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Rahway Valley Railroad No. 15 is a steam locomotive built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works as Oneida and Western Railroad No. 20 in 1916. As of 2023, the locomotive is on display at Steamtown National Historic Site.
In 1926, 20 suffered freeze damage to its bridges when a hostler accidentally left it outside overnight, necessitating its return to Baldwin for repairs. While at Baldwin, 20's slide valve cylinders were replaced with piston valve cylinders.
20 was sold to the Rahway Valley Railroad in 1937 and renumbered to 15. It last ran in revenue service in November 28, 1953 before being replaced by #17 a GE 70-ton switcher. The President of the Railroad, George Clark, did not wish to see No. 15 scrapped however. It was placed in heated undercover storage pending further development for the next six years; at one point it was hoped the engine would be put on public display in Kenilworth, New Jersey, but space surrounding the railroad was limited. [1]
It was donated to F. Nelson Blount in May 1959 and was received at Wakefield, Massachusetts on June 5 that year. Blount chose to restore the locomotive and operate it at Steamtown, U.S.A. in 1962. [1] It also travelled to Boston to be filmed in The Cardinal . The locomotive later became Green Mountain Railroad #15 following the formation of that railroad. It remained under the Green Mountain name until 1973 and was later reverted to Rahway Valley #15.
No. 15's last run was on August 12, 1973, when a boiler tube blew out, scalding Andy Barbera, who was operating as the locomotive engineer at the time. [1] Since the services of the locomotive were not needed at the time, the repairs were not done and remained undone by the time the Steamtown Special History was written.
The Steamtown Special History Study recommended that the engine be cosmetically and operationally restored, as it had served in the northeastern quarter of the United States and had been serviced, at least once, at the Lackawanna's Scranton shop. [2]
As of 2023, the locomotive is still displayed and inoperable at Steamtown National Historic Site. There aren’t any plans to restore 15 to operation anytime soon. [3]
Union Pacific Railway Engine No. 737 or UP 737 is a 4-4-0 "American" type steam locomotive. It is currently the oldest preserved Union Pacific steam locomotive. It was originally acquired by the Union Pacific Railroad (UP) in 1887.
Steamtown National Historic Site (NHS) is a railroad museum and heritage railroad located on 62.48 acres (25.3 ha) in downtown Scranton, Pennsylvania, at the site of the former Scranton yards of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (DL&W). The museum is built around a working turntable and a roundhouse that are largely replications of the original DL&W facilities; the roundhouse, for example, was reconstructed from remnants of a 1932 structure. The site also features several original outbuildings dated between 1899 and 1902. All the buildings on the site are listed with the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad Yard-Dickson Manufacturing Co. Site.
Francis Nelson Blount was an American businessman, railroad enthusiast and president and founder of Blount Seafood Corporation and the founder of Steamtown, USA, the Monadnock, Steamtown & Northern Railroad, and the Green Mountain Railroad. A millionaire and a railroad enthusiast, Blount's collection of vintage steam locomotives and rail cars—originally based in New England—was one of the largest ever assembled and still remains the cornerstone of the modern-day Steamtown National Historic Site.
Canadian Pacific 2816, also known as the "Empress", is a preserved class "H-1b" 4-6-4 Hudson-type steam locomotive built by the Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW) in December 1930 for the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR); the only non-streamlined H1 Hudson to have survived into preservation.
Canadian National 3254 is a class "S-1-b" 2-8-2 "Mikado" type steam locomotive built by the Canadian Locomotive Company for the Canadian National Railway as the fifth member of the Canadian National class S-1-b.
Brooks-Scanlon Corporation No. 1 is a 2-6-2 steam locomotive at Steamtown National Historic Site in Pennsylvania. This type of locomotive is referred to as a Prairie-type locomotive. This locomotive was built specifically for the lumber industry and served several lumber firms in Florida.
Southern Railway 722 is a class "Ks-1" 2-8-0 "Consolidation" type steam locomotive built in September 1904 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works to run on the Murphy Branch, where it hauled freight trains between Asheville and Murphy, North Carolina for the Southern Railway (SOU). In 1952, it was purchased by the East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad (ET&WNC), alongside its sister locomotive No. 630, where they were served as switchers around Johnson City and Elizabethton, Tennessee.
Steamtown, U.S.A., was a steam locomotive museum that ran steam excursions out of North Walpole, New Hampshire, and Bellows Falls, Vermont, from the 1960s to 1983. The museum was founded by millionaire seafood industrialist F. Nelson Blount. The non-profit Steamtown Foundation took over operations following his death in 1967. Because of Vermont's air quality regulations restricting steam excursions, declining visitor attendance, and disputes over the use of track, some pieces of the collection were relocated to Scranton, Pennsylvania in the mid-1980s and the rest were auctioned off. After the move, Steamtown continued to operate in Scranton but failed to attract the expected 200,000–400,000 visitors. Within two years the tourist attraction was facing bankruptcy, and more pieces of the collection were sold to pay off debt.
Canadian Pacific 1293 is a class "G5d" 4-6-2 "Pacific" type steam locomotive built in June 1948 by the Canadian Locomotive Company for the Canadian Pacific Railway. Built for passenger service, 1293 served an eight-year career until being replaced by diesel locomotives where it was then retired in 1959. Purchased in 1964 by F. Nelson Blount for use at his Steamtown site in Bellows Falls, Vermont, 1293 was easily restored to operation for hauling fan trips for the general public. 1293 was later sold to the Ohio Central Railroad in 1996 for tourist train service. Today, the locomotive is out on display at the Age of Steam Roundhouse in Sugarcreek, Ohio.
