The Oldest Steam Locomotives in the World

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The contentious history of Puffing Billy and Wylam Dilly.
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[@colin.d]

That was one of the most useful and comprehensive histories of the early locomotive story I have ever seen.

[@tjmfarming9584]

It’s an absolute blessing to us all that both Wylam colliery locomotives are still with us. Amazing to think how far technology has come.

[@ktipuss]

Most fortunate that they survived through periods when there was little interest in preserving old industrial archaeology, not to mention the scrap metal drives of WW2.

[@emjackson2289]

What I find fascinating, if I may add to your already very accurate observation, is this: Once we pass the "industrial pipes shoved together to make a locomotive" stage of steam-train, it didn't take very long to design & build something that looked very much similar to something 50-60 yrs later e.g. the NER 0-6-0 "1001" class of 1874 (I looked that up btw) - I mean, yes, its clearly older than a 1930 LNER steam loco of generally same type/role *but* in the fundamentals, it looks generally similar I think. OK, complexity will have increased of course, efficiency too, but they had something that worked and kept on working until there needed to be a huge step change. I hope that makes sense.

[@OscarOSullivan]

@@emjackson2289Apart from the lack of a real cab

[@OscarOSullivan]

@@emjackson2289The GS&WR Class 101 are a better example first one built 1866

[@MartinBrenner]

It's really cool these two old engines survived. In 1906 a working replica of Puffing Billy was built by the Bavarian State Railway for the Deutsches Museum in Munich where it still is today.

[@nicholaskelly1958]

They even copied the various wear marks along with other dents and deformities found on the original!

[@tsegulin]

I visited London in September for the first time and I was floored by the London Science Museum (amongst so many other fine museums and galleries). I spent 3 days there. Some day when I'm over there again I must take a look at the Royal Scottish Museum. I'd heard of Puffing Billy before but to see it in the flesh was a rare treat. The oldest surviving (stationary) steam engine, that's over there (it's actually too old to be called a steam engine, rather we call it an 'atmospheric' engine). The first British jet powered aircraft? That's upstairs. The first British jet powered car? That's down there. (I used to own a 1954 Rover 95 and I can assure you it did not accelerate like a jet). Just so many excellent exhibits, presented so well. I remember thinking the kids in the school groups being duchessed through the place have no idea how fortunate they are to live in London and be able to see major technological innovations like Puffing Billy.

[@thomasm1964]

If you're over this way again, try to take in the National Railway Museum at York and its smaller sister at Shildon (home of the railways), some 62 miles north of York. Shildon itself is close to Darlington, home of the Stockton and Darlington railway. Not that there is a lot in modern Darlington that would make it worth a special visit. The town's best days are long behind it. Still, if you're hiring a car, you might want to pop in and have a look. Also, you have the Yorkshire Moors and North Pennines just north-west of York where you will see a very different England from London.

[@roderickjoyce6716]

@@thomasm1964 Darlington might have seen better days, but the town's railway museum in the North Road Station building is being cleaned up and improved in preparation for the 200th anniversary of the Stockton and Darlington Railway in 2025. The museum is part of the Railway Quarter development which includes the A1 steam loco trust's new loco works (currently building the P2 class 2-8-2 express steam loco, the Prince of Wales) and the restored 1861 S&D loco shed shared by the trust and the North East loco preservation group. If you visit York there's no need to hire a car to get to Darlington . There are trains every twenty minutes through the day, and the journey to the mainline station takes about thirty minutes - North Road station is a short ride from the mainline station. Shildon is on the same line as North Road, and the museum, which is also being extended for the anniversary, is next to the station. On the way to Shildon the trains stop at Heighington where the Locomotion was first put on the rails after its delivery from Newcastle, and the location of the Hitachi train factory.

[@ianthomson9363]

Also the first aircraft to fly across the Atlantic and the aircraft that won the Schneider Trophy and was the forerunner of RJ Mitchell's more famous Spitfire. There's one of those too.

[@highpath4776]

@@thomasm1964 Isnt North Road museum in Darlington ?

[@tsegulin]

