A vertical boiler mounted on a four-wheel carriage, the Best Friend was built by the West Point Foundry of New York and put into service on a broad-gauge line from Charleston to Hamburg, S.C., by the South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company on Dec. 25, 1830. Currently, the locomotive is on display at Norfolk Southern's headquarters in Atlanta, Ga, while the trailing cars are held at the South Carolina Railroad Museum. 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. This might have been the worst musicians gig in the world: trying to play your instrument while riding backwards on a lurching, open rail car, showered by soot and sparks from the smokestack, waiting for the boiler behind you to explode. The train, which had an estimated weight of 80 tonnes was about 400 feet (120m) long, reached a maximum speed of 12 miles per hour (19km/h)), and took two hours to complete the first 8.7 miles (14.0km) of the journey to Darlington, but was slowed by a derailed wagon and a blocked feed pump valve, thus only achieving an average speed of 8 miles per hour (13km/h). Stock photos, 360 images, vectors and videos . In 1831 the Best Friend was used to carry mail, freight, and passengers. It was used on the railway until 1850, after which it was converted into a stationary engine. It also produced the first locomotive boiler explosion in the US. Many were pulled up in the 1970's and 1980's although others were removed long before that. The NS employee bringing the engine and its cars down the ramp is Charlie Powell Just A Car Guy Cool things with wheels since 2006 Friday, January 15, 2021 The information includes original numbers, serials, and order numbers. On that day, it pulled a passenger train along a six-mile route. [citation needed], On 16 September 1824, the S&DR ordered a pair of steam locomotives, at a price of 550 (about 46,810 today) each. The only mode of travel that was any faster was by an experienced horse and rider. A careless fireman unwittingly caused an explosion. Because of the heavy schedule, the Best Friend consumed all my time.. All written content, photos, and videos copyright American-Rails.com (unless otherwise noted). More times than not, roads were dry and dusty or wet and soggy, undependable whether being traveled by coach, horseback, or foot. The Best Friend of Charleston Made its first trip on Dec. 25, 1830. The state's legislature chartered the railroad in 1827 at the urging of Charleston merchants, who saw it as a way to expand commerce during an economic downturn. The Exhibit Car, a museum on wheels, tells the modern, innovative side of railroading and the continuing role Norfolk Southern and it operating subsidiaries, NW and SR, play in the development of the industry. To restore passenger confidence, a flatcar piled high with protective cotton bales was placed between the locomotive and its passenger cars. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). The new company name was the Georgia Railroad and Banking Company. Even farmers as far away as North Carolina looked south for access to markets. Mr. HARRIS has been a useful citizen, and for many years was a Marshal and afterwards Mayor of this city. When it is loaded, the train rests on tracks installed inside the cars. Reportedly, a fireman accidentally caused the explosion when he closed the steam pressure release valve. On 1 July 1828, it was heavily damaged when its boiler exploded at Aycliffe Lane station, resulting in the death of its driver, John Cree. Charleston, S.C.: boiler exploded on America's first passenger locomotive, The Best Friend of Charleston, injuring the fireman and the engineer. It houses a replica of the Best Friend of Charleston, a steam locomotive which carried passengers en route from Charleston to Hamburg, passing through Branchville. South Carolina State Museum [18] After a period on display at the Locomotion museum, it moved to Head of Steam in April 2021, replacing the original. It took ten months to shape up the little train, including the installation of a new boiler. Dubbed Best Friend of Charleston by eager merchants, the train made its premier trip on Christmas Day 1830, becoming the first steam locomotive in the US to establish regularly scheduled passenger service. In the early 1800s, transportation looked completely different from what it does today. [10] Locomotion always returned to its static display in Darlington,[15] the headquarters of the Stockton and Darlington Railway Company. . My first question was, Whats the Best Friend? So what do you think happened? [17], As the original locomotive is too fragile to return to steam, a working replica was built in 1975, and was resident at Beamish Museum. But explosions became a recurring problem on the Charleston & Hamburg Railroad and elsewhere. In their own state, major Piedmont rivers like the Catawba and the Yadkin/PeeDee flowed south into the other Carolina, making Charleston, and even Savannah, more accessible than North Carolinas own port at Wilmington. Handicapped children from three area schools came to ride, he said One teacher told me later she was convinced, by their facial expressions, that two deaf children hear a sound when I blew the Whistle. [6][pageneeded], Locomotion No. During the test runs, frequent