Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 4-8-4 represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles and four trailing wheels on two axles. The type was first used by the Northern Pacific Railway, and initially named the Northern Pacific, but railfans and railroad employees have shortened the name since its introduction. It is most-commonly known as a Northern.
Chesapeake and Ohio 614 is a class "J-3-A" 4-8-4 "Greenbrier" (Northern) type steam locomotive built in June 1948 by the Lima Locomotive Works in Lima, Ohio for the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) as a member of the J-3-A class. As one of the last commercially built steam locomotives in the United States, the locomotive was built with the primary purpose of hauling long, heavy, high speed express passenger trains for the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway such as the George Washington and the Fast Flying Virginian.
Reading 2101 is a preserved T-1 class 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotive constructed in September 1945 for use by the Reading Company. Constructed from an earlier "I10SA" 2-8-0 "Consolidation"-type locomotive, 2101 was originally built in March 1923 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works, the 2101 handled heavy coal train traffic for the Reading until being retired from revenue service in 1959. Withheld from scrapping, the 2101 served as emergency backup power for the three other T1 locomotives serving the Reading's "Iron Horse Rambles" excursions until being sold for scrap in 1964.
Nickel Plate Road 765 is a S-2 class 2-8-4 "Berkshire" type steam locomotive built by the Lima Locomotive Works for the New York, Chicago & St. Louis Railroad, commonly referred to as the "Nickel Plate Road". In 1963, No. 765, renumbered as 767, was donated to the city of Fort Wayne, Indiana, where it sat on display at the Lawton Park, while the real No. 767 was scrapped at Chicago in 1964.
Southern Pacific 2472 is a P-8 class 4-6-2 heavy "Pacific" type steam locomotive built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for the Southern Pacific Railroad (SP) in 1921. No. 2472 is one of three surviving Southern Pacific P-8 class 4-6-2 Pacific locomotives, the other two being Nos. 2467 and 2479. The 4-6-2 designation means it has four leading wheels, six driving wheels, and two trailing wheels. The locomotive was used by the Southern Pacific Railroad to haul passenger trains until being retired in 1957. The locomotive was then donated to San Mateo County and placed on static display at the San Mateo County Fairgrounds. After being restored to operational condition in the early 1990s, the locomotive would pull excursion trains on the Niles Canyon Railway until being retired in 2015. The No. 2472 was then moved to the Northwest Pacific Railroad, where it is as of 2023, undergoing its Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) mandated 1,472 day inspection and overhaul.
Spokane, Portland & Seattle 700 is the oldest and only surviving example of the class "E-1" 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotive and the only surviving "original" Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway steam locomotive. It was built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in May 1938. Nearly identical to the class "A-3" Northerns built for Northern Pacific Railway, it burns oil instead of coal.
Canadian Pacific 2816, also known as the "Empress", is a preserved H1b class 4-6-4 "Hudson" type steam locomotive built by the Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW) in December 1930 for the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP). It is the only non-streamlined H1 Hudson to be preserved.
Canadian National 3254 is a S-1-b class 2-8-2 "Mikado" type steam locomotive built in 1917 by the Canadian Locomotive Company for the Canadian National Railway as the fifth member of the Canadian National class S-1-b.
The Pennsylvania Railroad G5 is a class of 4-6-0 steam locomotives built by the PRR's Juniata Shops in the mid-late 1920s. It was designed for passenger trains, particularly on commuter lines, and became a fixture on suburban railroads until the mid-1950s.
The Reading T-1 was a class of 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotives owned by the Reading Company. They were rebuilt from thirty "I-10sa" class 2-8-0 "Consolidation" type locomotives between 1945 and 1947. Out of the thirty rebuilt, four survive in preservation today, those being numbers 2100, 2101, 2102, and 2124.
The Milwaukee Railroad Shops Historic District, also known as the Sioux City Railroad Museum is a nationally recognized historic district located in Sioux City, Iowa, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2018. At the time of its nomination it contained 41 resources, which included six contributing buildings, 16 archaeological sites, six contributing structures, and 14 contributing objects.
