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PIONEER LOCOMOTIVES
The first locomotives used
in Brazil were of course English and, as was the custom
in England they were baptized with the names of
personages or regions. Those with formed part of the D.
Pedro II railway's rolling stock at its inauguration were
named "Emperor",
"Empress", "Paulista",
"Mineira", "Fluminense",
"Brazil", "Progress" and
"Industry". The railway
directorate stated in the 1862 annual report that there
were 13 locomotives, all from England. From 1864 ownward
when Ottoni was engaged in overcoming the difficulties in
the Serra de Mar project. American locomotives began
making there appearance, nine in all including those
manufactured by Baldwin Locomotive Works of Philadelphia,
a tank type with eight traction wheels. These locomotives
were equipped with features which facilitated their use
in Brazil, such as a balloon-type chimney for greater
safety in burning wood as it did not produce sparks, a
cow-catcher and a sand-box for better adherence. These
locomotives were very well adapted to Brazilian Traffic
conditions hence their popularity. They were named "Brooks"
, "Mallet", "Consolidation"
"Pacific", "Mogui",
"Ten-wheel", etc. In 1882, 95 of
a total of 115 locomotives were American and the
remainder English, German and a few Belgian. in 1876, the
rolling stock began to be deactivated after 18 years of
operation.
THE
LOCOMOTIVE "MISS BRAZIL"
Among
the famous ALCO locomotives on the old Central Brazil
Railway tracks the number 370 was very popular with
passengers and was lovingly christened "Zeze
Leone" in honor of the first Miss Brazil, elected in
1923. Its conductor Carlos Pereira da Rocha who
drove it between Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, gave it
this nickname and made sure that his locomotive did not
discredit him. Its metal parts were always glittering and
when it was not running, he brought his own children to
help him polish it. When "Zeze Leone" passed
through the Rio suburbs, Carlos Rocha would blow
the whistle repeatedly to let all the neighborhood know
"Zeze Leone" was passing, and everyone flocked
to their windows to watch it. It was used to haul the
night train "Cruzeiro do Sul". The locomotive
was built in 1922 by the American Locomotive Company,
4-6-2 two cylinder type, with superheating, and its
service weight was 95,250 kg.
THE OLD
LADY
A magnificent Pacific
Locomotive, the 353, after carrying thousands of
passengers between Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, hauling
trains of the former Central Brazil Railway, among which
the "Cruzeiro do Sul" become known as the
"Old lady"; to this day it displays its
exuberance in voyages scheduled by "The Brazilian
Association for Railroad Preservation" in São
Paulo. The Locomotive was built by the Baldwin Locomotive
Works in 1927, with Super heating, and weights 100,424 kg
and is until nowadays in perfect condition. It
constitutes a symbol of the famous locomotives which
became popular in all the world's railways.
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