Cherepanov steam locomotive

Yefim Cherepanov and his son, Miron, were serfs to the Demidov family of factory-owners and developed several innovations while working for them.

However, Russian scholars insist that the steam locomotive was the Cherepanov's own invention and not a copy of the British model.

[4] In August of that year, people gathered to watch an exhibition of the locomotive on track that measured around 854 meters.

Their second model, built in March 1835 and gifted to Saint Petersburg, improved upon those statistics, carrying a weight of around 1,000 poods at a speed of around 16.4 kilometers per hour.

[6] The main problem with the exploitation of their locomotives was lack of coal in the area, and after all the wood nearby had been cut down and getting firewood from afar had got expensive, the line had to be converted to horse traction.