Rotary snow plow train and unknown persons - DPLA - 7a393f3e045fad3629d6aaad268b3121

A rotary snowplow (

American English American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of varieties of the English language native to the United States. English is the most widely spoken language in the United States and in most circumstances ...

) or rotary snowplough is a piece of

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a prep ...

snow removal Snow removal or snow clearing is the job of removing snow after a snowfall to make travel easier and safer. This is done by both individual households and by governments and institutions. De-icing and anti-icing De-icing is defined as removal ...

equipment with a large circular set of blades on its front end that rotate to cut through the snow on the track ahead of it. The precursor to the rotary snowplow was the wedge snowplow.

History

The rotary was invented in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, Canada, by dentist J.W. Elliot in 1869. He never built a working model or prototype. Orange Jull of

Orangeville, Ontario Orangeville (Canada 2016 Census 28,900) is a town in south-central Ontario, Canada, and the seat of Dufferin County. History The first patent of land was issued to Ezekiel Benson, a land surveyor, on August 7, 1820. That was followed by lan ...

, expanded on Elliot's design, building working models he tested with sand. During the winter of 1883–84, Jull contracted with the Leslie Brothers of Toronto to build a full-size prototype that proved successful. Jull later sold his design rights to Leslie Brothers, who formed the Rotary Steam Shovel Manufacturing Company in

Paterson, New Jersey Paterson ( ) is the largest city in and the county seat of Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.railroad tracks. These pushed snow off the tracks, deflecting it to the side. Deeper drifts cannot easily be cleared by this method; there is simply too much snow to be moved. For this purpose, the rotary snowplow was devised. Rotary plows are often deployed when snow is too deep or hard-packed for traditional plows. The ability to operate slowly, as there is no requirement for train momentum to break up the snow, is often an advantage in mountainous regions, where a high speed derailment could be disastrous. Many rotary plows are not self-propelled, so one or more

locomotive A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, motor coach, railcar or power car; the ...

s are coupled behind it to push the plow along the line. An engine within the plow's carbody rotates the large circular assembly at the front of the plow. The blades on this wheel cut through the snow and force it through a channel just behind the disk to an output chute above the blade assembly. The chute can be adjusted to throw the snow to either the left or the right side of the tracks. An operator sits in a cab above and behind the blade assembly to control the speed of the blades and the direction of output from the chute. With the increasing prevalence of diesel locomotives,

multiple-unit train control Multiple-unit train control, sometimes abbreviated to multiple-unit or MU, is a method of simultaneously controlling all the traction equipment in a train from a single location—whether it is a multiple unit comprising a number of self-powered ...

s have been added to the cabs, so that the pushing locomotives can be controlled from the plow. In areas of particularly deep snowfall, such as California's Donner Pass, railroads sometimes created a train consisting of a rotary snowplow at each end, with the blade ends pointing away from each other, and two or three locomotives coupled between them. With a plow on each end, the train was able to return to its starting location even if the snow covered the tracks it had just passed over. Such a train would also be able to clear multiple track mainlines efficiently as it could make a pass in one direction on one track, then reverse direction and clear the next track. This practice became standard for the

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

on Donner Pass following the January 1952 stranding of the ''

City of San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

'' train; during attempts to clear the

avalanche An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a slope, such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be set off spontaneously, by such factors as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, animals, and ea ...

s that had trapped the train, two rotary plows were trapped by subsequent avalanches, and the crew of a third was killed when their plow was hit by an avalanche. Rotary snowplows are expensive because of their high maintenance costs, which the railroad incurs regardless of whether they are needed in a given year. As a result, most railroads have eliminated their rotaries, preferring to use a variety of types of fixed-blade plows that have significantly lower maintenance costs, in conjunction with

bulldozers A bulldozer or dozer (also called a crawler) is a large, motorized machine equipped with a metal blade to the front for pushing material: soil, sand, snow, rubble, or rock during construction work. It travels most commonly on continuous trac ...