@@thomasm1964 Thanks for the tip. I live in Nova Scotia, where the UK is just a hop across the pond - closer than Western Canada. Although based in London, I also took some day trips to the Forth bridge, 3 days at IWM Duxford for the BoB Airshow and to The Tank Museum at Bovington and a couple of days at Bletchley Park. It was all incredible, a little overwhelming to be honest. I've spent many days in the Smithsonian, the Deutsches Museum Munich, the Australian Museum and the Sydney Powerhouse Museum and the Australian War Memorial plus others, but the galleries and museums in London and elsewhere were just exceptional. I took over 3500 pix. I mean, John Harrison's 1736 H1 clock, the first accurate enough (+/- 3 seconds per month) to calculate longitude for transoceanic navigation was actually *running* at the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich. I celebrated a major birthday with a magnificent performance of Beethoven's Ninth at the Royal Albert Hall. (If Jago is reading, I also spent an amazing day the Transport Museum Depot looking largely at the history of the Tube). London and environs just feel to me like Mecca for the curious. After the Canadian Rail Museum at Montreal I'd love to check out the National Railway Museum at York. Do they have live steam anywhere? In Sydney they have steam train races - you can see them on KZbin. Whether marine or rail, live steam has its own quirky personality that you don't sense so much from fine static exhibits. Most young folk have no idea what steam was really like. The British have an incredible list of accomplishments even if they ultimately were seeded by money from violent colonization and the slave trade, all so long ago that it was almost forgotten. That some of the massive wealth accumulated by the British upper classes by exploiting ordinary people was returned to the 'great unwashed' in the form of these incredible exhibitions (most of which are free) is IMHO a sure sign of a civilized society. Although the UK is rather pricey, I'll definitely be back some day soon. I just hope it all survives Brexit.

[@roderickmain9697]

Stephenson's claim to fame is really about the boiler. He introduced multi-pipe boilers which took the heat from the firebox, through the tank to the funnel at the other end. It has been suggested that, even if Sans Pareil had won the Rainhill trial, while it might have slowed development for a few years, Stephensons way of doing things was superior (more efficient) and would have eventually won out anyway. Fascinating to see these old engines.

[@guyrixon5406]

Also for talking the L&M board into giving locomotive engines a try when they were more inclined to specify stationary engines and horses The railway age might have flowered 20 years later if George hadn't spoken up..

[@mickeydodds1]

Apparently, another innovation of Stephenson's was to vent exhausted steam through the chimney of the locomotive in order to create a good draught through the firebox.

[@Inucroft]

@@guyrixon5406 Selby-Leeds railway had permission before the Manchester-Liverpool railway. However they held off to see the outcome of the trials and the Liverpool-Manchester railway

[@NiallWardrop]

The Beamish Puffing Billy replica does have an non authentic multitube boiler (which is welded not riveted for safety reasons), although it is still very inefficient and takes a long time to raise steam.

[@ktipuss]

Stephenson also patented the long boiler design in 1842. This design was still in use in operating locomotives up to 1972 (New South Wales 19 Class) and were invariably inside cylinder 0-6-0 arrangement locos (which I think is one of Jago's favourite types).

[@Damien.D]

Always knew the names of all of the early steam locomotives (since I was a kid), but I didn't know both were preserved. That was a smart move to save them. Strangely enough, in France we have an even older steam vehicle (the oldest on earth in fact), the road-going steam tractor "le Fardier", which survived everything : two world war, 1870 prussian invasion, napoleonic wars, and even the french revolution of 1789. Each time it was hidden and more or less cared after, like if everyone knew it was something historically important despite it's original limited technical success.

[@FranksPlace-jk7pj]

The unbelievable skill of the blacksmiths who made those machines never ceases to amaze me.

[@jasmijnariel]

I was a belgian visiting the museum in scotland and saw it and was in love... later on that holiday i made a visit to the steamtrain museum in York and i completely fell in love with the locos❤ i left a piece of my heart there

[@frglee]

'Invicta', the locomotive built by Stevenson just after 'Rocket' in 1829 for the 6 mile long Canterbury and Whitstable Railway in Kent was not so successful as her earlier sibling, only being able to work a fairly level bit of the line at the Whitstable end (the rest of the line being horse and cable hauled), and was replaced by more stationary engine powered cable haulage in 1839, although small steam locomotives were used for the entire line from 1846. Put up for sale, with no buyers, Invicta was put into storage by the South Eastern Railway at Ashford works, becoming the first locomotive in the world to be preserved, according to Wiki. From 1907, she sat for 70 years on an outdoor plinth in Canterbury and after a cosmetic restoration can now be found in the Whitstable Museum.

[@trifidos39]

I remember seeing it at Canterbury in the seventies, I have a nice photograph

[@johnm2012]

The Stephensons did the railway stuff. The Stevensons did the lighthouse stuff and one of them wrote _Treasure Island._

[@drewzero1]

​@@johnm2012Thank you, I always get those mixed up!

[@johnm2012]

@@drewzero1 It's a common problem that inspired steampunk band, The Men That Will Not Be Blamed for Nothing to write a song called "Steph(v)enson".

[@Alex-cw3rz]

It still doesn't feel right that these steam Locomotives were around when the napoleonic war was going on, it still amazes me

[@kjh23gk]

I know what you mean. I had a similar feeling when I discovered that rocket artillery was first used in the 1780s by Indians against the British. The Wikipedia page for "Mysorean rockets" has a surreal painting of a rocket attack on British cavalry.

[@emjackson2289]

Not only that, the United States was still a mere 39 years old, it had 18 States. Only 3 years prior the UK and US had fought a War vs each other.

