Consolidations are steam locomotives that have two wheels in the leading truck, eight driving wheels in the main frame and no trailing truck. For this reason, according to WHITE's classification for steam locomotives, they are numbered as 2-8-0's. The Consolidation was so named because several roads had consolidated in the LEHIGH VALLEY system at the time of the building of the first 2-8-0 engines on that road. They were built after 1866 and were mainly used for freight service, due to their small diameter drivers. For the same reason, they had a strong speed limitation. Our prototype was built by Baldwin Locomotive Works, but most of the steam locomotive manufacturers made thousands of Consolidation between 1866 and 1930. This one is typical of the late 19th. century and was used by almost every railroad either in standard, broad or narrow gauge, all over the world. The first "Estrada de Ferro Central do Brasil" (Brazilian Central Railway) Consolidations had serial n. 500 and date from 1877 through 1915. This particular prototype dates from January 1909 and operated freight trains up to 1960, during the dieselization period.