derailments occurred 28 in fact before John realized the tread on the wheels needed to be one half inch wider to negotiate the track. A replica of the Best Friend of Charleston was in the 1948-49 Chicago Railroad Fair because in 1830 it was the first commercially operated steamer constructed in America on the South Carolina Canal and Rail Road Company (SCC&RR). Constructed in 1928 using original plans, the Southern Railway built a replica of the famed 749 22. The purpose of the company was to haul agricultural products from inland farms, notably the important cotton crop, to the port city for shipment. Though its speed might not impress us today, by 19th century standards it was nothing short of incredible. At this time, Europeans were just beginning to experiment with the concept of a Rail Road; a new means of transportation that employed a locomotive propelled along rails by steam power. Slidell, La / Feb 1982 / Michael Palmieri, from TIES magazine May-Jun 2006 / collection. 12 - 5 p.m. Even though he was among movie stars, beauty queens, politicians and even astronauts, John always helped shine, clean, grease, load , unload and perform any other task that kept is Best Friend in top running order. The blocked valve caused the pressure within the boiler to exceed its capacity, and it exploded. US #2363 - Fleetwood First Day Proof Card The increasing demand for showing the Best Friend kept him busy maintaining and chasing it more that full time. The loan agreement expired in March 2021, after which the locomotive was moved to the NRM's outpost museum in Shildon, itself named Locomotion. Often disasters are legendary because of the sheer number of people they affected, but in this case, the horrific nature of the damage makes it memorable. And then she rode him like a train, choo choo bitch. An 85-year-old replica of the Best Friend of Charleston, the first train in the nation to offer regularly scheduled passenger service, returns to Charleston this weekend. Locomotives like the Best Friend work by using the pressure produced by steam. One is at the Best Friend Museum in Charleston, and the other is at our very own South Carolina State Museum. A slave fireman closed up a safety valve on the boiler while the locomotive was stopped at a platform. The locomotive's name came from its home base of operations, Charleston, South Carolina as during those early years it was actually common practice to name them. Corrections? It was assembled and tested. . Derrick, Samuel. After refurbishment at their shops in Chattanooga, NS brought the replica to New York City for display on December 12, 2005, outside the New York Stock Exchange Building in a ceremony commemorating 175years of American railroad history. The Best Friend had a short life. By 1821, the economy was better in both port cities, but Charleston realized it was not recovering as quickly as Savannah, its major commercial rival. 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. Even though that theory was immediately debunked on the 1830 Christmas excursion, the operational Charleston & Hamburg Railroad set strict but flexible speed limits. Both means of transportation were totally dependent upon weather and temperature conditions. Contents. The explosion threw the engine 25 feet and killed the fireman. Hes led parades, received keys to cities and been made an honorary or a lifetime citizen of many communities. History. Did you just fucking question the train fact man? While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. John was selected to oversee the project. After arriving disassembled in Charleston it was rebuilt and ready for trails by November 2nd. His death is a loss to the community at large. When he, the crew and the Best Friend passed the reviewing stand in the 1976 Inaugural Parade, President and Mrs. Carter and Amy stood and gave us hearty waves and big smiles, John said. It became clear that if something didnt change soon, Charlestons economy was going to be in big trouble. [6][pageneeded] The driver, who had to perch on a small platform beside the boiler, was James Stephenson, the elder brother to George Stephenson; the fireman, William Gowling, stood on a footplate between the engine and the tender. The railroad's chief engineer, Horatio Allen, had it built in West Point Foundry based in Cold Spring, NY; and it could reach 30mph empty and 12mph loaded, which was . Images, GIFs and videos featured seven times a day. Find the perfect best friend of charleston stock photo, image, vector, illustration or 360 image. "Best Friend of Charleston" steam engine -- the first locomotive built in the United States for regular service -- to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the South Carolina Canal & Railroad Company. For local communities, depots honor the past while still meeting. Just type in a town or city and click on the timeline of maps at the bottom of the page! Best Friend was subsequently rebuilt and served as the Phoenix. Cosmically Cool Summer Fun at the State Museum Get Tickets Today! That action put Best Friend of Charleston in the history books again, this time for experiencing the first recorded boiler explosion on an American railroad. [14] From 1975, it was formally on loan by the NRM to Head of Steam. In 