The history of the Rectifier Electric locomotive dates to the 1890s, when Peter Cooper-Hewitt and General Electric's Charles Steinmetz experimented with mercury rectifiers and sought practical industrial applications for the technology. In 1906 the new technology, which converted AC power from overhead lines to DC power for traction motors, was first applied to railroading, and years of rail car experimentation followed. Following World War II, a device known as the ignitron that made it practical to convert large amounts of current efficiently and safely came to the forefront of rectifier technology.

The Virginian Railroad ordered 12 3300 horsepower ignitron rectifier electric locomotives. The use of the ignitron on locomotives helped to open the door for the modernization of electrified railroads, and when the N&W found that the Virginian's electrified routes did not fit their post-merger traffic patterns, New Haven eagerly bought the engines. From there they found their place on the rosters of other electrified roads, many ending up on the Penn Central after mergers.

Did You Know?

The E-33s, which were called the EL-C by their original owner, the Virginian, were built with extra heavy frames and end plates to resist damage from rock slides on the Virginian's mountainous territory.

Metal Chassis