NYC Hudson
Encyclopedia
Hudson was the name given to the 4-6-4
steam locomotive
wheel arrangement
by the New York Central Railroad
(NYC) which was the first to use locomotive
s of this type in North America
.
was also sometimes used in Europe. Alvin F. Staufer interviewed the Hudson's designer and the NYC's superintendent of motive power, Paul W. Kiefer, in 1961, and asked about the naming of the type. Kiefer's answer is recounted in Staufer's book, Thoroughbreds:
The Hudson came into being because the existing 4-6-2
"Pacific" power was not able to keep up with the demands of longer, heavier train
s and higher speeds. Given the New York Central's axle load
limits, the Pacific type could not be made any larger; a new locomotive type would be required to carry the larger boiler
that Kiefer's research indicated was needed.
Lima
's conception of superpower steam as realised in the 2-8-4
Berkshire type was the predecessor to the Hudson. The 2-8-4's 4-wheel trailing truck permitted a huge firebox to be located after the boiler. The resulting greater steaming rate ensured that such a locomotive would never run out of power at speed—a common failing of older locomotives. Applying the ideas of the freight-minded Berkshire type to the Pacific resulted in a 4-6-4 locomotive.
The New York Central ordered one prototype, #5200 from Alco, and subjected her to intensive testing. Passing with flying colors, a fleet of 205 J-1 class Hudsons were built, including thirty for the Michigan Central Railroad
and thirty for the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway
(“Big Four”). In addition, NYC subsidiary Boston and Albany Railroad
ordered twenty J-2 class, ten of them from Lima Locomotive Works (all other NYC Hudsons were built by Alco’s Schenectady works). A later development were the fifty J-3a class “Super Hudson” in 1937–38, with every modern appliance and innovation the railroad could put on them.
They were some of the best known steam locomotives ever. One J-1 locomotive, number 5344, had streamlining applied and named Commodore Vanderbilt. The streamlining was later replaced to match the last ten J-3a locomotives that had been built with streamlining designed by Henry Dreyfuss
. Two more J-3a locomotives had streamlining fitted in 1941 for the "Empire State Express.". The streamlined locomotives featured prominently on New York Central advertising for trains like the Empire State Express
and 20th Century Limited
.
The forte of all Hudsons was power at speed. They were poor performers at low speed and the presence of a booster engine
on the trailing truck was an absolute necessity for starting. For this reason, they were generally favored by railroads with flat terrain and racetrack-like routes. After the NYC, the Milwaukee was the biggest fan of the Hudson type, acquiring 22 class F6
and 6 streamlined class F7
locomotives. The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway also had sixteen of them. The New Haven Railroad had 10 (#1400-1409) streamlined 4-6-4's built by Baldwin in 1937, nicknamed "Shoreliners," 1400s, or their class I-5. Few roads with hilly terrain acquired any.
A booster, though, was a complicated piece of machinery, liable to trouble. Slowly, the booster fell out of favor with railroads, including the NYC. Instead of a complicated booster, it was deemed preferential to have an extra pair of driving wheels instead, and thus better traction.
Trials of dual-purpose 4-8-2
Mohawks
in passenger service sealed the Hudson's fate. A larger locomotive was clearly now required. The Mohawk was nice, but it was still more suited to lower-speed hauling than high-speed power. In 1944, the New York Central received permission from the War Production Board
to build a new, high-speed locomotive of the 4-8-4
type, combining all the advantages of the Hudson with those of the Mohawk. Many other railroads had taken to the 4-8-4 in the 1930s, generally calling them Northerns after the Northern Pacific Railway
, which had first adopted them. By being a late adopter, the NYC had the chance to build on everyone else's experience.
That locomotive proved to be exceptional, and the type on the NYC was named the Niagara
. Some consider them the epitome of steam passenger power in the United States, and possibly the world. Since only 27 were built, however, they only took over the heaviest and most-prestigious trains; most Hudsons labored until the end of steam on the New York Central.
All Hudson units were scrapped
when the New York Central dieselized.
4-6-4
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-6-4 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and four trailing wheels on two axles .Other equivalent classifications are:UIC classification:...
steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
wheel arrangement
Wheel arrangement
In rail transport, a wheel arrangement is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed beneath a locomotive.. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and connections, with the adopted notations varying by country...
by the New York Central Railroad
New York Central Railroad
The New York Central Railroad , known simply as the New York Central in its publicity, was a railroad operating in the Northeastern United States...
