Did You Ever Wonder Why?
by Roger Molesworth
(From "2807 News" - November 1997)
Brains: Did you know the US Standard railroad gauge is 4 feet, 8½ inches?
Curious: That's an exceedingly odd number. Why was that gauge used?
Brains: Because that's the way they built them in England.
Curious: So?
Brains: Well, the US railroads were built by English expatriates.
Curious: Why did the English build them like that?
Brains: Because the first railway lines were laid by the same people who built the pre-railroad tramways, and that's the gauge they used.
Curious: Why did 'they' use that gauge then?
Brains: Because the people who built the tramways used the same jigs and tools that they used for building wagons, which used that wheel spacing.
Curious: Okay! Why did the wagons use that odd wheel spacing?
Brains: Well, if they tried to use any other spacing the wagons would break on some of the old, long distance roads, because that's the spacing of the old wheel tracks and ruts.
Curious: So who built these old roads with ruts in?
Brains: Most long distance roads in England were built by the Romans for the benefit of getting their legions about. These roads have been used ever since.
Curious: And the ruts?
Brains: The ruts were made by Roman war chariots. Since the chariots were made for or by Imperial Rome they were all standardised when it came to wheel spacing.
Curious: But why 4 feet, 8½ inches?
Brains: Because the Roman chariots were made just wide enough to accommodate the rear-ends of two horses.
Thus it is, that the United States standard railroad gauge of 4 feet, 8½ inches derives from the original Military Specification for a 2,000-year old Imperial Roman army war chariot! [or more specifically, the rear-ends of their horses!]
I am tempted to comment about how slowly the wheels of the Establishment turn! Or, maybe they are simply in a rut?!