Blucher

The Blucher was an early railway locomotive built in 1814 by George Stephenson for the Killingworth Colliery.

The Blucher was the first successful locomotive incorporating the following design features:

• Flanged wheels keeping the locomotive on the tracks
• Traction only relying on the friction of wheels on rails
• Cylinder rods directly connected to the wheel disks

The Blucher was able to pull a train of thirty tons with a speed of 4 mph. The locomotive was named after the Prussian general Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher who helped Britain defeat Napoleon at Waterloo.

Other early locomotive designs

• Salamanca by John Blenkinsop
• Puffing Billy by William Hedley
• Sans Pareil by Timothy Hackworth