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Figure 21.—Tuis 1864 FrrREBOx PATENT shows Mill- 
holland’s plan for a between-the-frames mounting 
of his water-grate firebox in order to achieve a 
lower center of gravity than his usual boiler-frame 
arrangement permitted. (From U.S. Patent 
Office.) 
the entire boiler assembly low. It also provided a 
firebox some 10 inches wider than the conventional 
between-the-frame style. This Millholland frame was 
popular well into the 20th century. 
Sometime in the early 1860s Millholland revived 
the old-fashioned riveted frame so popular with New 
England locomotive builders in the 1840s and 1850s. 
The frame’s top rail was made from two wrought-iron 
bars about 1% inches thick by 6 inches deep. The 
pedestals were bolted or riveted between the top-rail 
bars, making a simple, heavy frame. No bottom rail 
PAPER 69: JAMES MILLHOLLAND AND EARLY 
315-SS4—6S 3 

RAILROAD ENGINEERING 25 
was used. This style of frame probably was used first 
on the Reading’s Gunboat class of 1863 and was still 
in use by the Reading in 1880. 
Unquestionably influenced by Winans, Millholland 
preferred cast-iron driving-wheel tires. These were 
cheaper than wrought iron, and were extensively 
employed by the Baltimore and Ohio Company and 
by the Reading for wheels under 50 inches in diame- 
ter. They also had been used on the Baltimore and 
Susquehanna in 1840 during Millholland’s superin- 
tendence, where he was credited with introducing 
cast-iron tires for large-diameter wheels in 1845,%* 
While showing no inclination to abandon the cast-iron 
tre, Millholland in 1851 or 1852 (about the time 
Krupp produced his first steel tires) produced some of 
the world’s first steel tires. These were made at the 
Reading shops and were fitted to the locomotive United 
States. A few other sets were made and gave good 
service, but for economy he preferred the cast-iron 
tire. Unfortunately, no contemporary account of this 
early use of steel tires can be found, and we must 
depend on the recollections of E. J. Rauch.** 
Another unusual design favored by Millholland was 
one for solid-end connecting rods. ‘The vast majority 
of 19th-century locomotives were equipped with 
straps bolted to the rods and provided with keys for 
alignment. The strap-end rod was liable to work 
loose or become misaligned by inept adjustment of the 
keys. The solid-end rod, having no straps, bolts, or 
keys, was not subject to these defects. It should be 
noted that Millholland’s preference for solid-end rods 
was shared by several other mechanics, notably 
Ross Winans. 
With the question of a practical coal-burning boiler 
answered by 1858, Millholland turned his attention 
to the design of new locomotives. The first of these 
new designs was an eight-wheel passenger locomotive 
named Hiawatha. It was an elegant machine, 
remarkably modern in appearance. The water grate, 
poppet throttle, and slope-back firebox were familiar 
Millholland features, but several novel devices were 
added. The round iron cab was the most obvious 
departure from standard American practice. It 
should be remembered that the Reading had been a 
pioneer user of iron cabs (about 1845), but never 
before had such an elaborate and decorative iron cab 
32 4mencan Railroad Journal (November 6, 1845), vol. 18, 
po wa: 
33 Locomotive Engineering (June 1896), vol. 9, p. 500. 
