ABOVE: Making a dramatic debut, engine 3025 pulls a trainload of happy families on her first night of revenue service leading the North Pole Express. The train is about to cross over the Old Deep River Road on November 25, 2011. LEFT: Is that a steam-powered freight under wire? A group of railfans record the time-warping 3025 as it proceeds east down Track 3 in Old Saybrook, Conn., shoved by P&W’s train NR-2 on November 22, 2011. This section of former New Haven main line, now operated as part of Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor, was electrified in 2000.
sembling it and turning each part as they went along, with the final result being a south-facing tender. In mid-November 2011, 3025 was
ready to roll. Having been steam tested and re-assembled, the reborn Mikado made a few test runs inside the Essex yard limits. Satisfied with its perfor- mance, it was now time to turn the lo- comotive so it could join No. 40 in pulling the North Pole Express trains after Thanksgiving. The locomotive would be turned on Amtrak’s wye at Old Saybrook by the Providence & Worcester on November 22, 2011, just three days before the railroad hoped to press her into revenue service. After some more tests and adjustments, she
entered revenue service on Friday, No- vember 25, 2011, pulling the second section of the North Pole Express from Essex to Chester and back. What’s next for No. 97? For the time
being, not much. The 2-8-0 was winter- ized and placed on a display track in Essex, where she’ll remain for now. A preliminary list of tasks, along with some very rough budget estimates, was generated for conducting the 1472 day inspection on the locomotive by the shop staff, and some of the parts that will be required for the rebuild are be- ing acquired. A more thorough inspec- tion of the Consolidation will occur in the spring, where the staff can get a more accurate plan and budget. Once
See more of Valley Railroad’s historic steam locomotives at
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that is in hand, the Valley will work to raise the money to perform the entire restoration prior to work beginning. As Conrad put it, “There are steam loco- motives scattered across the country which have been dismantled by well meaning groups and individuals with insufficient funds.” The Valley Rail- road doesn’t intend to become one of those well-meaning groups, and aims to have all the resources for the entire teardown and rebuild at the ready when work commences. And once that is done — a rough figure of four to five years has been mentioned — No. 97 will join the other two locomotives in pulling passengers up and down the Connecticut River valley.
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