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The Development of the Steam Locomotive continued
Some engineers doubted that a locomotive could run on a non-level track without slipping. In 1812, Matthew Murray and John Blenkinsop built the first commercial railway but designed it with a tooth rack along the track. The tooth rack was, in fact, unnecessary and
it meant that the locomotive could only run at low speeds. In 1813 William Hedley proved that the toothed racks were not needed. He built the famous "Puffing Billy" that was able to pull heavy loads along track by only using adhesion.
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John Blenkinsop (1783 - 1831)
John Blenkinsop was an English inventor who, in 1812, designed the first successful railway locomotive. Its engines had two cylinders and gears and moved forward on tooth-rached rails. Blenkinsop was employed as a mine inspector at the Middleton mine in
Yorkshire. Between 1812 and 1813 four Blenkinsop engines were in use to haul coal from Middleton to Leeds. |
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