Horse in Race Against a Train

All aboard: Passengers enjoy their ride in a carriage pulled by the replica Tom Thumb

August 28, 1830 — Roaring, hissing, growling, clanking, the locomotives of the steam era not only resembled great beasts but were given names to match their status: Big Boys that hurled freight across the craggy American landscape; the UK’s Flying Scotsman; and the Fairy Queen which still occasionally travels the tracks between New Delhi and Alwar in India.

But none of this was of great concern to no-nonsense Peter Cooper, the inventor and industrialist who designed and built the first American steam locomotive. He called it . . . Tom Thumb.

And on this day Cooper accepted a challenge to prove that his mechanical power was greater than horsepower.

Until this point in time, rail companies in America, such as the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad (B&O) relied on horses to pull their passenger and freight trains, even though steam locomotives were used elsewhere in the world.

But that tradition was about to end when B&O directors were given a ride aboard Tom Thumb from Baltimore to Ellicott Mills, Maryland (now Ellicott City). They were amazed that the locomotive could achieve speeds of 10-14 miles per hour.

Then, according to legend, Tom Thumb took part in a famous race with a horse-drawn car while returning from a trip to Ellicott Mills. The locomotive was well ahead of the horse-drawn car until a mechanical fault caused the engine to lose steam and the horse reached the finishing line first.

The event is a staple of American folklore though there is no documentation to substantiate it. Nevertheless, B&O were clearly impressed with Tom Thumb and ran this notice in newspapers:

The Baltimore and Ohio Rail Road Company being desirous of obtaining a supply of locomotive steam engines of American manufacture, adapted to their road, have given public notice that they will pay the sum of Four Thousand Dollars (equivalent to $136,000 in 2022 dollars) for the most approved engine which shall be delivered for trial upon the road on or before the first of June, 1831.

Although Tom Thumb is known as the first successful American steam locomotive, hauling passengers until at least March 1831, it was never put into regular service.

But a replica was built in 1927 for the B&O Railroad Museum and still runs today. The locomotive appeared on a US postage stamp in 1952.

Published: August 15, 2022
Updated: August 17, 2022