The USRA Heavy Mountain 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 light freight locomotive of the USRA types, and was of 4-8-2 wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, or 2′D1′ in UIC classification.

USRA Heavy Mountain
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
Builder
Build date1918-1926
Total produced15 (plus 37 copies)
Specifications
Configuration:
 • Whyte4-8-2
 • UIC2′D1′ h2
Gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm)
Wheelbase
  • Coupled: 18 ft 3 in (5.56 m)
  • Locomotive: 40 ft 0 in (12.19 m)
  • Loco & tender: 75 ft 8+12 in (23.08 m)
Axle load60,000 lb (27,000 kg)
Adhesive weight240,000 lb (110,000 kg)
Loco weight350,000 lb (160,000 kg)
Tender weight172,000 lb (78,000 kg)
Total weight522,000 lb (237,000 kg)
Fuel typeCoal
Fuel capacity32,000 lb (15,000 kg)
Water cap.10,000 US gal (38,000 L; 8,300 imp gal)
Firebox:
 • Grate area76.3 sq ft (7.09 m2)
Boiler pressure200 psi (1.38 MPa)
Heating surface:
 • Firebox346 sq ft (32.1 m2)
 • Tubes2,790 sq ft (259 m2)
 • Flues1,323 sq ft (122.9 m2)
 • Total surface4,666 sq ft (433.5 m2)
Superheater:
 • Heating area10,780 sq ft (1,001 m2)
CylindersTwo
Cylinder size28 in × 30 in (711 mm × 762 mm)
Valve gearWalschaerts
Valve type14-inch (360 mm) piston valves
Performance figures
Tractive effort58,200 lbf (258.89 kN)
Factor of adh.4.1
Career
Preserved0
Scrapped1940-1959
DispositionAll scrapped

A total of 15 locomotives were built under the auspices of the USRA.

Table of original USRA allocation
Railroad Quantity Class Road numbers Notes
Chesapeake and Ohio Railway 5 J-2 543-547 Built 1918 by Baldwin. Renumbered from 133-137. Scrapped 1940-1947.
Norfolk and Western Railway 10 K2 116–125 Built 1919 by ALCO. Scrapped 1951-1952.
Total 15
Table of copies acquired
Railroad Quantity Class Road numbers Notes
Chesapeake and Ohio Railway 2 J-2a 548–549 Built 1923 by ALCO. Renumbered from 138-139. Scrapped in 1948.
Florida East Coast Railway 23 801 801–823 Built 1926 by ALCO Schenectady. Scrapped 1950-1952.
Norfolk and Western Railway 12 K2a 126–137 Built 1923 by Baldwin. Scrapped 1947-1959.
Total 37

Neither the originals built by the USRA or any of the subsequent copies were preserved, being scrapped between 1940 and 1959.

References

edit
  • Drury, George H. (1993), Guide to North American Steam Locomotives, Waukesha, Wisconsin: Kalmbach Publishing Company, ISBN 0-89024-206-2, LCCN 93041472
  • Edson, William D.; Corley, Raymond F. (Autumn 1982). "Locomotives of the Grand Trunk Railway". Railroad History. 147 (147). Boston, Mass.: Railway and Locomotive Historical Society: 42–183. JSTOR 43520915.
  • Huddleston, Eugene L. (2002). Uncle Sam's Locomotives: The USRA and the Nation's Railroads. Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-34086-1.
  • Westcott, Linn H. (1960). Model Railroader Cyclopedia, Volume 1: Steam Locomotives. Milwaukee, Wis.: Kalmbach Publishing Co. ISBN 0-89024-001-9.
  • "Standard Heavy 4-8-2 and Light 2-10-2 Locomotives". Railway Age. 65 (24): 1067–1073. December 13, 1918 – via Archive.org. 
  • "Tentative Specifications for Standard Locomotives". Railway Age. 64 (16): 1039–1041. April 19, 1918 – via Archive.org.