The history of the first locomotives in America. From original ...

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HISTOET OF THE FIRST LOCOMOTITES IN AMEKICA.
been published, giving accurate accounts of tlie early
experiments and subsequent improvements in self-pro-
pelling machines, or locomotives, in England ; but these
works are too rare, voluminous, and expensive, to be in
general circulation, and entirely beyond the reach of a
large class who are interested in the subject ; and even
then, they bring the history down only to a period an-
terior to the date of railroad enterprise in this country
while all the information upon the subject since that
time (a period of a little over twoscore years in dura-
tion) seems to be wrapped in impenetrable mystery.
To obviate, therefore, this difficulty for the fature, and
to give to the public all the information upon the sub-
ject from the most reliable sources, and also to place
it in such a form as to bring it within the reach of
every one, are the objects of the author of the present
work, now offered to the public.
Another reason which influences the author in
publishing his present work, arises Jfrom the fact that,
within the short period of ten or fifteen years, and
especially within the last few years, under a variety
of forms, he has seen and read in our public journals
nearly as many different accounts of the early locomo-
tives in America, as the number of years which have
elapsed since their first introduction, all of them pur-
porting to be "true histories of the first engine ever
built and run in America." But not one of these accounts,
claiming priority for its different engines and
roads, produces the slightest evidence to sustain their
claim of being the pioneers in this great mechanical
achievement, which within the last halfcentury has
revolutionized the trade and commerce of the civilized
world. One claim to the credit of having introduced
the first American locomotive, we saw in an article pub-
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