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References: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] |
Valley Railroad 40 is a preserved 101 class 2-8-2 "Mikado" type steam locomotive that was built by American Locomotive Company's Brooks Works for the Minarets and Western Railway. It was initially built as No. 101 for the Portland, Astoria and Pacific Railroad as part of their small order of locomotives. However, the order was cancelled, and the locomotive was subsequently sold to the Minarets and Western Railway to haul logging trains. No. 101 subsequently went through several ownerships during revenue service, until it was retired in 1950, and by that time, it was renumbered to 40. After spending several years in storage, No. 40 made its way to the Valley Railroad in Essex in 1977. As of 2024, No. 40 is being used to haul tourist trains between Essex and Deep River, Connecticut, alongside 2-8-0 No. 97 and 2-8-2 No. 3025.
In August 1920, No. 40 was one of four 2-8-2 "Mikado" type locomotives that were erected out of the American Locomotive Company's Brooks Locomotive Works in Dunkirk, New York, and it was originally numbered 101. [4] [5] These four locomotives were initially constructed for the new Portland, Astoria and Pacific Railroad to be used to pull logging and lumber trains in Oregon. [6] However, the railroad was quickly shut down before the locomotives could be placed into service, and they were left in storage. In 1923, they were sold to the Minarets and Western Railway (M&W), a subsidiary of the Sugar Pine Lumber Company (SPLCO). [1] The M&W put No. 101 into service by hauling lumber trains between the forest near Minarets and the railroad's sawmill at Pinedale. [7] However, the SPLCO was struggling to pay their debts, and following the effects of the Great Depression, the company declared bankruptcy, in 1933.
In January 1935, as part of a foreclosure settlement, No. 101 was conveyed to the nearby Southern Pacific Railroad (SP). [1] The SP couldn't make any usage out of light-weight 2-8-2s, and they quickly sold No. 101 to the Birmingham Rail and Locomotive dealership. In December, the locomotive was sold again to the Aberdeen and Rockfish Railroad (A&R) in North Carolina, who renumbered it to No. 40 and converted it from oil to coal firing. [1] [8] [5] The A&R reassigned No. 40 to haul freight and passenger trains on their trackage between Aberdeen and Fayetteville, and it subsequently became favored by crews who worked operated it. On one occasion, the locomotive was involved in a major derailment, but it was repaired and returned to service shortly afterward. During World War II, No. 40 was used as a supply of hot steam for trains that carried military soldiers out of the nearby Fort Bragg US army base.
In 1950, No. 40 was retired from revenue service, and it was stored inside a small shed for the next several years. [9] [5] It became the only steam locomotive from the A&R not to be scrapped, due to its popularity with crews, and the military trains out of Fort Bragg required some heating supply. During special occasions, No. 40 would be towed out of the shed to various A&R communities for display in local festivals. By the mid 1970s, the A&R began to consider donating No. 40 to the city of Aberdeen for permanent static display.
In 1976, the Valley Railroad (VALE), a tourist railroad that operated over former New Haven trackage, was looking for a steam locomotive to assist their Ex-Birmingham and Southeastern 2-8-0 No. 97 in their passenger operations. [10] [2] [5] In 1977, after a VALE employee discovered No. 40 and its disposition, the VALE reached an agreement with the A&R to purchase the locomotive. [5] [3] It was pulled out of its shed and lifted onto two flatcars to be shipped to Essex, Connecticut. Upon arrival in Essex, No. 40 was test fired before it entered the VALE's locomotive shops for an overhaul that lasted for less than a year. [10] [2] No. 40 was placed into service for the VALE, on June 17, 1978, with then-Connecticut governor Ella Grasso christening the locomotive. [2]
In 1985, No. 40 had to be removed from service, after one of its driving wheel tires broke. [1] [3] Necessary repairs on No. 40 began, the following year, and with No. 97 also being due for an overhaul, the VALE began searching for another steam locomotive for use in their operations. [1] [3] It resulted in the VALE investing in importing modified SY locomotive No. 1647 from China, and No. 40’s overhaul became a smaller priority. [1] [3] In 1990, when No. 1647 was placed into service, No. 40’s overhaul continued at a quicker pace, while No. 97 was relegated to stand-by service. [1] [3] In December 1991, No. 1647 was sold off, and with No. 40’s overhaul nearly completed, the VALE prioritized it again, while No. 97 covered the railroad’s schedule. [1] [3] In December 1992, No. 40 was test fired, and on May 1, 1993, the locomotive returned to service, allowing No. 97 to undergo some required repairs. [1] By the end of the 1990s, No. 40 was removed from service again, after the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) enforced that any active steam locomotive in the United States go through a mandated 1,472-day overhaul. [11] No. 40 was eventually back in service in 2007. [11]
Former Portland, Astoria and Pacific No. 102 went on to have a long working career in Canada on Vancouver Island. It was sold to the Alberni Pacific Railway in Port Alberni British Columbia, where it was renumbered to No. 6. It was then operated by Macmillan Bloedel as their first No. 1055, until it was sold to Canadian Forest Products (Canfor) up in Northern Vancouver Island in Woss, British Columbia. It was renumbered again to No. 55, but later on, it was further changed to No. 113. No. 113 was retired in 1973, and was placed on static display. The company then brought it back under steam in 1988, and used it for Canfor's company picnics. It was retired again, in 1995, and has since been left on static display in Woss. [7]
The Mount Hood Railroad is a heritage and shortline freight railroad located in Hood River, Oregon, 60 miles (97 km) east of Portland, Oregon, United States.
