When the k.k. Nördliche Staatsbahn (Northern State Railway) received its first six locomotives in 1842, they were at the same time the first locomotives built at the Wiener Neustadt factory. As this railway had mostly flat lines in today's Czechia, the 4-2-0 locomotives from Norris were used as a model. They were named “Sedletz”, “Florenz”, “Plass”, “Carolinenthal”, “Hohenstadt” and “Hohenmauth”.

In his first years, manufacturer Wenzel Günther wasn't able to make all parts in his own shops. So the complete boiler was made by Seßler of Krieglach, while other parts had to be cast by other firms. In 1855, when the NStB came to the StEG, they got the numbers 2 to 7. It didn't take long for these locomotives to become too weak with around 80 hp. Additionally, the frame was to weak to support a more powerful boiler and larger cylinders. So they were retired between 1860 and 1864.

With the founding of the Vienna-Raaber Eisenbahn, a locomotive was initially required that could be used for the construction of the line and for further tests. Georg Simon Sina von Hodos saw the simply built machines from Norris from the USA as ideal for this and therefore had one of these locomotives bought used. With the outside cylinders, which did not require a cranked axle, it was hoped that maintenance would be easier.

The locomotive arrived in Vienna in April 1838 and was named “Philadelphia” after its origin. Although it was used as planned during the construction work, when the line opened it was too weak to carry passenger trains.

Now that more powerful locomotives had been procured from England, the “Philadelphia” continued to be used for other tasks. In 1853 it came to the Southern State Railway and was retired in 1857.

Between 1865 and 1872, the StEG had a total of 93 Engerth type supporting tender locomotives built for passenger transport. These had two coupled axles and were designed with a wheel diameter of 1,580 mm for a top speed of 70 km/h. The cylinders were between the wheels of the first coupled axle and the drive was on the second coupled axle. Some of the locomotives were manufactured by Cockerill in Belgium and some in StEG's own workshops.

Upon the nationalization in 1891, the locomotives that were based on the Austrian lines went to the kkStB and became the series 14 there. These 27 locomotives were scrapped by 1918.

On Hungarian territory, 37 locomotives came to the MÀV and were designated there as TII No. 1301 to 1337. From the late 1890s they were replaced in passenger service by newer locomotives. From 1909 the first were scrapped. In 1911 the 31 remaining locomotives became the series 250. Of the four locomotives that remained after the First World War, the last one was scrapped in 1924.

Between 1866 and 1873, the StEG had 78 freight locomotives with a 0-6-0 wheel arrangement built in its own workshops, which it designated as Series I with the numbers 504 to 581. The Tarnów-Leluchów State Railway and the Rakonitz-Protivín Railway received twelve more in 1875 and 1876 respectively, which also came from Floridsdorf and Wiener Neustadt. After the First World War, 48 came to the ČSD, where they were designated as 311.0 or 311.1 depending on their origin. The MÁV received 14 locomotives, which were first designated as the series IIIm and later as the class 358. The kkStB made them number 32. Some also came to Yugoslavia, Italy and Poland.

Almost 30 years after the founding of the StEG, the influence of French financing was still noticeable, so that the express locomotives were built based on the Paris-Orléans. Thanks to the 2-4-2 wheel arrangement, a larger firebox could be accommodated than with a 4-4-0, but the carrying axles' not yet fully developed centering system resulted in insufficient running smoothness. When the StEG was separated, 26 came to the Austrian part and 32 to the MÁV. The BBÖ retired their locomotives by 1928, after six had come to GySEV. The latter were retired between 1951 and 1959.

In order to make the leap to express locomotives with compound engines, the private Austrian state railway company had already built a single locomotive with a three-cylinder compound engine in 1897. This was known as number II 144 or class 25 and had a high-pressure cylinder with a diameter of 470 mm and two low-pressure cylinders with a diameter of 500 mm each. Since the compound principle did not prove its worth, now the almost identical diameter of the cylinders was used to be operated as a simple three-cylinder locomotive.

Based on this experience, it was decided to procure the series locomotives as simple saturated two-cylinders until better solutions became available. The 16 locomotives of this series were again delivered from the StEG's own workshops between 1900 and 1902 and designated class 26. With a cylinder diameter of 490 mm, slower acceleration could be expected compared to the prototype locomotive, but they had got more powerful boilers compared to those of other contemporary kkStB 4-4-0 express locomotives.

When the StEG was nationalized in 1909, these locomotives were assigned to the class 406 and the II 144 to the class 506. After the First World War, most went to Czechoslovakia. There, 14 of the class 406 became the class 264.2 and one of the class 506 became the 264.301. After the Second World War, two of them ended up with MÁV in Hungary, where they became the class 227.

At the turn of the century, the Austrian StEG was one of many railways which were faced with the problem that their four-coupled express locomotives were overwhelmed with the increased train weights. In this case, the class 26 4-4-0 often had to be used double-headed. So the class 36.5 was designed with the 4-6-0 wheel arrangement and a von Borries four-cylinder compound. 

The StEG built ten in 1902 and four more in 1904 in their own works in Vienna. They took over the Orient Express and other important expresses from the class 26. After World War I, all 14 got to the BBÖ and were designated class 109. In the following time, they were also used for regular passenger trains. They were retired by 1934.