How did certain steam engines get their (nick) names?

[ATSF5700BOB]

  Good evening everyone!!
Okay, a 0-4-0 is a four wheel switcher.
             A 0-6-0 is a six wheel switcher.
             A 0-8-0 is a eight wheel switcher.
             And there are others, ad infinitum.
    The following are names given to different wheel arrangements of steam locomotives over the years. I can guess where Hudson, Mountain, Niagra, Northern, Santa Fe, and Texas came from. I also understand why a 4-6-0 was called a ten wheeler.
    But where or how did the names Atlantic, Baltic, Berkshire, Consolidation, Decapod, Greenbriar, Kanawha, Mastodon, Mikado, Mogul, Mohawk, Pacific, and Prarie  originate? And did I miss any (nick) names?
      I have been told, ( but am not sure), that the Mikado was first made in Japan, hence that name. Also, I am guessing that the 2-6-2 type was first used on the prairies, hence that  name?
       Most steam types were long gone ( except for those on static display, or saved for museum/preservation use ) by the time I was born in 1958 (dating myself here, LOL)
         Thanks for any information all of the steam gurus can help me with.
                                              Bob
     

[SteamGene]

But where or how did the names Atlantic, Baltic, Berkshire, Consolidation, Decapod, Greenbriar, Kanawha, Mastodon, Mikado, Mogul, Mohawk, Pacific, and Prarie  originate? And did I miss any (nick) names?

Berkshire - the B&M developed the type to go over the Berkshire Mountains in western Mass.
Consolidation - first appeared on a railroad that grew from a consolidation of several NE railroads. 
Decapod - ten feet (ten drivers)
Greenbriar - named for the C&O resort in West Virginia.  No C&O locomotive would be called anything that came from the damyankees.
Kanawaha - from the Kanawaha River in west Virginia that the C&O mainline followed.  Same reason as Greenbriar. 
Mikado - first built FOR a Japanese railroad.  In WWII there was an attempt to call them MacArthurs.  Went the way of freedom fries today. 
Mohawk - Mohawk River valley in New York. 
Pacific - bigger than Atlantic.
Gene

[ATSF5700BOB]

 Thanks, SteamGene. I appreciate the information.
  I understand about the Pacific being larger than the Atlantic,( larger ocean, and larger wheel type), but I wonder why the locomotives were named that? I know that Atlantic and Pacific types were used nation wide, and not just on the Atlantic or Pacific coasts.I just continue to wonder how those names were arrived at. Thanks again for the other name information. Also, one other question, if I may: I read somewhere in the past, that the Kanawha type was spelled that way, and not  Kanawaha. It may have been an early typo by the writer of the early article, and I plead my ignorance at said spelling. And I apologize if I have "upset" you by asking about the spelling of Kanawaha. Thanks again for all of the information, and I wish you a pleasant evening.
                                              Bob

[RAM]

Hudson was first used by NYC along the Hudson river, Mountain because it was used in the mountains, northern was first used on the N.P. Santa first used on the Santa Fe.  2-10-4 first used on the T & P.  4-8-0s on most railroads that used them were known as twelve wheelers.  Now for those railroads that wanted to put their own names on locomtive types.  a lot of Santa men call the 2-10-4s Santa Fe type, as guess because they also had 10 drivers.

[ATSF5700BOB]

 Thanks Ram  for taking the time to reply. have a pleasant evening.
                                    Bob

[tac]

Over here in UK we also have our share of locomotive nick-names, some of which may be familiar -

Atlantic - a 4-4-2 wheel-arrangement, for no obvious reason.
Baltic - a 4-6-4 side-tank express train locomotive.
Pacific - the same as yours....
Saddle-tank - any small tank locomotive with the water tanks draped over the boiler.
Prairie - usually a side tank 2-6-2 here in UK, but not called that anywhere else, as far as I can determine.

Many of our old steamers are actually named after the Chief Mechanical Engineer of the road - Collett, Bulleid, Gresley,Johnson and so on or the first or most famous name of the class leader locomotive.

What we don't have are Hudson, mikado and all the place-name locomotives, quite simply becasue we either don't have that style of locomotive, or we don't recognise or associate the places with a locomotive type.  We don't call 4-6-0 locos ten-wheelers, either.

tac
www.ovgrs.org

[Elmore Yard]

You are correct.  The correct spelling is Kanawha.

