Toledo and Ohio Central USRA 0-8-0 No. 9543.
(1922 Locomotive Cyclopedia of American Practice, public domain, Wikimedia Commons)
USRA 0-8-0 STEAM LOCOMOTIVE
The USRA 0-8-0 was a USRA standard class of steam locomotive designed under the control of the United States Railroad Administration, the nationalized railroad system in the United States during World War I. This was the standard heavy switcher locomotive of the USRA types, and was of 0-8-0 wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, or "D" in UIC classification.
A total of 175 locomotives were built under USRA control; these were sent to the following railroads:
Table of original USRA allocation
| Railroad | Quantity | Class | Road numbers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad | 10 | F-1 | 540–549 | |
| Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway | 8 | 329-336 | ||
| Erie Railroad | 16 | C-1 | 120–135 | |
| Kansas City Terminal Railway | 5 | 34-38 | ||
| Louisville and Nashville Railroad | 6 | C-2 | 2118–2123 | |
| Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad | 10 | 39-48 | ||
| Northern Pacific Railway | 4 | G-1 | 1170–1173 | |
| New York Central Railroad | 25 | U-3a | 415–439 | Renumbered 7815–7839 |
| NYC subsidiary Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway | 9 | U-3a | 7440–7448 | Renumbered 7740–7748 |
| NYC subsidiary Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad | 20 | U-3a | 300–319 | |
| NYC subsidiary Kanawha and Michigan Railroad | 3 | U-3a | 553,554,568 | Renumbered 9548-9550, then 7758–7760 |
| NYC subsidiary Lake Erie and Western Railroad | 3 | U-3a | 4250–4252 | to New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad ("Nickel Plate Road") 205–207 in 1923 |
| NYC subsidiary Michigan Central Railroad | 10 | U-3a | 8940–8949 | Renumbered 7840–7849 |
| NYC subsidiary Toledo and Ohio Central Railroad | 5 | U-3a | 9543–9547 | Renumbered 7753–7757 |
| New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad | 35 | Y-3 | Ten were built in 1920 (3400-3409), twenty in 1922 initially lettered CNE 13-32 (3415-3434), and five in 1923 (3410-3414). | |
| Pere Marquette Railway | 10 | 1300–1309 | to Chesapeake and Ohio Railway 40–49 | |
| Rutland Railroad | 2 | U-3 | 109–110 | |
| Southern Railway | 20 | As-11 | 1878-1897 | |
| West Point Route (Atlanta and West Point Rail Road) | 1 | G | 215 | |
| West Point Route (Georgia Railroad) | 2 | G | 801–802 | |
| West Point Route (Western Railway of Alabama) | 1 | G | 115 | |
| Wheeling and Lake Erie Railway | 5 | C-1 | 5101–5105 | to New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad ("Nickel Plate Road") 271–275 in 1949 |
| Total | 175 |
After the dissolution of the USRA, an additional 1,200 copies of the USRA 0-8-0 were built for many railroads, There is a known survivor of this Type, Republic Steel Corp. No. 285, which is an ALCO (Richmond) Product built in 1925. It is now preserved at the Kentucky Railway Museum in New Haven, Kentucky. It is unknown if any more USRA 0-8-0s of this type exist.
USRA 0-8-0 Overview
Type and origin
Power type: Steam
Builder: ALCO, Baldwin, Lima
Total produced: 175 (plus 1,200 copies)
Specifications
Configuration:
• Whyte 0-8-0
• UIC D h2
Gauge: 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Driver diameter: 51 in (1,295 mm)
Wheelbase - Locomotive: 15 ft 0 in (4.57 m)
Wheelbase - Locomotive & tender: 52 ft 10+1⁄2 in (16.12 m)
Length: 66 ft 1+1⁄2 in (20.15 m)
Width: 10 ft 0 in (3.05 m)
Height: 15 ft 0 in (4.57 m)
Axle load: 55,000 lb (25,000 kg)
Locomotive weight: 220,000 lb (100,000 kg)
Tender weight: 144,000 lb (65,000 kg)
Total weight: 364,000 lb (165,000 kg)
Fuel type: Coal
Fuel capacity: 32,000 lb (15,000 kg)
Water capacity: 8,000 US gal (30,000 L; 6,700 imp gal)
Firebox:
• Firegrate area: 46.6 sq ft (4.33 m2)
Boiler pressure: 175 psi (1.21 MPa)
Heating surface 2,781 sq ft (258.4 m2)
• Tubes: 1,796 sq ft (166.9 m2)
• Flues: 773 sq ft (71.8 m2)
• Firebox: 190 sq ft (18 m2)
Superheater:
• Heating area: 637 sq ft (59.2 m2)
Cylinders: Two, outside
Cylinder size: 25 in × 28 in (635 mm × 711 mm)
Valve gear: Baker
Valve type: 14-inch (360 mm) piston valves
Performance figures
Tractive effort: 51,042 lbf (227.05 kN)