Steam crane

Derelict Smith (Rodley) crane, on the Manchester Bolton & Bury Canal

A steam crane is a crane powered by a steam engine. It may be fixed or mobile and, if mobile, it may run on rail tracks, caterpillar tracks, road wheels, or be mounted on a barge. It usually has a vertical boiler placed at the back so that the weight of the boiler counterbalances the weight of the jib and load.

They were very common as railway breakdown cranes and several have been preserved on heritage railways in the United Kingdom.

Manufacturers

See also

Steam powered Overhead crane from 1875

References

  1. Beamish collections archive search
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