, which can be used year-round on maintenance-of-way projects. In addition, because rotaries leave an

open-cut In civil engineering, a cut or cutting is where soil or rock from a relative rise along a route is removed. The term is also used in river management to speed a waterway's flow by short-cutting a meander. Cuts are typically used in road, ra ...

in the snowbank that fixed-blade plows cannot push snow past, once rotaries have been used, they must be used for all further significant snowfalls until the

snowpack Snowpack forms from layers of snow that accumulate in geographic regions and high elevations where the climate includes cold weather for extended periods during the year. Snowpacks are an important water resource that feed streams and rivers as t ...

has melted. Since rotaries, which need some form of fuel to power the blades, also cost more to operate than fixed-blade plows, they are now generally considered to be a tool of last resort for the railroads that own them. The few remaining rotary plows in North America are either owned by museum railroads or are kept in reserve for areas with poor road access and routine severe snowfall conditions. The largest remaining fleet of rotaries consists of

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

's six plows reserved for Donner Pass. Japan sees widespread use of rotary snowplows in its many mountain passes.

Power

Early rotaries had steam engines inside their car bodies to power the blades; a few are still in working order, and in particular one on the

White Pass and Yukon Route The White Pass and Yukon Route (WP&Y, WP&YR) is a Canadian and U.S. Class III narrow-gauge railroad linking the port of Skagway, Alaska, with Whitehorse, the capital of Yukon. An isolated system, it has no direct connection to any other rai ...

in Alaska performs annual demonstration runs through thick snow for the benefit of photographers and

railway enthusiasts A railfan, rail buff or train buff (American English), railway enthusiast, railway buff or trainspotter (Australian/British English), or ferroequinologist is a person who is recreationally interested in trains and rail transport systems. Rail ...

. Rotaries of newer construction are either diesel- or electric-powered. Many steam plows were converted to electricity. Some electric plows can take their power from a locomotive, while others are semi-permanently coupled to power units, generally old locomotives with their

traction motor A traction motor is an electric motor used for propulsion of a vehicle, such as locomotives, electric or hydrogen vehicles, elevators or electric multiple unit. Traction motors are used in electrically powered rail vehicles ( electric multip ...

s removed; these are colloquially called "snails." (This is derived from the fact that engineless but motored units that take their power from another locomotive are "

slugs Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less terrestrial molluscs, terrestrial gastropod mollusc. The word ''slug'' is also often used as part of the common name of any gastropod mollusc that has no shell, a very reduced ...

"; thus the opposite, with engine but no motors, is a "snail.")

Hall of Fame induction

In 2001, the rotary snowplow was inducted into the North America Railway Hall of Fame. The hall of fame recognizes and establishes an enduring tribute to the people and things that have made significant contribution relating to the railway industry in North America. The rotary snowplow was inducted in the "Technical Innovations" category with "National" significance.

Preservation

Alaska Railroad Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

#4 is on display at the Potter Section House State Historic Site south of

Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring ...

. *

Colorado & Southern The Colorado and Southern Railway was an American Class I railroad in the western United States that operated independently from 1898 to 1908, then as part of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad until it was absorbed into the Burling ...

No. 99201 is on display at the

Colorado Railroad Museum The Colorado Railroad Museum is a non-profit railroad museum. The museum is located on at a point where Clear Creek flows between North and South Table Mountains in Golden, Colorado. The museum was established in 1959 to preserve a record of ...

Golden, Colorado Golden is a home rule city that is the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 20,399 at the 2020 United States Census. Golden lies along Clear Creek at the base of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountai ...

. *

Denver & Rio Grande Western The Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad , often shortened to ''Rio Grande'', D&RG or D&RGW, formerly the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, was an American Class I railroad company. The railroad started as a narrow-gauge line running south from ...

3' narrow-gauge rotary snowplows #0M and #0Y are owned by the

Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad The Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad, often abbreviated as the C&TSRR, is a narrow-gauge heritage railroad that operates on of track between Antonito, Colorado, and Chama, New Mexico, in the United States. The railroad is named for two geogra ...

Chama, New Mexico Chama is a village in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 1,022 at the 2010 census. The village is located in the Rocky Mountains about south of the Colorado- New Mexico border. Geography Chama is located at (36.89 ...

. 0M was built in 1880 and converted to narrow gauge in 1907, it last ran in 1976 and has been on display since. 0Y was built in the 1920s and last ran in 1997 where it was then put on display until recently when it was restored in preparation for a February 2020 photography special celebrating the C&TS' 50th anniversary, and is currently in operational condition. *

Long Island Railroad The Long Island Rail Road , often abbreviated as the LIRR, is a commuter rail system in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County on Long Island. With an average wee ...

