A crane tank (CT) is a steam locomotive fitted with a crane for working in railway workshops, docksides, or other industrial environments. The crane may be fitted at the front, centre or rear. The 'tank' in its name refers to water tanks mounted either side of the

boiler A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, centr ...

, as cranes were usually constructed on

tank locomotive A tank locomotive or tank engine is a steam locomotive that carries its water in one or more on-board water tanks, instead of a more traditional tender. Most tank engines also have bunkers (or fuel tanks) to hold fuel; in a tender-tank locom ...

s (as opposed to

tender locomotive A tender or coal-car (US only) is a special rail vehicle hauled by a steam locomotive containing its fuel (wood, coal, oil or torrefied biomass) and water. Steam locomotives consume large quantities of water compared to the quantity of fuel, s ...

s) for greater mobility in the confined locations where they were normally used. There is also a crane engine in the museum of Scottish railways

Preserved examples

* Shelton Iron & Steel Works No. 4101, an built by Dübs & Company built in 1901, entering preservation on the

East Somerset Railway The East Somerset Railway is a heritage railway in Somerset, running between Cranmore and Mendip Vale. Prior to the Beeching Axe, the railway was once part of the former Cheddar Valley line that ran from Witham to Yatton, meeting the Somer ...

in 1970, working 1977-1986 and later sold to the

Foxfield Railway The Foxfield Railway is a preserved standard gauge line located south east of Stoke-on-Trent. The line was built in 1893 to serve the colliery at Dilhorne on the Cheadle Coalfield. It joined the North Staffordshire Railway line near Blythe Bri ...

, where it entered service in 2010. *'' Millfield'', an built by

Robert Stephenson & Hawthorns Robert Stephenson and Hawthorns Ltd (RSH) was a locomotive builder with works in North East England. History The company was formed in September 1937 when Robert Stephenson and Company, which was based in Darlington, took over the locomotive ...

in 1942 (works no.7070), preserved at

Bressingham Steam & Gardens Bressingham Steam & Gardens is a steam museum and gardens located at Bressingham (adjacent to a garden centre), west of Diss in Norfolk, England. The site has several narrow gauge rail lines and a number of types of steam engines and vehicles in ...

Preserved examples

See also

Further reading