derstood the unique status of his all-Al- co railroad. He retired from the compa- ny’s day to day operations in 1998, with Larry Bouchet taking his place.
The Alco Fleet
These high points only tell the pas- senger train story of the A&M. The big draw for railfans has always been the Alco locomotives. Freight trains run- ning south from Springdale to Fort Smith and north to Monett have been powered by lash-ups of five or six Alco C-420s.
In the summer of 2013, the Alcos had new competition in motive power on the shortline when the railroad pur- chased three demonstrator EMD SD70ACe locomotives. The SD70s, numbered 71,72, and 73 by the A&M, were purchased from Progress Rail Services and arrived on the property in August 2013. The appearance of these EMD units on the all-Alco railroad pro- vides a good opportunity to reflect upon the unique place in North America rail-
RIGHT: The dome observation car, Susacapejo (originally built for the Wabash Bluebird), sits on a siding at Chester, Ark., while A&M No. 62, an Alco C-420, runs around the train for the return to Van Buren, circa 1989. BELOW: Creating a classic short line scene, two Arkansas & Missouri passenger trains pass one another in the late 1990s near Chester.
roading that the Arkansas and Mis- souri has occupied for the last 28 years. When J.A. “Tony” Hannold moved from Maryland to Arkansas as presi- dent of the new short line in 1986, his son, Randy, also came to the Natural State and served as chief mechanical officer. The Hannolds brought with them an all-Alco fleet of locomotives: C-420s, C-424s, T-6s, one RS-32 and one RS-1. The mountain railroad im-
mediately attracted attention from railfans nationally because of their vin- tage diesel engines.
Alco locomotives on the A&M , with their distinctive appearance and four- axle trucks, have performed well for the railroad. When tackling the 2.5 per cent grades of the old Frisco line through the Boston Mountains, the A&M uses multiple units to hoist freight tonnage over the pass and
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