Niles Canyon Railway Steam Double-Header for Train of Lights
The Niles Canyon Railway provided double-headed steam engines to power its annual “Train of Lights” between Niles and Sunol, Calif. Quincy Railroad Co. No. 2 (Alco, 1924) and Clover Valley Lumber Co. No. 4 (Baldwin, 1924) are seen at sunset in Sunol on November 29, 2015. While the special steam runs were just for one weekend, NCRy’s popular Train of Lights continued through the end of the year.
PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER HAUF
STEAM AND PRESERVATION JEFFREY D. TERRY
Vintage Santa Fe Diesels to Museum of the American Railroad
After nearly three decades in storage, a trio of vintage Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe diesel locomotives are on their way to a new home in Frisco, Texas. The units, once part of Santa Fe’s corporate locomotive collection, have been donated to the Museum of the American Railroad (MAR) by the California State Railroad Museum (CSRM), where they’ve resided since 1986. Funding for their acquisition is being provided by a grant from the Samuel Freeman Charitable Trust; the grant covers loading and shipping charges (estimated at around $150,000) as well as cosmetic restoration of the locomotives once they arrive in Texas. The three historic units were set aside for preservation in the 1970s as part of the Historic Santa Fe Collection, which included several notable types of steam and diesel
locomotives that served
ATSF. For many years, the collection was stored at the Albuquerque, N.M., roundhouse.
When Santa Fe and
Southern Pacific made plans to merge in the mid-1980s, the collection was donated to CSRM, where they were stored pending construction of additional exhibit space (which,
never materialized). According to an MAR press release, CSRM made the equipment available to the Museum of the American Railroad following a restructuring of their collection and a refocusing of new exhibits. The locomotives — all of them switch
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engines — are typical of those used in the Midwest and Southwest states and represent three different builders. ATSF No. 2404 is a model NW-2 built by Electro Motive Corporation in 1939; ATSF No. 2260 is a Baldwin DS44-1000 built in 1948; and ATSF No. 608 is a model H12- 44 built by Fairbanks-Morse in 1951. None are in operable condition and will require extensive cosmetic repairs, including new glass. In addition, CSRM is donating a 1949 Southern Pacific F7B unit, No. 8103, which will be repainted in Santa Fe colors as a companion for MAR’s ex-Canadian National F7A, which now wears the classic ATSF “Warbonnet” red and silver scheme. CSRM is retaining ATSF Alco RSD15 “Alligator” No. 9815 and Alco RS-1 No. 2394, both of which spent their working lives in California. It is also repainting 4-8-4 No. 2925 and 2-10-4 No. 5021, which are stored along the Sacramento River waterfront on the museum’s Sacramento Southern excursion railroad; both steam locomotives have been frequent targets of taggers.
New Owner for Maine Central No. 470
unfortunately,
The largest steam locomotive in New England has a new owner. On November 5, 2015, Maine Central 4-6-2 No. 470 was purchased by the New England Steam Corporation from the city of Waterville, Maine, for $25,000. The 1924 Alco-built Pacific served in passenger service for nearly 30 years, and is notable for being the last Maine Central steam locomotive in operation. On July 13, 1954, it pulled a round-trip excursion from Portand to Bangor with much fanfare, and then
four days later was placed on display in Waterville. Maine winters have not been kind to No. 470, which is now badly deteriorated and vandalized. The non-profit NESC was formed in 2010 to restore the 4-6-2, which is one of only three existing Maine Central steam locomotives, to operating condition. Since that time the group has been working to stop further deterioration and stabilize the Pacific. In 2016, No. 470 will be trucked some 80 miles to the Downeast Scenic Railroad and restored inside an all-weather semi- permanent shop building. For details visit
www.newenglandsteam.org.
Maine Two-Footer Back in Steam
Following an extensive overhaul, Monson Railroad 0-4-4T No. 3 was fired up for the first time in eight years on October 31, 2015. The two-foot-gauge locomotive, once part of the extensive Edaville collection, is owned by the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad Company & Museum (MNGR) and leased to the Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes Railroad of Phillips, Maine. Number 3 was built by Vulcan Iron
Works in 1913 and worked on the Monson until 1943, when it and sister No. 4 were sold to Ellis D. Atwood for
his Edaville operation in South
Carver, Mass. When Edaville closed in the 1990s, it was moved to Portland, Maine, and became part of the MNGM collection along with the majority of Edaville equipment. In 2005, No. 3 was leased to the SR&RL group for 15 years (which has relaid a portion of original SR&RL track, and offers short rides at
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