A steam shovel is a large steam-powered excavating machine designed for lifting and moving material such as rock and soil. It is the earliest type of power shovel or excavator.

What is a steam shovel called today?

They are earth-moving machines with a hinged bucket on the end of a long boom. The operator digs by scooping up material into the bucket. Steam shovels got that name because the first ones were operated by steam. Today's machines have diesel engines and are sometimes called power shovels.

How did the old steam shovels work?

The first steam shovels had cast iron wheels and operated on railroad tracks. To move the steam shovel from place to place, workers had to lay temporary rail tracts. Eventually the railway chassis were replaced with caterpillar tracks. The steam shovel had better mobility and the rails were no longer necessary.