The Canadian National Confederation Locomotive type or the Canadian National U Classes is a type of Canadian

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, Fuel oil, oil or, rarely, Wood fuel, wood) to heat ...

with a wheel arrangement used on Canadian railways. Most were built by the

Montreal Locomotive Works Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW) was a Canadian railway locomotive manufacturer that existed under several names from 1883 to 1985, producing both Steam locomotive, steam and diesel locomotives. For many years it was a subsidiary of the American ...

(MLW) in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Quebec, and the

Canadian Locomotive Company The Canadian Locomotive Company, commonly referred to as CLC, was a Canadian manufacturer of railway locomotives in Kingston, Ontario. Its works were on the south side of Ontario Street between William and Gore streets on Kingston's waterfront. ...

(CLC) in

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the northeastern end of Lake Ontario. It is at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River, the south end of the Rideau Canal. Kingston is near the Thousand Islands, ...

, for the

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue a ...

(CNR). The "Confederation" type was later given the more common designation "Northern" type. They were the backbone of the CNR locomotive fleet from the 1930s to the 1950s. Eight locomotives of this type have been preserved from the CNR and two from the CPR. They were built from 1927 until 1943 and 1944 during

World War 2 World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies and the Axis powers. Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilisin ...

against the

Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...

when

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

had to provide the UK with metal for the Allied Forces of World War II against the

Axis Forces The Axis powers, originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis and also Rome–Berlin–Tokyo Axis, was the military coalition which initiated World War II and fought against the Allies of World War II, Allies. Its principal members were Nazi Ge ...

. CN 6400 used roller-bearing boxes on all running and tender axles, with bearings made by

SKF AB SKF (, 'Swedish Ball Bearing Factory') is a Swedish bearing (mechanical), bearing and seal (mechanical), seal manufacturing company founded in Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1907. The company manufactures and supplies bearings, seals, lubrication an ...

of Sweden. CN ordered 155 classes from 1927 to 1944. CN also ordered 5 locomotives in 1936, and the GTW ordered 36 classes from 1927 to 1943. The GTW ordered 5 locomotives in 1938. In total, 203 were built for CN and the GTW. All 203 locomotives remained in service until they were retired between 1953 and 1959. A few have survived into preservation, CN 6153, CN 6167, CN 6200, CN 6213, CN 6218 and CN 6400, and two from the GTW survived as well, GTW 6323 and GTW 6325.

List of subclasses

* U-2-a: Built 1927, numbered 6100–6119 * U-2-b: Built 1927, numbered 6120–6139 * U-2-c: Built 1929, numbered 6140–6159 * U-2-d: Built 1936, numbered 6160–6164 * U-2-e: Built 1940, numbered 6165–6179 * U-2-f: Built 1940, numbered 6180–6189 * U-2-g: Built 1943, numbered 6200–6234 * U-2-h: Built 1944, numbered 6235–6264 * U-3-a: Built 1927, numbered 6300–6311 * U-3-b: Built 1943–1944, numbered 6312–6336 * U-4-a: Built 1936, numbered: 6400–6404 * U-4-b: Built 1938, numbered: 6405–6410 In addition, the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...

built its own K1a locomotives in 1928 at their own Angus Shops. They were numbered 3100–3101, the only two built. Both remained in service until being retired in 1955, and both are preserved.

Preservation

* CN 6153: On display at the

Canadian Railway Museum The Canadian Railway Museum () ''Musée ferroviaire canadien''), operating under the brand name Exporail in both official languages, is a rail transport museum in Saint-Constant, Quebec, Canada, on Montreal's south shore. Collection Establishe ...

. * CN 6167: On display at downtown

Guelph Guelph ( ; 2021 Canadian Census population 143,740) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Known as The Royal City, it is roughly east of Kitchener, Ontario, Kitchener and west of Downtown Toronto, at the intersection of Ontario Highway 6, ...

. * CN 6200: On display at the

Canada Science and Technology Museum The Canada Science and Technology Museum (abbreviated as CSTM; ) is a national museum of science and technology in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum has a mandate to preserve and promote the country's scientific and technological heritage. The m ...

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

. * CN 6213: On display at downtown

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

at the

Toronto Railway Museum Roundhouse Park is a park in the downtown core of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is in the former Railway Lands. It features the John Street Roundhouse, a preserved locomotive roundhouse that houses the Toronto Railway Museum, Steam Whistle Brew ...

. * CN 6218: On display at Fort Erie Railroad Museum at

Fort Erie, Ontario Fort Erie is a town in the Regional Municipality of Niagara, Niagara Region of Ontario, Canada. The town is located at the south eastern corner of the region, on the Niagara River, directly across the Canada–United States border from Buffal ...

. * CN 6400: On display at the

. * GTW 6323: 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 ...

Union, Illinois Union is a village in McHenry County, Illinois, United States. The population was 551 at the 2020 census. History A post office called Union has been in operation since 1852. The village was named for the federal union of the United States. ...

. * GTW 6325: Owned by the

Age of Steam Roundhouse The Age of Steam Roundhouse Museum, located in Sugarcreek, Ohio, United States, is a museum roundhouse housing steam and diesel locomotives, passenger cars and other vintage United States and Canadian railroad equipment. History The roundhous ...

Sugarcreek, Ohio Sugarcreek is a village in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,373 at the 2020 census. It is known as "The Little Switzerland of Ohio". Located in Ohio's Amish Country, the village is part of a large regional tourism ...

. * CP 3100: On display at the Canada Science and Technology Museum in

. * CP 3101: On display at EVRAZ (formerly IPSCO Steel)

Regina, Saskatchewan Regina ( ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province, and is a commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. As of the 2021 Canadian census, ...

In fiction

The character Vinnie (voiced by

John Schwab John Schwab is an American actor, TV producer and musician who resides in London. He produced ''The Hide'' with Christopher Granier-Deferre, which was nominated for a BIFA 2010. He is best known for his film and television roles, such as lawyer ...

) from the popular series ''

Thomas and Friends ''Thomas & Friends'' is a British children's television series which aired from 9 October 1984 to 20 January 2021. Based on ''The Railway Series'' books by Wilbert Awdry and his son Christopher, the series was developed for television by Brit ...

'' is based on a Canadian National using the number of a GTW

Gallery

File:CN 6167.jpg, CN 6167 Class U-2-e on display at

, Ontario File:Canadian Northern 6400 1939.jpg, CN 6400 Class U-4-a on display at the

1939 New York World's Fair The 1939 New York World's Fair (also known as the 1939–1940 New York World's Fair) was an world's fair, international exposition at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York City, New York, United States. The fair included exhibitio ...

"Railroads on Parade" exhibit File:CN 6218 with Illini Railroad Club Special in Dearborn Station in Chicago, IL on November 20, 1966 (25502129524).jpg, CN 6218 pulling an

excursion train An excursion train is a chartered train run for a special event or purpose. Examples are trains to major sporting event, trains run for railfans or tourists, and special trains operated by the railway company for employees and prominent custo ...

out of

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Illinois, in 1966 File:Old steamer (20992436835).jpg, CN 6213 Class on display at

Roundhouse Park Roundhouse Park is a park in the downtown core of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is in the former Railway Lands. It features the John Street Roundhouse, a preserved locomotive roundhouse that houses the Toronto Railway Museum, Steam Whistle Bre ...

Toronto, Ontario Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

References

External links

CN "Confederations" at Steam Locomotive.com
- retrieved 11 May 2008
CP "Confederations" at Steam Locomotive.com
- retrieved 11 May 2008
CN 6153 at Steam Locomotive.info
- retrieved 11 May 2008

- retrieved 25 May 2008
CN 6200 at Railpictures.net
- retrieved 19 May 2008
CN 6218
at the Fort Erie Railroad Museum - retrieved 19 May 2008
CN 6400 (and others) photo gallery
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061010075739/http://imagescn.technomuses.ca/railways/index_in.cfm?id=55&index=1 , date=2006-10-10 - retrieved 12 May 2008
CP 3100 at Railroadforums.com
- retrieved 19 May 2008

- retrieved 19 May 2008 Steam locomotives of Canada Steam locomotive types Preserved steam locomotives of Canada 4-8-4 locomotives Canadian National Railway Canadian National Railway locomotives Passenger locomotives