(NYC) which was the first to use locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
s of this type in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
History
Although the Milwaukee Road was the first to design such locomotives, naming them Baltics, they didn't get built until after the NYC's Hudsons. The name Baltic for this wheel arrangementWheel arrangement
In rail transport, a wheel arrangement is a system of classifying the way in which wheels are distributed beneath a locomotive.. Several notations exist to describe the wheel assemblies of a locomotive by type, position, and connections, with the adopted notations varying by country...
was also sometimes used in Europe. Alvin F. Staufer interviewed the Hudson's designer and the NYC's superintendent of motive power, Paul W. Kiefer, in 1961, and asked about the naming of the type. Kiefer's answer is recounted in Staufer's book, Thoroughbreds:
I asked Pat (Patrick E. Crowley, NYC President, All Lines) if we should name the engine or if he cared about that at all. We were already calling the L class 4-8-24-8-2Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-8-2 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle...
s Mohawks, after the Mohawk ValleyMohawk ValleyThe Mohawk Valley region of the U.S. state of New York is the area surrounding the Mohawk River, sandwiched between the Adirondack Mountains and Catskill Mountains....
and Indians. And then, I'll never forget that moment, he just looked at me; the sun was shining in from the West, it was late in the day. He swung around in his huge brown leather chair, away from me. He stared out the window for the longest time. He swung back and stared at me, his chin in his hand. Finally he spoke, "Let's call her the Hudson, after the Hudson RiverHudson RiverThe Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
." I agreed immediately (not that it mattered) and that's how it was. The name stuck. It was a natural.
The Hudson came into being because the existing 4-6-2
4-6-2
4-6-2, in the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle .These locomotives are also known as Pacifics...
"Pacific" power was not able to keep up with the demands of longer, heavier train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
s and higher speeds. Given the New York Central's axle load
Axle load
The axle load of a wheeled vehicle is the total weight felt by the roadway for all wheels connected to a given axle. Viewed another way, it is the fraction of total vehicle weight resting on a given axle...
limits, the Pacific type could not be made any larger; a new locomotive type would be required to carry the larger boiler
Boiler
A boiler is a closed vessel in which water or other fluid is heated. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications.-Materials:...
that Kiefer's research indicated was needed.
Lima
Lima Locomotive Works
Lima Locomotive Works was an American firm that manufactured railroad locomotives from the 1870s through the 1950s. The company took the most distinctive part of its name from its main shops location in Lima, Ohio. The shops were located between the Baltimore & Ohio's Cincinnati-Toledo main line...
's conception of superpower steam as realised in the 2-8-4
2-8-4
In the Whyte notation, a 2-8-4 is a railroad steam locomotive that has one unpowered leading axle followed by four powered driving axles and two unpowered trailing axles. This locomotive type is most often referred to as a Berkshire, though the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway used the name Kanawha for...
Berkshire type was the predecessor to the Hudson. The 2-8-4's 4-wheel trailing truck permitted a huge firebox to be located after the boiler. The resulting greater steaming rate ensured that such a locomotive would never run out of power at speed—a common failing of older locomotives. Applying the ideas of the freight-minded Berkshire type to the Pacific resulted in a 4-6-4 locomotive.
Michigan Central Railroad
The Michigan Central Railroad was originally incorporated in 1846 to establish rail service between Detroit, Michigan and St. Joseph, Michigan. The railroad later operated in the states of Michigan, Indiana, and Illinois in the United States, and the province of Ontario in Canada...
and thirty for the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway
Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway
The Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway, also known as the Big Four Railroad and commonly abbreviated CCC&StL, was a railroad company in the Midwestern United States....
(“Big Four”). In addition, NYC subsidiary Boston and Albany Railroad
Boston and Albany Railroad
The Boston and Albany Railroad was a railroad connecting Boston, Massachusetts to Albany, New York, later becoming part of the New York Central Railroad system, Conrail and CSX. The line is used by CSX for freight...
ordered twenty J-2 class, ten of them from Lima Locomotive Works (all other NYC Hudsons were built by Alco’s Schenectady works). A later development were the fifty J-3a class “Super Hudson” in 1937–38, with every modern appliance and innovation the railroad could put on them.
They were some of the best known steam locomotives ever. One J-1 locomotive, number 5344, had streamlining applied and named Commodore Vanderbilt. The streamlining was later replaced to match the last ten J-3a locomotives that had been built with streamlining designed by Henry Dreyfuss
Henry Dreyfuss
Henry Dreyfuss was an American industrial designer.-Career:Dreyfuss was a native of Brooklyn, New York. As one of the celebrity industrial designers of the 1930s and 1940s, Dreyfuss dramatically improved the look, feel, and usability of dozens of consumer products...
