Steam Locomotive Firebox Explosion on the Gettysburg Railroad ...

The second fireman 5 testified that when
he relieved the first fireman at Gardners, 6
the feed pump was still turned off. The
second fireman said he then turned the feed
pump on “all the way.” When the firemen
were later asked how they could tell whether
the feed pump was working, they both indicated
that the sound and visual movement of
the feed-pump rod told them the feed pump
Figure 1. Key locations.
was working. Both firemen felt such cues
were sufficient to ensure that water was
flowing into the boiler. Safety Board
investigators agreed that the feed pump can
continue to move with little or no water
flow.
Both firemen stated that they checked the
water glass 7 frequently during the trip. The
5 It was the policy of Gettysburg Passenger Services to
have two firemen on the dinner train trip because the
trip was an extended one.
6 The firemen did not agree in their testimony about
where the transfer of responsibility took place. There
was no clear transfer of duty. To some extent, each
was acting in the capacity of fireman between Pond
Road and Gardners.
7 The water glass, also called the “sight glass” and
“water gage,” is a device that enables an engineman
or fireman to observe the height of the water in a
locomotive boiler. It consists of two brass fittings
screwed into the back head, one above the other, and
connected by a stout glass tube or a metal frame in
which a glass is inserted which communicates,
through the fittings, with the water and steam in the
boiler. The water level showing in the glass is the
same as that water level inside the boiler.
4