Electric locomotive
Locomotora eléctrica
- Date
- 1837-1841 · confidence high
- Place
- Aberdeen, Scotland, United Kingdom
- Credited to
- Robert Davidson
- Field
- Movement
What it is
Scottish chemist Robert Davidson built in 1837 the first known electric locomotive, powered by galvanic cells (batteries), and in 1841 unveiled a larger prototype called the 'Galvani'; the limited power of contemporary batteries prevented its widespread practical use.
The 'Galvani' was destroyed by Scottish railway workers who saw it as a threat to their jobs against steam locomotives.
What it led to
- the first demonstration of electric rail traction
- a later spur to railway electrification with AC and DC motors in the late 19th century
- a direct forerunner of modern electric trams and trains