Boiler and Light

The Wilmington and Western Railroad, in Delaware, operates on occasion two vintage steam locomotives. We went for a ride on a very special occasion, Pufferbelly Day. Two steam engines, Number 98 and 58, were linked, head to head, to celebrate the 100th birthday of Number 98.

Boiler Detail

Steam nearly always shrouds a steam locomotive while it is fired, but at rest. Here, you can see the handrails that allow engineers and other railroad personel to climb on various places of the engine to perform maintenance, even inside the boiler.

Engineer

One of the key jobs of the engineer is to feed the engine the right amount of fuel and water for whatever situation it is in. In this image, the engineer is moving coal from the back of the tender to the front, to make it easier for himself to shovel into the engine while it is moving.

Inside the Locomotive

A locomotive engineer was as prestigious a position in its day as flying an aircraft or working a computer is today. Not only did numerous guages and valves require constant monitoring and attention, the engine itself must be kept continually supplied with coal.

Wheels

Steam locomotives use a mechanical arm connected to a wheel to move. Pushed by steam in a piston, the arm pushes against the wheel, and in turn, moves the engine. To efficiently translate the energy in the arm into the wheel, the wheels themselves must be very large.

Inside a Coach

This is the interior of a passenger car, or coach, on the Wilmington and Western railroad. Locomotives such as the Number 93 could pull several passenger coaches up to 100mph.

Venting Steam

The steam engine's power is largely governed by how big the engineer builds the fire which boils the water. Safety valves automatically open when the pressure is too great, creating a dramatic display.

At a Stop

During a picnic stop, the engineers of both trains converse.

The engineers, although busy, are both very knowledgeable and very friendly. Many engineers in vintage railroads are ex-US Navy personel, who cut their steam teath on nuclear powered warships and other steam vessels.

No 98

The tour offered by the Wilmington and Western Railroad offers stunning scenery. Here, the locomotive travels through a wooded area, but in the same short tour, one can expect to see waterfalls, a historic mill, some of the sprawling Dupont estates, a steep quarry, an abandoned mine, dramatic cuts through solid rock hills, and more.