[@Alex-cw3rz]

@@emjackson2289 well the War of 1812 ended in 1815, so was still going on. Bit of an odd name I know

[@simonmcowan6874]

They were around at the time because of the Napoleonic war, coal was used to produce iron for cannon balls, horse shoes, guns, bits for warships, so locomotives or anything that helped the war, was a welcome advancement. War sadly, produces most often the quickest development in many ways. Hopefully after, to assist peaceful progression.

[@paigev8913]

I am thrilled to learn that there was once a locomotive designed to have legs.

[@MrSoundman1955]

I love how the Wylam in Scotland has early aeroplanes "flying" above it in the display hall. It's an incredible fact that there were roughly 100 years between the earliest steam locomotives and the first aeroplanes. Many thanks Jago, top quality research as usual.

[@kjh23gk]

And then roughly 50 years from early aeroplanes to landing on the moon. The last couple of centuries have seen an incredible level of innovation.

[@roberthuron9160]

If you add Newcomen,and the low power fixed engines,the history goes back further! But those engines became the progenitors of the steam boats,multiple triple expansion,walking beam,side and rear wheelers! They traversed the Mersey,Mississippi,Hudson,and many other rivers and lakes,and really deserve a video of their own!! Ah,one can hope,thank you Jago,your service to humanity hasn't gone unnoticed! Thank you 😇 😊!

[@morganrees6807]

Newcomen's engines were "atmospheric" engines which relied on steam in the cylinder condensing to form a vacuum to pull the piston down.

[@iankemp1131]

Indeed, it's a fascinating story of evolution. The huge beam engines of Newcomen and Watt based on vacuum had too low a power-to-weight ratio to be prime movers. Trevithick's use of high-pressure steam gave the essential boost to allow self-propulsion. Some of his engines were used in boats (like the Wylam engines) and steamboat propulsion branched off from there. With less constraints on weight and space, these could be developed into the compound and triple expansion types as mentioned,

[@NiallWardrop]

At Beamish museum you can normally ride up and down a short stretch of track behind various replicas of these early locomotives, the currently in service one being Puffing Billy. Unfortunately the Waggonway is currently closed for maintenance. There used to be one at Ironbridge which ran but did not offer rides but I don't know the current status of that.

[@roderickjoyce6716]

There were three replica early locos at the Waggonway - the replica Locomotion is now at the Darlington Railway museum in place of the original which is now at Shildon, the Steam Elephant is away for repairs, leaving Puffing Billy. The 1820s area of Beamish, where the Waggonway runs, is normally closed in the winter.

[@NiallWardrop]

It's worth noting that for much of the year the Waggonway doesn't run every day. If you are going specifically to see it running, check with them first. There is also a narrow gauge demonstration line, a standard gauge demonstration line and a currently non operational short standard gauge passenger line.

[@heidirabenau511]

Hi Jago, just wanted to make you aware of the amount of bots in the comments with inappropriate profile pictures. I have been reporting them. Great video as always!

[@bingbong7316]

Thanks, I'd never have noticed!

[@heidirabenau511]

​@@bingbong7316I've often seen them on other channels but never on Jago's videos until today.

[@Sarahbryson321]

Indeed, I’ve counted at least 2.

[@BroonParker]

Funny how tolerant KZbin are with these. Other comments which they don't approve of melt into the mist, and reporting them as a viewer achieves nothing. Maybe their robots love the trading bots.

[@Thats_Mr_Random_Person_to_you]

Yh, its like whack-a-mole. Jago can block them, but more will come up. KZbin doesn't have an incentive to really crack down because they still would show up as 'user interactions' which is a metric they use to boost ad revenue etc.. so more user interactions, therefore a busy and thriving platform ergo they can charge more for ads etc..

[@JohnGillespie-s5n]

Beautiful very old locos

[@nicholaskelly1958]

It appears that the first railway locomotive was in all probability Richard Trevithick's "Coalbrookdale which was built for the narrow-gauge plateways around Coalbrookdale. However like the later "Newcastle Locomotive" it appears that it was never used for the reasons stated However Christopher Blackett stated that it was later used as a stationary engine (As indeed was the Penydarren locomotive). As for Richard Trevithick's final locomotive 'Catch Me Who Can' dating from 1808 which operated on the circular railway in Bloomsbury near Euston Square (This was the first steam worked passenger railway in history). Whilst it is not known what happened to 'CATCH ME WHO CAN' it is quite likely that it was converted back into a semi portable engine. The late Stephen Buckland found a wash by John Claude Nattes of what was almost certainly 'CATCH ME WHO CAN' in the Guildhall Library. Showing the engine minus it wheels Along with 'PUFFING BILLY' in the Science Museum there is a Trevithick semi portable engine built by Hazeldine & co in Bridgnorth, Shropshire (They also built 'CATCH ME WHO CAN'). Now many people including John Van Riemsdijk and my late father Maurice Kelly were of the opinion that due to certain design features found on this surviving engine. That it is none other than 'CATCH ME WHO CAN' hiding in plain sight! Sadly it is impossible to prove this beyond speculation. So 'PUFFING BILLY ' is along with 'WYLAM DILLY' the oldest known surviving steam locomotive. Ir is amazing that they continued working into the 1860's by which time they were extremely archaic. As noted by the early 1860's little or no coal was being shipped via the 5' gauge Wylam Waggonway. It would be partially rebuilt into a standard gauge railway following the closure of Wylam Colliery in 1868 Also as noted,'WYLAM DILLY ' is also one of the oldest surviving marine engines! During the Keelmans strike of 1822 it was taken of its wheels and placed on a Tyne Keel named 'TOM & JERRY' and used as a tug. There is an surviving engraving showing 'TOM & JERRY'/'WYLAM DILLY ' towing at least four Keels with armed soldiers/militia on guard! Thank you for a very interesting video.