The Aberdeen and Rockfish Railroad is a short-line railroad operating in North Carolina, United States. At one time, the AR was a Class 2 railroad. The railroad has 47 miles (76 km) of track between Aberdeen and Fayetteville, North Carolina.
The Belvidere & Delaware River Railway Company also known as Delaware River Railroad or Bel-Del, is a class III railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1995 when the Conrail Delaware Secondary line was purchased by the Black River Railroad System, which operates several railroad services in western New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania. The Black River Railroad System also owns and operates the Black River and Western Railroad (BR&W). BR&W has leased 10 miles (16 km) of trackage to BDRV since 2004.
The Minarets and Western Railway was a Class II common carrier that operated in Fresno County, California, from 1921 to 1933. The railway was owned by the Sugar Pine Lumber Company and was built the same year the lumber company was incorporated so that it could haul timber from the forest near Minarets to its sawmill at Pinedale. The southern portion of the line was operated with joint trackage rights with Southern Pacific.
Valley Railroad 3025 is a China Railways SY class 2-8-2 "Mikado" type steam locomotive. It was built in July 1989 by the Tangshan Locomotive and Rolling Stock Works as SY-1658M, and it was exported to the Knox and Kane Railroad (K&K) in the United States. In 1990, No. 1658 began hauling tourist trains for the K&K between Marienville, Kane, and Mount Jewett, Pennsylvania, and it often operated over the railroad's primary attraction, the Kinzua Bridge. By 2004, the locomotive was put into storage, following a decline in ridership on the K&K.
California Western Railroad No. 45 is an operating 2-8-2 logging "Mikado" type steam locomotive, located at the California Western Railroad, a.k.a. the world-famous Skunk Train, in Fort Bragg, California. The locomotive was built in 1924, by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for the Owen-Oregon Lumber Company, where it hauled lumber until its retirement in 1964. The Medford Corporation sold No. 45 to the California Western Railroad in 1965. The Mendocino Railway, a subsidiary of Sierra Northern, purchased the railroad in 2003 after the California Western filed for bankruptcy.
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.
St. Louis–San Francisco 1352 is an Alco built 2-8-2 Steam locomotive. Built in 1912 as a 2-8-0 Consolidation-type by the American Locomotive Company of Schenectady, New York, for the St. Louis–San Francisco Railway, the engine was later rebuilt into a 2-8-2 Mikado-type to keep up with the traffic demands from World War II. After being retired from the Frisco, the locomotive was moved to many locations under several owners, until it ended up in a small engine house in Rural, Illinois. The locomotive was disassembled by a group with the intent to restore it to operation. Later, the American Steam Railroad ("ASR") was founded, and they purchased the No. 1352 locomotive in 2008 with the hopes of restoring it to operating condition. However, it was left partially disassembled in Taylorville, Illinois, due to the ASR being busy working on restoring another steam locomotive Reading 2100. In November 2023, the No. 1352 locomotive was purchased by the Valley Railroad located in Essex, Connecticut.
The Age of Steam Roundhouse Museum, located in Sugarcreek, Ohio, United States, is a museum roundhouse housing steam and diesel locomotives, passenger cars and other vintage United States and Canadian railroad equipment.
Reading Blue Mountain and Northern 425 is a G-1 class 4-6-2 light "Pacific" type steam locomotive built 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.
Duluth and Northern Minnesota No. 14 is a preserved MK class 2-8-2 light "Mikado" built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for the Duluth and Northern Minnesota Railroad in 1913. In 1919, the D&NM declared bankrupt, and the locomotive was sold to the Michigan-based Lake Superior and Ishpeming Railroad, to operate there as No. 22. It was renumbered back to 14 in 1923. In 1959, No. 14 was sold to the Inland Stone Division of Inland Steel Company, another Michigan-based corporation, and it operated there until 1966. In 1974, it was transferred to the Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range Railway, and then it was donated to the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in 1981. The locomotive was restored to operation for use on the museum's North Shore Scenic Railroad between 1992 and 1998. As of 2024, No. 14 remains on static display inside the museum in Duluth, Minnesota.
