Tom Thumb was the first
American-built
steam locomotive used on a
common-carrier railroad. Designed and built by
Peter Cooper in 1830, it was designed to convince owners of the newly formed
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) to use steam engines. It is especially remembered as a participant in an impromptu race with a horse-drawn car, which the horse won after
Tom Thumb suffered a mechanical failure. However, the demonstration was successful; and in the following year, the railroad committed to the use of steam locomotion and held trials for a working engine.