[@paulhorn2665]

Well James Watt lived until 1819 and Puffing Billy was built 1815, so I am sure Mr. Watt heard in the last years of his life, about this machines or maybe by chance he went there to see them? But I doubt it...by 1815 he was an old man and he did not like high pressure boilers. But in the imagination, that the "Inventor" just lived long enough to see the beginning of the development of the ICON of the steam age! Great video about this topic! I must go there when I go to London again, next year after a 20 yrs break.

[@MelanieRuck-dq5uo]

I'm surprised that Mr H has not done a piece on George Stephenson's last years in the lovely Derbyshire town of Chesterfield. There are a lot of images to film: him burial place; Tapton House, his final home and where his ghost wanders around looking for his pipe or slippers or whatever (it's got to be true, Chesterfield folks don't make things up!); his newish statue at the railway station . . .

[@DDJP]

A very well researched and interesting discussion about these two elderly railway pioneers! Good job, Jago, very enjoyable watch! Would be interested fo see more locomotive videos such as this in the future! 💪👍

[@TalesOfWar]

"The real one was probably bigger than this" made me laugh out loud haha! Also, I can highly recommend anybody visiting London (or who lives there and still hasn't), to go to the Science Museum if you have the time. It's rather brilliant.

[@roderickjoyce6716]

I live in Newcastle, but I grew up in London, and all the museums in what is now called (at least by the marketing people) Albertopolis are brilliant - and they are all free.

[@morganrees6807]

One thought about the nickname - in the marine/sailing world there is a device called a "handy billy", used to pull, or lift loads - consisting of several blocks and a rope/wire to gain mechanical advantage. As these locomotives certainly achieved the same result, and would generate a "puffing" sound, it's possible that the term originated that way?

[@highpath4776]

Is that Barnard Castle I see there ? (nowadays twinned with Specsavers)

[@nigelcole1936]

A fascinating video thanks Jago. I love hearing about this era and visited NRM Locomotion at Shildon again earlier this year where Timothy Hackworth is rightly celebrated.

[@emjackson2289]

One cannot help but wonder just what a returning soldier away for years in the Napoleonic Wars would have thought "gannin y'hem" and seeing one of these operating? Only thing I can think of that comes close - in modern-ish terms - is someone who was at Battle of Hampton Roads, being around to see Pearl Harbour or the Battle of Leyte Gulf or someone at Kitty Hawk, 1903 seeing Neil Armstrong on the moon. To think as well, it took over 100 yrs to get a steam loco from these two to do 100mph on the ECML. It only took another 40 to build the Shinkansen.

[@ddewittfulton]

The "invisible" history here is elusive. The concept of steam power and the notion of running a cart along rutted tracks are ancient (1st and 6th century respectively), and were in fact both developed independently of one another within only few hundreds miles of each other in Greece. The chocolate never met the peanut butter (for fans of 1970s candy-origins) back then but even if someone had conceived of using steam power for practical work and visualized a cart being pulled by a steam-powered engine... the requisite materials could not be brought to the project. Material science is the real star of the Industrial Revolution. To contain the violent energies of steam heat (and later combustion) and to withstand the tortures of friction, we needed iron (and eventually steel). The names of Darby, Cort, and Bessemer tend to recede to the backdrop, but they are to my mind the central figures in any discussion of the industrial revolution and the Age of Steam.

[@Sapharone]

You're not ruining my fun with etymology; I love etymology!

[@paulhuggett7257]

Jago, your pieces on here are so well shot, edited, scripted and narrated they should be an object lesson to all contributors to YT on how to do it properly! Great work. Cheerio! 😊

[@iankemp1131]

In his early days Jago produced a nice series of 3 videos about Stephensons Rocket and the development of early steam engines. It didn't really catch on at the time, likewise his videos on model trains. Good to see him revisit the subject and, now that his London tube videos have brought the recognition and subscribers he deserves, the Rocket videos are worth visiting for those who didn't see them originally. Trevithick's loss of interest in steam engines was largely due to the pressing need to make some money; he was a remarkable and versatile engineer and it took 20 years before anything as advanced and modern-looking as his 1807 "Catch-me-who-can" appeared.

[@lukegreen5341]

6:56 I've Been To The Science Museum In London In England In The United Kingdom Back In May 2021 And It Was Super Awesome. Thanks Mate. X❤

[@andrewdolinskiatcarpathian]

Informative and educational in equal measures. Just like the two locos featured. Thank you Jago. 👏👏👍😀

[@RogersRamblings]

An excellent summary of the early years of the steam locomotive. Up setting notions of people and events is part of the duty of the serious researcher. Please don't stop. There's nothing to say you can't enjoy puncturing the self importance of the know-it-alls although it's probably best not to make it obvious. 😂

[@hreader]

Fascinating as ever and very informative! Many thanks! I hadn't realised that Stephenson's 'Rocket' had so many predecessors. Puffing Billy looks as if he could have come straight out of the pages of Rowland Emett, especially his creation 'Nellie'! By the way, fantastic as they look, Emett was able to make his designs work in real life.

[@highpath4776]

Blenkinsop did think that smooth wheels on smooth rails would be feasible , But with Cast Iron a problem was hammerblow from the wheels which the crank/cog system attempted to avoid , and with both downhill (more controlled braking) and up hill - there would be a definite weight hauling advantage, it was worth the extra cost.

[@Julius_Hardware]

11:38 Note the soldiers on the barges. Before Britain had established police forces, local military units were used to keep civil order, which didn't make them popular and could lead to deadly consequences.

[@JohnyG29]

Don't forget it was at the height of the Napoleonic Wars, so I think that has more to do with the numbers of local militia illustrated.

[@neilbain8736]

I saw Wylam Dilly as a kid. It's so long ago that it's like a fresh education all over again. It set me thinking about time lines and convergent technologies. The dates put a lot into perspective. In 1812, Henry Bell of Helensburgh had his Comet sail from Glasgow to Helensburgh. By the time Puffing Billy and Wylam Dilly were running there had been an explosion in steamboat design on the Clyde (I've just found a list of 13 in 1816- Andrew McQueen, Echoes of Old Paddle Wheels, 1924). It's funny how history parallels itself with items going through similar phases as the engines in this video then passing into historic reverence and confusion. The same applies to the Comet's engine. Andrew McQueen in 1924 sates that the second engine is in (now The Science Museum in London) and the only bit remaining of the first is the cylinder (now in the Riverside Museum, Glasgow). He states the first engine passed through many hands before being put on display in Mssrs Wylie and Lockhead's premises in Argyle Street in Sept. 1857, which burnt down with him speculating that just the cylinder was the only salvageable part. However Grace's Guide to British Industrial History states the engine was in the Polytechnic Institution's premises in Glasgow at the time of the fire and crashed through three floors till it came to rest. Grace's says the engine in London is the original with remaining cylinder in Glasgow being the original smaller 3 or 4 HP cylinder from the same engine prior to being upgraded with a more powerful 6 HP one prior to the hull being lengthened and new 14 HP engines being fitted which remained with her when she grounded in bad weather on Craignish Point in 1820. She slipped off and sank with them into deep water before they could be salvaged. The Ingenious Mr. Bell by Brian D Osborne not only affirms this, it includes a list of salvage expenses at Craignish Point including whisky for the local workforce and even has in the appendix what could only be described as a sermon on the perils of frivolity written in Bell's own hand and unmistakable literacy. The Ingenious Mr Henry Bell is a totally different book about a Kings Lynn based architect over a century earlier. It's also a very good read.

[@PLuMUK54]

I discovered that I was a nerd when I visited the London Science Museum. The Rocket was still there, but I was not looking for it. I entered the gallery and found myself rooted to the spot. It took a while before I realised that my mouth had dropped open. After several minutes, I was standing next to it. Until that moment, I had not realised just how nerdy I could be. It still excites me today that I was able to reach out and touch (or should that be "stroked") The Rocket. I didn't even know that there was another even more significant locomotive there.

[@thomasburke2683]

Is that the original or the replica which we saw much of in 1979-1980, for the 150 celebrations of Rainhill trials and mainline opening, 1829-1830?

[@roderickjoyce6716]

@@thomasburke2683 The replicas** look like everybody's school history book pictures of the Rocket. The original was sold to a colliery not long after Rainhill, and was completely knackered by the time it was withdrawn. It still looks knackered, is missing several parts (including connecting rod), and was modified after the trails - the cylinders were realigned to nearer the horizontal, and the overall effect of the loco is that it is squatter than it was. **There are at least three replicas - one built the Henry Ford Museum in Michigan, and two at the NRM - one built as a sectioned exhibit by Robert Stephenson & Hawthorn and the working one built for the 150th anniversary.