Lake Superior and Ishpeming Railroad No. 33 is a preserved SC-1 class 2-8-0 "consolidation" type steam locomotive originally built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in April 1916 for the Munising, Marquette and Southeastern Railway as No. 44. In 1924, the MM&SE was purchased by the Lake Superior and Ishpeming Railroad and the locomotive was renumbered to 33. It served the LS&I by pulling heavy iron ore trains until it was retired from revenue service in 1962. The following year, it was sold to the Marquette and Huron Mountain tourist railroad to operate in excursion service, but instead sat idle in Marquette.
Tremont and Gulf Railroad No. 30 is a preserved class 30 2-8-2 "Mikado" steam locomotive built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1917 for the Tremont and Gulf Railroad. It was used by the T&G for hauling freight trains in branch lines throughout the state of Louisiana until 1954, when it was sold to the Magma Arizona Railroad and renumbered 7. There, the locomotive was used for hauling smaller freight trains in Southern Arizona, until its retirement in 1968. Afterwards, it continued to be sold to various owners and groups, until it was purchased by the Texas State Railroad in 1974. It was restored to operating condition and used to pull tourist excursion trips between Rusk and Palestine, Texas as No. 400 from 1978 to 2002. Since 2014, the locomotive has been back under steam on the TSRR as MAA No. 7, and then it was reverted to T&G No. 30 in 2017. It is still operational as of 2024.
Southern Pine Lumber Company No. 28 is a preserved 2-8-0 “Consolidation” steam locomotive that was originally operated by the United States Army Transportation Corps. It is one of three survivors out of over 1,500 General Pershing locomotives built in 1917 for the War Department in World War I, originally numbered 396. After the war, the locomotive was sold off to the Claiborne and Polk Railroad for short distance freight service, and from there, it was sold multiple times throughout its revenue career, until 1956, when it was sold to the Southern Pine Lumber Company in East Texas, where it operated until it was retired in the early 1970s. In 1972, the locomotive was donated to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, who moved it to the Texas State Railroad for restoration four years later. After over twenty years of being stored, awaiting for restoration to come to fruition, the locomotive was fired up again in April 1996 as TSRR No. 300. It has pulled multiple excursion trains between Rusk and Palestine every year since its return to steam alongside a few other steam locomotives, including 2-8-2 No. 400. As of 2024, the locomotive was reverted to one of its original identities as SPLCO No. 28, but is currently getting its running gear repaired in Rusk.
Wilmington and Western 58 is an 0-6-0 "Switcher" type steam locomotive, originally built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in for the Atlanta, Birmingham and Atlantic Railway, it is now preserved and operated by the Wilmington and Western Railroad.
Polson Logging Company 2 is a 2-8-2 “Mikado” steam locomotive built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works. It was originally built for the Saginaw Timber Company to pull logging trains. After that, it went through several ownership changes throughout both the steam era and the preservation era, before it was purchased by caretaker Skip Lichter in 1982. Lichter restored Polson Lumber 2 to operational condition and loaned it to the Mid-Continent Railway Museum in North Freedom, Wisconsin. The engine was later removed from service in 2000 to undergo a federally-mandated rebuild. Disagreement over who should cover the restoration costs ultimately led to an arbiter finding in Lichter's favor.
The Sugar Pine Lumber Company was an early 20th century logging operation and railroad in the Sierra Nevada. Unable to secure water rights to build a log flume, the company operated the “crookedest railroad ever built." They later developed the Minarets-type locomotive, the largest and most powerful saddle tank locomotive ever made. The company was also a pioneer in the electrification of logging where newly plentiful hydroelectric power replaced the widespread use of steam engines.
Valley Railroad 97 is a preserved 200 class 2-8-0 "Consolidation" type steam locomotive that was built by the American Locomotive Company's Cooke Works for the Birmingham and Southeastern Railroad.
New York, Susquehanna and Western 142 is a China Railways SY class 2-8-2 "Mikado" type steam locomotive. It was built as SY-1647M in May 1989 by the Tangshan Locomotive and Rolling Stock Works for the Valley Railroad (VALE) in the United States. Its design was altered to meet requirements for U.S. operation. It made its inaugural run for the VALE in early 1990.
Sugar Pine Lumber Company 4 is a 2-8-2ST "Mikado" built by the American Locomotive Company in 1925. After the Sugar Pine Lumber Company went bankrupt in 1933, it wound later be purchased by Pacific Lumber Company and renumbered to 37. The engine was briefly purchased to railfan Frank Bayliss before starting its heritage railroad career on the Wawa & Concord Ville Railroad in 1966. The engine saw service on the Wilmington & Western Railroad before being retired in 1990. In 2003, the Timber Heritage Association purchased the locomotive and had her stored at the Strasburg Railroad starting in 2010 with intentions of operational restoration. In 2023 the Timber Heritage Association sold the engine to the Age of Steam Roundhouse where it received a cosmetic restoration and is now on display.