Tom M


Also, one other question, if I may: I read somewhere in the past, that the Kanawha type was spelled that way, and not  Kanawaha. It may have been an early typo by the writer of the early article, and I plead my ignorance at said spelling. And I apologize if I have "upset" you by asking about the spelling of Kanawaha.

[SteamGene]

Tac,
A Hudson and a Baltic are both 4-6-4s.  In the U.S. only the Milwaukee Road, which actually had the plan first, called them Baltics.  The NYC called them Hudsons and apparently produced them before the Road did. 
I think I remember that the 4-4-2 got its name because the first railroad that used it had "Atlantic" in its name and the same is true for the Pacific.  But what roads, I don't know.  The 4-4-0 went by American Standard because there were so many of them, and that got shortened to "American." 
The Big Boy was slatted to have a different name, but apparently some worker looked at it and said "That's a Big Boy," and his offhand remark stuck.
Gene

[Virginian]

Some 4-8-4s were called Dixies and I believe some others were labelled Confederations.  The original "legend" in re: the Big Boys is that when the first one was under construction someone wrote "Big Boy" on one of the front cylinder sets, and the name stuck.

[tac]

Dear Mr Gene - you wrote - 'A Hudson and a Baltic are both 4-6-4s'. 

Yes, thank you, I know that, but I live in the UK where we do not have Hudsons.  The name 'Baltic' was only applied to TANK locomotives, as we never had a 4-6-4 locomotive with a tender in UK.

There is no reason why the Atlantic type loco should be so named here in UK. None of the lines that had this type of loco had any connection with the Atlantic.

The same goes for the Pacific, and we have a large number of them still in steam...in fact, the UK has more preserved, active and operational steam locomotives of all types than any other country in the world.

tac
www.ovgrs.org

[tac]

Dear Mr Gene - you wrote - 'A Hudson and a Baltic are both 4-6-4s'. 

Yes, thank you, I know that, but I live in the UK where we do not have Hudsons.  The name 'Baltic' was only applied to TANK locomotives, as we never had a 4-6-4 locomotive with a tender in UK.

There is no reason why the Atlantic type loco should be so named here in UK. None of the lines that had this type of loco had any connection with the Atlantic.

The same goes for the Pacific, and we have a large number of them still in steam...in fact, the UK has more preserved, active and operational steam locomotives of all types than any other country in the world.

tac
www.ovgrs.org

[Woody Elmore]

Don't forget that a 4-4-0 is an American.

[ATSF5700BOB]

Good evening everyone !!

Tac: Thank you for the explanations you furnished on why steam locomotives are named the way they are in Great Britain. One other question I have: In Great Britain, wasn't there also a tank locomotive called a Pannier (spelling?) ?

Tom M: Thank you for the affirmation on how to spell Kanawha.

Virginian: You stated that some 4-8-4s' were called Dixies, and some other 4-8-4s' were labelled Confederations. Were these names for the 4-8-4s' on the same railroad, or from different railroads?

Thankyou to SteamGene, Tac, Tom M, Virginian, and woody Elmore for all of your gracious replies.
                          Hope everyone has a pleasant evening.
                                          Bob

[SteamGene]

Bob,

The Northern, iirc, first appered on either the Great Northern or the Northern Pacific.  However, in the railroads of the Confederacy, "Northern" was not an acceptable name.  Each road found its own name:  Greenbriar, Confederation, Dixie, etc.  But all C&O J3s were Greenbriars.
Gene

[tac]

Tac: Thank you for the explanations you furnished on why steam locomotives are named the way they are in Great Britain. One other question I have: In Great Britain, wasn't there also a tank locomotive called a Pannier (spelling?) ?

Afternoon, Bob.  You have the spelling correct, Sir.  Here in UK the GWR [Great Western Railway] has a class of small tank 0-6-0 locomotive, nicknamed 'Pannier' because of the side tanks that 'hung' on the boiler like pannier bags, but square...

As I said, many locos here were named after their designer, like the Peckett and the Fairlie and Beyer-Garratt.  Some even doubled up on names, like the  Gresley and Stanier Pacifics and so on.  The CME's of the various pre-nationalisation railways were VERY much individuals with very strong ideas about locomotive design.  If you want to learn more then getting any of the many thousands of books on the various railways of the UK before 1948 would be a good read - I just googled UK railways and got over 890,000 hits!

tac
www.ovgrs.org