[@highpath4776]

@@roderickjoyce6716 There was the wooden replica that stood outside the railway museum when in Clapham , South London , it fell apart when that venue was closed and the collection dispersed (mainly to York. Swindon . Glasgow and Syon Park (for most London items)

[@iankemp1131]

The original Rocket and a fine working replica are now both in the York National Railway Museum. It might be questioned though whether Puffing Billy and Wylam Dilly are really more significant. In many ways Trevithick had gone further with his Catch-me-who-can of 1807, and the next major advance was really the Rocket with its multitubular boiler which gave sufficient power to allow higher speeds to be obtained.

[@highpath4776]

@@iankemp1131 the wylam collier locos enanbled stephenson to see the concept at work, including allowing ideas for better effectiveness (go faster) and efficiency (less coal/water whatever)

[@pleappleappleap]

If I had to pick one person, I'd pick Trevithick.

[@francisboyle1739]

Undoubtedly he invented the steam locomotive. And, arguably, the motor car.

[@conradharcourt8263]

Wouldn't Nicolas Cugnot have a good claim to self-propelled road vehicles? As you probably know, he designed and built a steam tricycle for the French Army in 1769, although admittedly of course it was not particularly effective and the project was soon abandoned.

[@lawerencestimpson2280]

Was great to visit York years ago.World's best railway museum!!

[@jasmijnariel]

I agree! As a girl with autism and adhd i am never silent and almost always hyper and making noices... I was silent for 5hours in York 😂 didnt say a word.. Damn i love steam locos❤❤❤❤❤

[@jenniferhoughton6837]

A working model of the Blenkinsop & Murray (Middleton Railway) locomotive Salamanca built by Murray in 1811, is part of the collection held at Leeds Industrial Museum. It is the world's oldest model locomotive and older than the oldest full size Hedley locomotives.

[@SPKOTHDVL-15]

I was just watching your videos and then saw you uploaded another 😂love the content man

[@aseeker2109]

I'd love to see the Machine Tools that were used to make these engines..

[@julianaylor4351]

For those of you who want to see working steam engines there are not only many preserved later engines, but many steam powered static engines that can be viewed, plus the London Science Museum has working models of basic steam engine mechanisms.

[@Andrewjg_89]

I’ve watched lots of programs about steam locomotives that were used on the London Underground and in other cities and the history of these amazing machines is still being heard at school. I got interested in how steam locomotives were made before and after the war and most of them are still here today.

[@Melanie16040]

This is amazing! Thank you so much for researching and passing along the information in this video!!!

[@iankemp1131]

Brunton's Mechanical Traveller met an unfortunate end when its boiler exploded at Philadelphia (County Durham, not Pennsylvania) in 1815. This was the first locomotive boiler explosion but also the largest in loss of life (between 13 and 16, depending on the account) as there was a crowd of spectators around it.

[@dblyth5098]

The idea of Spiked Wheels, sounds Macabre.

[@andrewstephenson3594]

If you get to visit Beamish open air museum you can take a ride on a train pulled by a replica of Puffing Billy. It is worth riding on the veranda of the carriage immediately behind the engine for the full atmospheric experience (water and soot). You will also find out that your raconteuring/narration has competition from the two people who drive the engine, at least when I went.

[@DavidWilson-hh2gn]

The name Dilly was an old name regularly used in these parts for small shunt locos.I believe Puffing Billy ended up shunting at Hallbankgate a rather remote place in the lead and coal mining area of the North Pennines,situated near Brampton on the northern edge of the Pennines (Cold Fell) and had a connection to the Alston branch at Lambley.Around Hallbankgate tracks are still visible with a search on the adjacent moor but I must point out however that trecking around this area must be done with caution due to the possible presence of open mine and air shafts.

[@robertlawson7754]

The line from Greenside Colliery down to Blaydon on Tyne was certainly known the dilly line, though our teacher had never heard of the word, which may indicate how local the name is. One suggestion I have heard is that it is a contraction of district railway, though I have no proof of this.

[@timmoontransported.6385]

I’ve been hauled by Trevithicks locomotive. Well, the modern recreation of it. Even I am not that old.

[@herseem]

Given how rough the machiining was back then, I'm amazed they got any kind of steam engine to work with any sort of effectiveness. If you'd taken one of those guys who'd spent decades trying to get something to just pull its own weight, and shown them a CNC lathe, or just taken them to Machine Mart and given them a demonstration of each piece of machinery being used they'd have wept.

[@thomasburke2683]

It was also amazing how the civil engineers, without any experience of such things were able to construct complex arches where roads and railway crossed diagonally. In particular, the stonecutters who had been accustomed to cutting regular shaped blocks, suddenly found themselves creating irregular blocks which fitted perfectly into the arches. All these men deserve to be remembered for their skills.