Canadian Pacific 1278 is a class "G5d" 4-6-2 "Pacific" type steam locomotive built by the Canadian Locomotive Company for the Canadian Pacific Railway. After being retired from revenue service, the locomotive was purchased in 1965 by F. Nelson Blount for excursion trains at his Steamtown USA museum. The locomotive was sold to Gettysburg Railroad and operated excursion trains there. The No. 1278 was retired from excursion service in 1995 after a boiler explosion. As of 2023, the locomotive is on static display at the Age of Steam Roundhouse in Sugarcreek, Ohio.
Canadian Pacific 1246 is a preserved G5c class 4-6-2 "Pacific" type steam locomotive built by the Montreal Locomotive Works in 1946. In 1965, it became one of three G5 locomotives to be purchased by Steamtown, U.S.A. for excursion service. After operating in Scranton for a few years in the 1980s, No. 1246 was sold at an October 1988 auction to the Railroad Museum of New England with plans to restore and operate it, and it was initially put on static display. As of 2023, No. 1246 is stored at the Railroad Museum of New England.
Union Pacific 4012 is one of eight preserved Union Pacific Big Boy locomotives. Built in November 1941 by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) of Schenectady, New York, No. 4012 was retired in 1962 and donated to Steamtown, U.S.A, in Bellows Falls, Vermont, and later moved to Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton, Pennsylvania, where it remains today.
Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad 425 is a 4-6-2 light "Pacific" type steam locomotive originally built in 1928 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for the Gulf, Mobile & Northern Railroad. After the GM&N was consolidated into the Gulf, Mobile & Ohio in 1940, the locomotive was renumbered No. 580 and served in passenger service before being retired in 1950. The locomotive is currently owned and operated by the Reading & Northern, based out of Port Clinton, Pennsylvania in excursion service. At the end of 2022, No. 425 was taken out of service for its mandatory Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) 1,472-day inspection and overhaul.
Nickel Plate Road 759 is a class "S-2" 2-8-4 "Berkshire" type steam locomotive built in 1944 by the Lima Locomotive Works in Lima, Ohio as a member of the S-2 class for the New York, Chicago & St. Louis Railroad, commonly referred to as the "Nickel Plate Road". Built as a fast freight locomotive, No. 759 served the Nickel Plate until being retired in 1959 and placed into storage. In 1965, No. 759 was purchased by F. Nelson Blount for display in his Steamtown, U.S.A. collection in North Walpole, New Hampshire. The locomotive was restored to operating condition in 1967 by New York commodity broker Ross Rowland for use in hauling his Golden Spike Centennial Limited, a special commemorative train that celebrated the 100th anniversary of the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1969. Afterwards, No. 759 pulled numerous excursions for Ross Rowland and Steamtown until being retired once more and placed back on display in 1977. As of 2023, the locomotive remains on static display at the Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and sibling engine No. 765 continues to operate in mainline excursion service.
Boston and Maine 3713, also known as the "Constitution", is the sole survivor of the "P-4a" class 4-6-2 "Heavy Pacific" type steam locomotives. It was built in December 1934 by the Lima Locomotive Works for the Boston and Maine Railroad, hauling passenger trains around the New England region. In 1956, No. 3713 was given the duty to haul B&M's Farewell to Steam excursion between Boston, Massachusetts and Portland, Maine, marking the end of steam operations on the B&M. Afterwards, the locomotive was purchased by New England millionaire F. Nelson Blount for his Steamtown, U.S.A. collection. When Blount died in 1967, No. 3713 and the rest of Steamtown collection were all moved to the Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Canadian Pacific 2317 is a class "G-3c" 4-6-2 "Pacific" type steam locomotive built by the Montreal Locomotive Works for the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Reading 2124 is a preserved American class "T-1" 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotive that was built by the Reading Company in January 1947 using parts from "I-10sa" class 2-8-0 "Consolidation" type locomotive number 2024, which was originally built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1924.
The Reading T-1 was a class of 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotives owned by the Reading Company. They were rebuilt from 30 "I-10sa" class 2-8-0 "Consolidation" type locomotives between 1945 and 1947. Out of the 30 rebuilt, 4 survive in preservation today, those being numbers 2100, 2101, 2102 and 2124.
Baldwin Locomotive Works 26 is an 0-6-0 "Switcher" type steam locomotive, it is one of several "stock" switchers equipped with a slope-backed tender. It is currently a part of the operating fleet at the Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton, Pennsylvania for use on excursion trains.
Grand Trunk Western No. 6039 is a preserved class "U-1-c" 4-8-2 "Mountain type" steam locomotive built in June 1925 by Baldwin. It served the Grand Trunk Western Railroad by pulling fast passenger and freight trains throughout the Lower Peninsula of Michigan, until the railroad decided to dieselize their locomotive fleet. During that time, it was leased to the Central Vermont Railway for freight service, only to become one of the very last steam locomotives to regularly operate in the state of Vermont. After being retired in the late 1950s, No. 6039 became one of the very first steam locomotives to be owned by F. Nelson Blount, and it subsequently became part of his Steamtown, U.S.A. collection for static display. In 1984, the locomotive was moved along with every other locomotive in the Steamtown collection from Bellows Falls to Scranton, Pennsylvania, where the name would late be changed to Steamtown National Historic Site under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service. As of 2023, No. 6039 remains on static display at Scranton with very meticulous cosmetic care.
| External images | |
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 Builder's photo | |
| 1937, Kenilworth, New Jersey | |
| 1963-01-07, Steamtown USA | |
| Current view. | |
| Current. |
