2-8-0

2-8-0 (Consolidation)

Front of locomotive at left

Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad's Consolidation of 1866, the first 2-8-0 built

Equivalent classifications UIC class 1D, 1'D French class 140 Turkish class 45 Swiss class 4/5 Russian class 1-4-0

First known tank engine version First use 1907 Country German South West Africa Locomotive South West African 2-8-0T Railway Lüderitzbucht Eisenbahn Designer Orenstein & Koppel Builder Orenstein & Koppel

First known tender engine version First use c. 1864 Country United States of America Railway Pennsylvania Railroad Designer John P. Laird Builder John P. Laird Evolved from 0-8-0 Evolved to 2-8-2 Benefits Better stability through curves Drawbacks Poor steaming and limited speed.

First known "True type" version First use 1866 Country United States of America Locomotive Consolidation Railway Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad Designer Alexander Mitchell Builder Baldwin Locomotive Works Evolved from 0-8-0 Evolved to 2-8-2

Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-8-0 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, usually in a leading truck, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and no trailing wheels. In the United States and elsewhere, this wheel arrangement is commonly known as a Consolidation, after the Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad’s Consolidation, the name of the first 2-8-0.^[1]

The notation 2-8-0T indicates a tank locomotive of this wheel arrangement, the "T" suffix indicating a locomotive on which the water is carried in side-tanks mounted on the engine rather than in an attached tender.

The Consolidation represented a notable advance in locomotive power. After 1875, it became "the most popular type of freight locomotive in the United States and was built in greater quantities than any other single wheel arrangement."^[2]