[@herseem]

@@thomasburke2683 I think you could say there was more experience of building arches and bridges going back to Roman times though, whereas the novel element of steam engineers was both pressure vessels, and (approximately) gas tight sliding seals

[@francisboyle1739]

Looking at the close ups of the boilers I couldn't help wondering how such rough joints could have been made steam proof. But, I suppose, roughness doesn't mean lack of skill. Somehow master metalworkers made it all work with little more than a heavy hammer.

[@herseem]

@@francisboyle1739 I agree, that was one of my thoughts

[@highpath4776]

I dont know, check some of the drawings of Blenkinsop and Matthew Murray. Sheffield steel making for knives etc was a fine (if dangerous ) art and their were watch and toy (a word originally meaning a small prototype or demonstration) makers working in anything from copper to silver with fine machinery). A lot of slack in boiler systems was dealt with with assorted caulking (known from shipbuilding of wooden ships), leather , cotton and grease and asbestos and rubber gaskets

[@rosewhite---]

8:14 the blacksmith who fashioned and rivetted the plates to make the front of the boiler was a superstar whose name should be up in lights!

[@keith800]

fantastic video with such interesting early innovative locomotives and idea's so little known about in those early days of steam and my how things have developed since then to what we have today as far as our railways are concerned.

[@ldnwholesale8552]

There is a replica of the original locomotive at the York Museum. Excellent place to visit.

[@jasmijnariel]

Best place in the world❤

[@andrewclayton4181]

I've seen Wylam Dilly in the Scottish museum, I was impressed by its age, and how it looks 'blacksmith made'. In the 18th and 19th centuries a Dilly was a nickname for a type of public coach, a precursor to the omnibus. It's full title was a Diligence, but that was abbreviated to Dilly. I sure that's how these early steam transport devices got their name. Good video, enjoyed it. Coming from Cornwall, I'm a big fan of Trevithick.

[@brigidsingleton1596]

Has the Durham "corduroy? road" been mentioned at all re the new railways? Our 'Geography Teacher' told us about that back in the early 1960's - so my memories are a tad rusty these days, recalling just "snippets, here & there"!! 🤔🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🧡🖖

[@goldenclouds75]

Robert Stephenson's locomotive Invicta can be found at the Whitstable Museum.

[@jandoerlidoe3412]

Very well narrated...so clear and orderly....

[@roboftherock]

I've visited the NMS on a number of occasions and seen this venerable machine but I paid little attention to its significance. I appreciate the correction to my knowledge.

[@captainjoshuagleiberman2778]

So it was the Northeastern Railway that actually carried coals to Newcastle.😂 Great video, as always.

[@roderickjoyce6716]

THE NER carried coals IN Newcastle, one pit was about ten minutes' walk from the city centre. Another pit, at Spital Tongues, built an underground waggonway with cable haulage right under the city centre to the Tyne. The river end of the tunnel can be visited on open days.

[@SeverityOne]

The Science Museum is a wonderful place for children of all ages. Yes, that includes you, dear reader/ I've been there twice, and both times I've admired Puffing Billy and Rocket. It's almost inconceivably that these are (over) two centuries old, built during the time that the Napoleonic Wars were drawing to an end, and a mere 25 years after the start of the French Revolution. Other interesting things they have there on display includes the lunar landing module of Apollo 10.

[@julianaylor4351]

There are some very interesting rack and chain transport systems worldwide. Interestingly the idea of spikes ended up on footwear as a method of climbing ice covered mountains and surfaces allowing exploration of tall peaks and the poles, plus new sports footwear for new varieties of sport. The spike on a wheel became a method of planting in agricultural machinery, originally some of it powered by steam.

[@jimmeltonbradley1497]

Excellent. It's true what they say about history being written by the victors. God's Good to see Hedley recognised for his contribution to the story of locomotion.

[@jayamd3579]

i dont know whether i watch your videos for the sheer knowledge or the funny thanks to the members at the end xD

[@Slycockney]

Very comprehensive insight into the early age of steam, thank you.

[@SB-tp3yw]

walked right past these 2 a few times without knowing their significance, i’m glad I watched this

[@benwilson6145]

Interesting fact, the Science museum paid 200 pounds for there engine, the Museum of Scotland paid sixteen pounds for there one.

[@HighWealder]

Well done Jago for putting the stories straight as we have been mislead by 'alternative facts' for decades, or even centuries.

[@CaseyJonesNumber1]

I half expected this to end with the jolly tune 'Puffin' Billy' !

[@Goatcha_M]

There's a tourist steam train still running in Australia called Puffing Billy. I wonder if its named after the original.

[@MrGreatplum]

An excellent historical journey, Jago - very enjoyable!

[@steinskotmyr2194]

Very interesting indeed. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and knowledge on this subject.😊

[@merbertancriwalli8622]

An oddity of the colonies (Australia)is that Melbourne's outer eastern suburbs has a heritage railway called puffing billy.