Great Northern 2584 is a 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotive built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in March 1930 for the Great Northern Railway (GN) as a member of the S-2 class.
The Great Northern S-2 was a class of 14 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotives built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1930 and operated by the Great Northern Railway until the late 1950s.
Great Northern 2507 is a 4-8-2 "Mountain" type steam locomotive, a member of the P-2 class. Built for passenger service, the locomotive was assigned to pull the Great Northern's mainline passenger trains such as the Empire Builder and Oriental Limited, until being retired in December 1957 and sold to Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway. GN 2507 is one of only two surviving examples of a P-2 class locomotive and, since 2003, has been on display at Wishram station in Wishram, Washington.
The Great Northern H-5 was a class of 25 4-6-2 "Pacific" type steam locomotives that were originally built as E-14 4-6-0 "Ten Wheelers" by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1909 and operated by the Great Northern Railway until the mid-1950s.
Western Maryland Scenic Railroad No. 734, also known as Mountain Thunder, is an SC-1 class 2-8-0 “Consolidation” type steam locomotive originally built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1916 for the Lake Superior and Ishpeming Railroad (LS&I) as No. 18. It was renumbered to 34 in 1925. No. 34 was used to pull heavy iron ore trains for the LS&I, until it was retired in 1961. The locomotive was subsequently sold to the Marquette and Huron Mountain Railroad, where it was stored in a sideline alongside other LS&I steam locomotives. In 1971, No. 34 was sold to the Illinois Railway Museum for static display.
Southern Pacific No. 1744 is a preserved American M-6 class 2-6-0 "Mogul" type steam locomotive built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for the Southern Pacific Railroad in November 1901. Originally equipped with Vauclain compound cylinders, it was rebuilt with conventional cylinders in 1912. It operated for many years out of Oakland, California on the Southern Pacific's Western Division and in California's Central Valley where the locomotive and its classmates were fondly called “Valley Mallets” by their crews.
Reading 2100 is a T-1 class 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotives constructed in September 1945 for use by the Reading Company (RDG). Constructed from an earlier 2-8-0 "Consolidation" type locomotive, No. 2100 was originally built in May 1923 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works, No. 2100 pulled heavy freight and coal trains for the Reading until being retired from revenue service in 1956. Between 1961 and 1964, No. 2100 was used to pull the RDG's Iron Horse Rambles excursions alongside fellow T-1's Nos. 2124 and 2102. After the rambles ended, No. 2100 was sold along with No. 2101 in 1967 to a scrapyard in Baltimore, Maryland.
Canadian Pacific 972 is a preserved D-10j class 4-6-0 "Ten-wheeler" type steam locomotive built by the Montreal Locomotive Works. It was used for pulling branchline and mainline freight trains for the Canadian Pacific Railway, until it was removed from service in 1959. It eventually became famous for pulling multiple mainline excursion trains throughout the state of Pennsylvania under the ownership of George Hart. It was sold to the Strasburg Rail Road in 1995, who had an initial plan to rebuild it to pull their own tourist trains. As of 2025, No. 972 is stored outdoors and disassembled in the Strasburg Rail Road's yard.
Huntingdon and Broad Top Mountain Railroad and Coal Co. 38 is a preserved 37 class 2-8-0 "Consolidation" type steam locomotive. It was built by Baldwin in April 1927 for use on the Huntingdon and Broad Top Mountain Railroad and Coal Company in south central Pennsylvania in the United States, which commonly used the locomotive to pull short-distance freight trains, as well as occasional passenger trains, until the railroad shut down operations in 1954. The locomotive was subsequently acquired by the Rail City Historical Museum in Sandy Creek, New York for static display. In the late 1960s, No. 38 was sold to the Livonia, Avon and Lakeville Railroad in Lakeville, New York, who restored the locomotive to operating condition to pull their excursion trains.