1833 the world's longest railroad was completed linking Charleston to Hamburg, South Carolina, just across the Savannah River from Augusta. With the decrease in commerce, Charleston merchants began aggressively investigating avenues to revitalize the floundering economy. Until Best Friend, all locomotives for American rail had been imported from England, which had industrial expertise and capability far beyond that of its former colonies. I. On June 17, 1831, the Best Friend was the first locomotive in the US to suffer a boiler explosion. That gave it the distinction of operating the first regularly scheduled passenger train service in the United States. [2], Locomotion No. 1 hauled the first train on the Stockton and Darlington Railway, and became the first locomotive to run on a public railway. In 1833, responding to the perceived economic threat, the Georgia Legislature approved a bill incorporating the Georgia Railroad Company. The explosion threw the engine 25 feet and killed the fireman. organized on April 24th, 1827 was the first, true common-carrier line [15], As ownership of the railways changed, the locomotive became a British Rail historic item, all of which were transferred as the National Collection in 1968 to the National Railway Museum (NRM), now part of the Science Museum Group (SMG). In June 1831 an accident brought an end to the Best Friend. Hes hobnobbed with celebrities of all descriptions and captured more radio and TV attention than many well-knowns. Transport Locomotive Rolling stock George Stephenson Steam locomotive Locomotive 50% (1/1) THE EVENT. 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 Railway's earliest predecessor line. In 1825 the engine, later called Locomotion, took 450 people 25 miles from Darlington to Stockton at 15 miles per hour. The "Best Friend of Charleston" was indeed, "The little engine that did!" During the Second World War, it was temporarily relocated (at Stanhope) due to the threat of bombing. Stock photos, 360 images, vectors and videos . Remember how steam engines make that loud whistling noise? Sadly, the Best Friend of Charleston suffered a boiler explosion in . The Best Friend of Charleston began the first regular passenger service in the country following a six-mile route in Charleston. [1] The resulting blast was said to have hurled metal fragments over a wide area and killed the fireman. Today, there are tens of thousands of miles scattered throughout the country. Siegling, H. Carter. It was rebuilt but, as a consequence of the rapid advances in locomotive design, Locomotion No. [11] Cree had tied down the arm of a safety valve, which caused the boiler pressure to rise to the point of explosion. Sat:: When it was delivered to South Carolina, it received the unofficial name The Best Friend of Charleston. Waterway navigation was severely limited to the course, water flow, depth and tides of the river systems. A letter to the now York Herald dated bachelors Creek near Newborn n. 0., 27th uu., gives an account of an explosion of four torpedoes by which Over forty new York soldiers and contraband wore killed and Between Twenty and thirty terribly wounded Tho writer says the train which left Newborn at three of clock in the afternoon brought to the out . 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. I like trains. When he retires early in 1984, what will John miss the most? Its performance exceeded expectations, with one observer writing that passengers flew on the wings of the wind at the speed of fifteen to twenty miles per hour, annihilating time and space.. 1 became obsolete within a decade. 1were lined up under steam. Historic information: The Charleston Chapter NRHS was organized in 1967 and holds meetings at the Ashley Park Retirement Community, 1451 Tobias Gadson Blvd., Charleston SC , at 11 A.M. on the second Saturday of each month. Home U.K. Tues. - Fri: Centennial History of South Carolina Railroad. Copyright 2007-2023 American-Rails.com. While waiting to start a run, the locomotive fireman, annoyed by the hissing sound of escaping steam, tied the engine's safety valve shut. [2] The boiler had a blastpipe in the chimney. It ran along six miles of wood and metal rails terminating near the junction of State and Dorchester Roads. Best Friend of Charleston, first steam locomotive built in the United States for regular railway service. Mrs. August Peters of 1217 North Hackberry was standing in her yard. From then until mid-December SCC&RR officials and engineers continued to test the locomotive to ready it for regular operation. The boilers of the modern replicas retain the vertical shape, but with more suitable innards and contours. The company commissioned a passenger steam locomotive Americas first from the West Point Foundry in New York. Ive been planning all year for this moment, John said, rather sadly, My working life for so long has centered on that train, Its hard to realize I dont need to think about it anymore.. When a subsequent explosion on the Charleston & Hamburg injured passengers in the first car behind the engine, the company took action. Later regulations specified that no train was to exceed 20 mph unless greatly behind time. Ah, what would we do without loopholes? 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