[@timdurham2080]

When they were debating if a loco with smooth wheels running on smooth tracks could pull more that its own weight, it’s essential that the thing it’s pulling also has smooth wheels on a smooth track…..

[@metrotechguru5863]

Thanks for sharing this marvelous story with us. I wasn't aware of any of this history.

[@derekantill3721]

Good to note you are on the right track with your information Jago.

[@kjh23gk]

Thank you SO MUCH for pronouncing Edinburgh correctly! (i.e. with 4 syllables: Ed-in-buh-ruh) 😊

[@guyrixon5406]

"Dilly" has been said to be a contraction of "diligence", possibly resulting from a snarky remark to Hackworth that he should be about his diligence (i.e. paid work) when he was on his way to worship. I don't know whether this is accurately recorded or a retcon.

[@amazingdecks1]

An excellent addition to my library of items related to steam loco history. I would agree that Stephenson is the father of the modern loco in that he took the best ideas of others and put them together. The Rocket demonstrates this and as stated in the video, it is the basis of all steam locos since. The achievements of these pioneers is remarkable in that the machinery available to make the parts was primitive at best or had to be invented by these same pioneers. It was one thing to have the idea, but to bring it to fruition is just incredible.

[@JohnyG29]

Yeah, but he wouldn't have had those ideas if he hadn't seen this technology, so I strongly disagree.

[@iankemp1131]

It's an interesting question. George Stephenson certainly deserves the title "Father of the Railway" as he turned local waggonways into successful large-scale commercial enterprises. But "Father of the Locomotive" should really be Trevithick who produced the first steam engines. Really it took George Stephenson 15 years (from Wylam to Rainhill) to catch up on what Trevithick had already achieved with "Catch-me-who-can" in 1808. Then George and Robert took the massive steps forward in 1829-31 with multitubular boilers (Rocket), horizontal cylinders (Northumbrian) and inside cylinders (Planet) which basically laid the key foundations for all following locomotives. Apart from the brick arch, superheating and (mainly in Europe) compounding, it's hard to see any step changes in the nearly 2 centuries since then.

[@PeterGaunt]

Most excellent! I really need to head along to the Science Museum again soon.

[@corinheathcote9868]

My God, that was well researched, great history of early railway history.

[@ingridseim1379]

Rhus nerdy girl LIKES the explanations if where names and expressions cone from. She also would gave kuked to kearn hiw archaeologists determined which was billie and which willie. But, i am most definitely grateful and appreciative of your efforts as they are! Now. Off to look that up!❤❤❤

[@PokhrajRoy.]

So interesting to hear about the innovation of the steam locomotive. I love learning about the more offbeat ideas people come up with.

[@michaelmiller641]

Thankyou,Jago, for that fascinating video

[@insano0077]

Funny hearing my late fathers name in a Jago video, and as a coal mine owner💪, and hearing my last name again and again! Anyways, another excellent video Jago

[@philipread8733]

Very interesting. A little clearer on the origins of steam trains

[@DarlingtonWorks1863]

Apparently when wylam dilly was built shes was paired with a third engine of the same design named "Lady Mary". Little is known on her and ive only been able to find 3 sources talking about the loco's existance, one being Anthony Dawson's video on Blücher

[@philipdove6987]

Excellent. I was unclear what Hedleys' role in the development of the steam locomotive was until i heard your explanation. How about a video of the replicas at beamish and what part the originals played in the development of the steam loco.

[@southron_d1349]

Clearly, the phenomenon of rail preservation in the UK goes back a long time too.

[@thomasm1964]

Should we consider this video to be a "puff" piece for the Industrial Revolution?

[@Steven_Rowe]

Jago, this makes your LT videos fade into insignificance, this is a wonderful history lesson on the Genesis of stream traction, Fred Dibnah would be proud of you. I know up in the North East there are some replica locos running and admit i would love to see them I now live in Aus and our politicians waste squillions of dollars on feasibility studies for high speed trains, actually they have so ,uch hot aircits almost a source of renewable energy. Suffice to sayxhigh speed trains are not going to happen. I think they should buy the rocket and puffing billy.

[@peterjohncooper]

Excellent and well researched as always. And enjoyable.

[@kaitlyn__L]

I love how, just like with the plane, people didn’t agree on when locomotives started for quite some time!

[@donotwantahandle1111]

Those two valve handles on Rocket could deliver a swift kick to the nether region!

[@GodmanchesterGoblin]

Appreciated the Monty Python reference. And a really informative video too. Thanks.

[@alanhaf2489]

Brilliant, Jago - thank you

[@stretch9952]

Handsome museum interiors and excellent display.

[@mattsmocs3281]

Hey jago, what do you think of the Fitch locomotive in ohio (built 1787-1788) which did haul 2 passengers a short distance in Kentucky on wood rails.

[@rachelcarre9468]

One of your finest videos, thank you,

[@luisstransport]

Great video Jago