the fire pass through one or more tubes within the boiler. ...
The blastpipe is part of a steam locomotive that discharges exhaust steam from the cylinders into the smokebox beneath the chimney in order to increase the draught of the fire. ...
Goldsworthy Gurney in earlier life Sir Goldsworthy Gurney (1793-1875) was a surgeon, chemist, lecturer, consultant, architect, builder and prototypical British inventor of the Victorian period. ...
Timothy Hackworth (December 22, 1786 – July 7, 1850) was a steam locomotive mechanical engineer who lived in Shildon, County Durham, England and worked with George Stephenson on the Stockton and Darlington Railway. ...
Rocket had two cylinders set at 35 degrees from the horizontal, with the pistons driving a pair of 4ft 8ins diameter wheels. Most previous designs had the cylinders positioned vertically, which gave the engines an uneven swaying motion as they progressed along the track. Subsequently Rocket was modified so that the cylinders were set horizontally, a layout used on nearly all designs that followed. The second pair of wheels was 2ft 6ins in diameter, and uncoupled from the driving wheels, giving an 0-2-2 wheel arrangement. The firebox was separate from the boiler and was double thickness, being surrounded with water. Copper pipes led the heated water into the boiler.[1]
There have been differences in opinion on whom should be given the credit for designing Rocket. George Stephenson had designed several locomotives before but none as advanced as Rocket. At the time that Rocket was being designed and built at the Forth Banks Works, he was living in Liverpool overseeing the building of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway. His son Robert had recently returned from a stint working in South America and resumed as managing director of Robert Stephenson and Company. He was in daily charge of designing and constructing the new locomotive. Although he was in frequent contact with his father in Liverpool and probably received advice from him, it is difficult not to give the majority of the credit for the design to Robert. A third person who deserves a significant amount of credit is Henry Booth, the treasurer of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway. He is believed to have suggested to Robert Stephenson that a multi-tube boiler should be used.[1] George Stephenson George Stephenson For the British politician, see George Stevenson. ...
Inaugural journey of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway The Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR) was the worlds first intercity passenger railway in which all the trains were timetabled and operated for most of the distance solely by steam locomotives. ...
Statue of Robert Stephenson at Euston Station, London Robert Stephenson FRS (October 16, 1803–October 12, 1859) was an English civil engineer. ...
Robert Stephenson and Company was set up in 1823 in Forth Street, Newcastle-upon-Tyne in England by George Stephenson, his son Robert, with Edward Pease and Michael Longridge (the owner of the ironworks at Bedlington ). It was the first company set up specifically to build railway engines, as part...
Henry Booth was born 4 April 1788 died 1869, on Rodney Street, Liverpool, England. ...
Inaugural journey of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway The Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR) was the worlds first intercity passenger railway in which all the trains were timetabled and operated for most of the distance solely by steam locomotives. ...
History
Rainhill trials Rocket was designed and built to compete in the Rainhill Trials, a competition to select the locomotive type for the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, on 6 to 14 October 1829. Of the five entrants, only three of them were seen as serious contenders. All of the other competitors broke down and Rocket was declared the winner. Rocket fulfilled the key requirement of the contest that a full simulated 50 mile (80km) round trip under load be completed with satisfactory fuel consumption. It averaged 12 miles per hour while hauling 13 tons and 29 miles per hour running light.[2] The Rainhill Trials were an important competition in the early days of steam locomotive railways, run in October of 1829 near Rainhill (just outside Liverpool). ...
Inaugural journey of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway The Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR) was the worlds first intercity passenger railway in which all the trains were timetabled and operated for most of the distance solely by steam locomotives. ...
For other uses, see October (disambiguation). ...
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 1829 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...
Opening-day accident The opening ceremony of the L&MR, on 15 September 1830, was a considerable event, drawing luminaries from the government and industry, including the Prime Minister, the Duke of Wellington. The day started with a procession of eight trains setting out from Liverpool. The parade was led by Northumbrian driven by George Stephenson, and included Phoenix driven by his son Robert, North Star driven by his brother Robert snr and Rocket driven by assistant engineer Joseph Locke. The day was marred by the death of William Huskisson, the Member of Parliament for Liverpool, who was struck and killed by Rocket at Parkside.[1] is the 258th day of the year (259th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Liberty Leading the People by Eugène Delacroix commemorates the July Revolution 1830 (MDCCCXXX) was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS (c. ...
Joseph Locke, railway engineer Joseph Locke (9 August 1805- 18 September 1860) was a notable British civil engineer of the 19th century, particularly associated with railway projects. ...
William Huskisson (11 March 1770 - 15 September 1830), was a British statesman, financier, and Member of Parliament for Liverpool. ...
A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a parliament. ...
For other uses, see Liverpool (disambiguation). ...
Subsequent service In 1834, the engine was selected for modifications to test a newly-developed rotary steam engine designed by Lord Dundonald (Thomas Cochrane). At a cost of nearly £80, Rocket's cylinders and driving rods were removed and two of the engines were installed directly on its driving axle with a feedwater pump in between. On October 22, of that year, an operational trial was held with disappointing results; one witness observing, that "the engine could not be made to draw a train of empty carriages". Due to inherent design flaws and engineering difficulties associated with their design, Dundonald's engines were simply too feeble for the task.[3]
After service on the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, Rocket was used near Tindale village on Lord Carlisle's Railway in Cumberland (now Cumbria), England.[4] George Howard, 6th Earl of Carlisle (17 September 1773 - 7 October 1848) was an English statesman. ...
Cumbria (IPA: ), is a shire county in the extreme North West of England. ...
Preservation In 1862 Rocket was donated to the Patent Office Museum in London by the Thompsons of Milton Hall, near Brampton, in Cumbria.[5]
The locomotive still exists, in the Science Museum (London), in much modified form compared to its state at the Rainhill Trials. The cylinders were altered to the horizontal position, compared to the angled arrangement as new, and the locomotive was given a proper smokebox. Such are the changes in the engine from 1829 that The Engineer magazine, circa 1884, concluded that "it seems to us indisputable that the Rocket of 1829 and 1830 were totally different engines". The Science Museum on Exhibition Road, South Kensington, London is part of the National Museum of Science and Industry. ...
Cylinder with piston in a steam engine A cylinder in the central working part of a reciprocating engine, the space in which a piston travels. ...
The smokebox (outlined in red) of Soo Line 1003. ...
Image File history File links Download high resolution version (960x1280, 193 KB) Summary (c) Chris Howells (user:Chowells) Replica Rocket. ...
Image File history File links Download high resolution version (960x1280, 193 KB) Summary (c) Chris Howells (user:Chowells) Replica Rocket. ...
The Replica In 1979 a replica Rocket was built by Locomotion Enterprises for the 150th anniversary celebrations.[6] It has a shorter chimney than the original in order to the clear the bridge at Rainhill: the trackbed is deeper than in the 19th century, giving less headroom. This replica is based at the National Railway Museum, York. Look up Chimney in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...
Locomotives arranged around the turntable in the Great Hall. ...
York shown within England Coordinates: , Sovereign state Constituent country Region Yorkshire and the Humber Ceremonial county North Yorkshire Admin HQ York City Centre Founded 71 City Status 71 Government - Type Unitary Authority, City - Governing body City of York Council - Leadership: Leader & Executive - Executive: Liberal Democrat - MPs: Hugh Bayley (L) John...
See also Contemporary drawing of Novelty Novelty was an early steam locomotive built by John Ericsson and John Braithwaite to take part in the Rainhill Trials. ...
References - ^ a b c d Burton, Anthony (1980). The Rainhill Story. British Broadcasting Corporation. ISBN 0563178418.
- ^ Schoolnet article on the Rainhill Trials, accessed 17 June 2007
- ^ Cochrane's Rotary Steam Engines. [1]
- ^ Webb, Brian; Gordon, David A. (1978). Lord Carlisle's Railways. Lichfield, Staffordshire: Railway Correspondence and Travel Society, p. 101. ISBN 0-901115-43-6.
- ^ Liffen, John (2003). "The Patent Office Museum and the beginnings of railway locomotive preservation", in Lewis, M. J. T. (ed.): Early Railways 2. London: Newcomen Society, 202-20. ISBN 0-904685-13-6.
- ^ Satow, M. G. (1979). "Rocket reborn". Railway Magazine 125: 472–4.
is the 168th day of the year (169th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ...
External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Stephenson's Rocket - The Science Museum - Stephenson's 'Rocket' locomotive, 1829
- Making the Modern World gallery
- Stephenson's Rocket board game by Reiner Knizia
- The Engineer magazine examines the differences between the 1829 and 1830 Rocket, as reprinted in Scientific American Supplement, No. 460, October 25, 1884.
- ScaleModel.NET Gallery 1:26 Scale model of Rocket.
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