1 Ounce - The Stourbridge Lion MEM

Reverse

Smooth reverse with letterings.

Script: Latin

Lettering:
THE STOURBRIDGE LION
THE FIRST ACTUAL LOCOMOTIVE
TO RUN IN AMERICA - 1829
THE DELAWARE AND HUDSON
CANAL COMPANY
ONE TROY OUNCE .999 FINE SILVER
PROOF © 1974 MEM

Edge

Plain

Comment

The Stourbridge Lion 1829 silver proof art bar was minted by the Mount Everest Mint (MEM) as part of The Great Locomotive Series One Collection. This limited edition collection consisted of ten art bars depicting various locomotives. The collection is presented in a framed blue presentation holder as depicted in the following image.

The Stourbridge Lion was a railroad steam locomotive. It was the first locomotive and the first foreign built locomotive to be operated in the United States, and one of the first locomotives to operate outside Britain. It takes its name from the lion's face painted on the front, and Stourbridge in England, where it was manufactured by the firm Foster, Rastrick and Company in 1829.^[2] The locomotive, obtained by the Delaware & Hudson Canal Company (D&H), was shipped to New York in May 1829, where it was tested raised on blocks. It was then taken to Honesdale Pennsylvania for testing on the company's newly built track. The locomotive performed well in its first test in August 1829, but was found to be too heavy for the track and was never used for its intended purpose of hauling coal wagons. During the next few decades, a number of parts were removed from the abandoned locomotive until only the boiler and a few other components remained. These were acquired by the Smithsonian Institute in 1890 and are currently on display at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore.