COMMENTS TO MY PAGE "ART POSTCARDS WITH A RAILWAY MOTIVE"

Cycloped

Cycloped was an early horse-powered locomotive, built by Thomas Shaw Brandreth of Liverpool (1788-1873), which competed unsuccessfully in the Rainhill trials of October 1829. The Cycloped was the only entry in the trials that did not rely on steam power, instead utilising a treadmill that was kept continually moving by a horse mounted on top. Brandreth was one of the directors of the railway and some people believed that that gave the Cycloped an unfair advantage. But the Cycloped was an impractical idea and because of its failure to generate enough speed to equal its competitors it ultimately lost the competition in the trials. Stephenson's Rocket eventually won the trials, maintaining an average speed of 22.2 km/h for a modest consumption of coal and water.

November 20th 2024

 

 
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