#193 is on display at the

Steamtown National Historic Site Steamtown National Historic Site (NHS) is a railroad museum and heritage railroad located on in downtown Scranton, Pennsylvania, at the site of the former Scranton yards of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (DL&W). The museum is buil ...

Scranton, Pennsylvania Scranton is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Lackawanna County. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 U.S. census, Scranton is the largest city in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Wyoming V ...

. * Northern Pacific #2 is on display at the

Lake Superior Railroad Museum The Lake Superior Railroad Museum is a railroad museum in Duluth, Minnesota, United States. Opened in 1973, the museum focuses on railroading in the Lake Superior region. It is housed in the restored Duluth Union Depot complex. The museum al ...

Duluth, Minnesota , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior, Wisconsin, Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: Downtown Dul ...

. * Northern Pacific #10 is on display at the

Northwest Railway Museum The Northwest Railway Museum (NRM) is a railroad museum in Snoqualmie, King County, Washington. It incorporates a heritage railway, historic depot, exhibit hall, library, and collection care center, and serves more than 130,000 visitors per year ...

Snoqualmie, Washington Snoqualmie ( ) is a city next to Snoqualmie Falls in King County, Washington, United States. It is east of Seattle. Snoqualmie city is home to the Northwest Railway Museum. The population was 10,670 at the 2010 census and an estimated 13,62 ...

. It was built in November 1907. * Oregon Short Line #762 is on static display at the

Mid-Continent Railway Museum The Mid-Continent Railway Museum is a railway museum, railroad museum in North Freedom, Wisconsin, North Freedom, Wisconsin, United States. The museum consists of static displays as well as a round trip ride aboard preserved railroad cars. His ...

in North Freedom, Wisconsin. * Southern Pacific MW205 is on static display at the

California State Railroad Museum The California State Railroad Museum is a museum in the state park system of California, United States, interpreting the role of the "iron horse" in connecting California to the rest of the nation. It is located in Old Sacramento State Histor ...

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

. * Southern Pacific MW206 is on static display at the Train Mountain Railroad Museum in Chiloquin, Oregon. * Southern Pacific MW208 is in operational condition at the Western Pacific Railroad Museum at Portola, California. This rotary was involved in the rescue of the ''

'' train in 1952. * SPMW 210 is on display at the Truckee Railroad Museum in

Truckee, California Truckee is an incorporated town in Nevada County, California, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 16,180, reflecting an increase of 2,316 from the 13,864 counted in the 2000 Census and having the 316th highe ...

. *Southern Pacific MW7221 is on display in Roseville, California. *

Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pac ...

#900075 is on display at the

Illinois Railway Museum The Illinois Railway Museum (IRM, reporting mark IRMX) is the largest railroad museum in the United States. It is located in the Chicago metropolitan area at 7000 Olson Road in Union, Illinois, northwest of downtown Chicago. Overview His ...

in Union, Illinois. * Union Pacific #900081 is on display at the National Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri. File:Breckenridge Rotary Snowplow.JPG, White Pass and Yukon Route rotary snowplow in Breckenridge, Colorado Image:Snow Plow-3.jpg, Northern Pacific Rotary 10 steam snowplow with tender Image:Snow Plow-2.jpg, Northern Pacific Rotary 10 steam snowplow Image:Snow Plow-1.jpg, Northern Pacific Rotary 10 steam snowplow from front end File:White Pass Snow Plow No1 Aug2011.jpg, White Pass and Yukon Rotary Snow Plow No.1 File:HenschelDampfschneeschleuderDTMBerlin.jpg, Typical German Henschel rotary steam snowplow (Austrian Federal Railways ÖBB 986.101) File:Alaska Railroad rotary snowplow.jpg, Alaska Railroad rotary snowplow near Anchorage

References

External links

Rotary snowplow list
, a listing of all surviving railroad rotary snowplows in North America.

(archived) * , February 27, 2017 {{Freight cars, state=collapsed Maintenance of way equipment Snowplows Canadian inventions