Also, they helped control the stresses on the couplers and draft gear, and by which lowered the amount of broken coupler knuckles on a heavy train.

The pusher locomotives then assist by helping push the train up the grade. Pusher service is defined where additional locomotives are/were added to the rear of a train of which has its normal compliment of locomotives on the lead end. These locomotives were built for 'pusher' service, especially on the heavy grades of the Erie Railroads' Susquehanna Division over Gulf Summit on the Pennsylvania and New York State border and these locomotives primarily operated between Port Jervis, NY, and Susquehanna, PA. This meant that if desired, high pressure steam could be supplied to the front and rear cylinder groups for additional power at the cost of exhausting the boiler of steam pressure quicker. The use of an intercepting valve allowed the locomotive to be used in simple or single expansion steam capacity. A rarely seen photograph of #2602 shows his name under the windows on the cab sides.

The L-1 Class was also called the 'Angus' Type in homage to Angus Sinclair, who was the publisher of Railway & Locomotive Engineering, a leading trade journal. When built in 1907, they were the largest steam locomotives in the world as the locomotive itself weighed 410,000 pounds (260 tons). The three L-1 0-8-8-0 steam locomotives of the Erie Railroad, built in July 1907 by ALCO, and numbered 2600, 26 (ALCo construction numbers 42269, 4221 respectively) were unique in that they were the only articulated camelback locomotives ever built.

Erie 0 8 8 0