. Two more J-3a locomotives had streamlining fitted in 1941 for the "Empire State Express.". The streamlined locomotives featured prominently on New York Central advertising for trains like the Empire State Express
Empire State Express
The Empire State Express was one of the named passenger trains and onetime flagship of the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad...
and 20th Century Limited
20th Century Limited
The 20th Century Limited was an express passenger train operated by the New York Central Railroad from 1902 to 1967, during which time it would become known as a "National Institution" and the "Most Famous Train in the World". In the year of its last run, The New York Times said that it "...was...
.
The forte of all Hudsons was power at speed. They were poor performers at low speed and the presence of a booster engine
Booster engine
A booster engine for steam locomotives is a small two-cylinder steam engine back-gear-connected to the trailing truck axle on the locomotive or, if none, the lead truck on the tender. A rocking idler gear permits it to be put into operation by the engineer...
on the trailing truck was an absolute necessity for starting. For this reason, they were generally favored by railroads with flat terrain and racetrack-like routes. After the NYC, the Milwaukee was the biggest fan of the Hudson type, acquiring 22 class F6
Milwaukee Road class F6
The Milwaukee Road classes F6 comprised twenty-two steam locomotives of the 4-6-4 configuration, commonly nicknamed “Hudson” but known as “Baltic” on the Milwaukee Road...
and 6 streamlined class F7
Milwaukee Road class F7
The Milwaukee Road's class F7 comprised six high-speed, streamlined 4-6-4 "Baltic" or "Hudson" type steam locomotives built by ALCO in 1937–38 to haul the Milwaukee's Hiawatha express passenger trains...
locomotives. The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway also had sixteen of them. The New Haven Railroad had 10 (#1400-1409) streamlined 4-6-4's built by Baldwin in 1937, nicknamed "Shoreliners," 1400s, or their class I-5. Few roads with hilly terrain acquired any.
A booster, though, was a complicated piece of machinery, liable to trouble. Slowly, the booster fell out of favor with railroads, including the NYC. Instead of a complicated booster, it was deemed preferential to have an extra pair of driving wheels instead, and thus better traction.
Trials of dual-purpose 4-8-2
4-8-2
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-8-2 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle...
Mohawks
NYC Mohawk
The New York Central Railroad called the 4-8-2 type of steam locomotive the Mohawk type. It was known as the Mountain type on other roads, but the mighty New York Central didn't see the name to be fitting on its famous Water Level Route, so it instead picked the name of one of those rivers its...
in passenger service sealed the Hudson's fate. A larger locomotive was clearly now required. The Mohawk was nice, but it was still more suited to lower-speed hauling than high-speed power. In 1944, the New York Central received permission from the War Production Board
War Production Board
The War Production Board was established as a government agency on January 16, 1942 by executive order of Franklin D. Roosevelt.The purpose of the board was to regulate the production and allocation of materials and fuel during World War II in the United States...
to build a new, high-speed locomotive of the 4-8-4
4-8-4
Under the Whyte notation classification of steam locomotives, 4-8-4 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and four trailing wheels on two axles .Other equivalent classifications are:UIC classification: 2D2...
type, combining all the advantages of the Hudson with those of the Mohawk. Many other railroads had taken to the 4-8-4 in the 1930s, generally calling them Northerns after the Northern Pacific Railway
Northern Pacific Railway
The Northern Pacific Railway was a railway that operated in the west along the Canadian border of the United States. Construction began in 1870 and the main line opened all the way from the Great Lakes to the Pacific when former president Ulysses S. Grant drove in the final "golden spike" in...
, which had first adopted them. By being a late adopter, the NYC had the chance to build on everyone else's experience.
That locomotive proved to be exceptional, and the type on the NYC was named the Niagara
NYC Niagara
The New York Central Railroad Niagara was a type of steam locomotive named after the Niagara River and Falls.They were express mixed traffic locomotives with a wheel arrangement of 4-8-4 in the Whyte notation....
. Some consider them the epitome of steam passenger power in the United States, and possibly the world. Since only 27 were built, however, they only took over the heaviest and most-prestigious trains; most Hudsons labored until the end of steam on the New York Central.
All Hudson units were scrapped
Scrap
Scrap is a term used to describe recyclable and other materials left over from every manner of product consumption, such as parts of vehicles, building supplies, and surplus materials. Unlike waste, scrap has significant monetary value...
when the New York Central dieselized.