Milwaukee 261 – Departing Galesburg
Milwaukee Road No. 261, a 1940s American Locomotive Co. 4-8-4 “Northern” type making a sunset departure from the Galesburg (IL) Railroad Days festival in the summer of 1998. For some of its excursions, 261 pulls a complete train of vintage Milwaukee Road passenger cars, including the unique “sky-top” lounge/observation car which Frank Sinatra used to rent for his travels.
611 – Cylinder Cocks Open
Photographed in Atlanta, GA in 1991, Norfolk and Western Class “J” locomotive No. 611 starts up with cylinder drain cocks open to bleed off water that condensed while the engine was sitting still. Built in 1950 in the N&W shops in Roanoke, VA, No. 611 was part of a fleet of 25 Class J engines used to power crack passenger trains such as the Powhatan Arrow during the last days of steam. This 4-8-4 streamlined monster could pull a 20 car train in excess of 90 mph. It’s on display at the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke.
Early Morning Flyer
A 1910 American Locomotive Co. 4-6-2 “Pacific” type, No. 750 is shown rushing around the Atlanta loop with an excursion train in 1982. Pacifics were used in passenger service by most American railroads beginning in the 1880s until replaced by larger, faster and more powerful steam motive power beginning about 1920. 750 starred in the movie “Biloxi Blues” pulling a WW-II troop train.
Lightning Challenger
Dramatic night picture of Union Pacific Railroad 4-6-6-4 “Challenger” articulated locomotive with a nearby lightning strike. No. 3985 is the last survivor of UP’s fleet of 105 Challengers built by American Locomotive Company during the 1930s and 40s. Still in service, 3985 makes occasional rail-fan excursion trips on the UP system.
Moonlight Northern
A full moon graces the night sky over Union Pacific No. 844, a 4-8-4 “Northern” type locomotive, built in 1944 by the American Locomotive Co. This is the last surviving example of UP’s premier passenger locomotives from the steam era. With huge driving wheels, it is billed as the fastest steam engine in operation today, capable of speeds in excess of 100 mph. Used in occasional rail-fan and public relations trips, 844 is the primary locomotive for special rodeo trains from Denver to Cheyenne during Frontier Days festivities. The unusual front side attachments are smoke lifters, used on some passenger trains to keep smoke, soot and cinders away from passenger cars.
Santa Fe 3751 – Kingman Canyon, Arizona Photographed in 2002, Santa Fe No. 3751 pulls a special excursion headed for the National Railway Historical Society convention in Williams, AZ. Santa Fe No. 3751 is a Baldwin 4-8-4 “Northern” locomotive of the type used by most railroads for passenger service through the end of the steam era. Owned by the city of San Bernadino, but based in Los Angeles, No. 3751 runs occasional rail-fan excursions. This part of the route to Williams is on the old Santa FE mainline from Los Angeles to Chicago, which has a very heavy traffic of container freight. Just south of the town of Kingman, AZ, the canyon is a very scenic place for watching trains.
Santa Fe 3751 – Route 66 Ranch, Arizona
En route to Williams, AZ for the 2002 National Railway Historical Society convention, Santa Fe No. 3751 passes a picturesque ranch on old highway 66 a few miles north of Kingman. No. 3751 is a 4-8-4 “Northern” passenger engine, typical motive power from the 1930s through the end of steam. It was built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia.
1218 Approaching Norcross
With whistles blowing, Norfolk and Western Railway No. 1218 makes a high speed approach to Norcross, GA on a 1991 “autumn leaves” rail-fan excursion from Toccoa to Atlanta, GA. Designed and built in their own shops in Roanoke, VA, N&W 1218 is a 2-6-6-4 articulated locomotive (designated Class “A”) with a maximum output of 6,500 horsepower. Last operated in 1991, a rebuild of 1218 was begun in 1992 but never finished. In 1994, the Norfolk Southern ended its historic steam program. The cosmetically restored locomotive is now on display in the new Claytor Hall at the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke.
BNSF Double-Stack – Kingman Canyon, Arizona
With a paint scheme reminiscent of the famous Santa Fe “war bonnet” of early Diesel days, modern Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad locomotives pull a double-stack of freight containers through Kingman Canyon, AZ, headed for the Port of Los Angeles in 2002. Located just south of Kingman, AZ, this double-tracked section of the old Santa Fe Chicago-to-Los Angeles mainline serves up to 100 trains per day.
C&O 614 at Port Jervis, New York
Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad Class J-3a 4-8-4 “Greenbrier” No. 614 at Port Jervis, New York. This was the last passenger locomotive built by Lima Locomotive Works (1949). This photograph has been modified using several software systems to produce a painterly effect with brushstrokes and other artistic touches, creating a unique and striking image.
Daylight Crossing
The last of a proud fleet of Southern Pacific Lines “Daylight” locomotives, No. 4449 comes to a crisscross track at the depot in Vancouver, WA, on an excursion from Portland, OR to Wishram, WA in 1997. Built by the Lima Locomotive Works in 1941, No. 4449 is a 4-8-4 type, SP Class GS-4. More than 100 of these graceful and powerful locomotives were built during the 1930s and 40s. The Daylight trains ran from Los Angeles to San Francisco and on other SP routes. In 1976, No. 4449 was repainted red, white and blue to pull the Freedom Train as part of the American Revolution Bicentennial celebration.
The “A” and the “J”
Two of the most famous locomotives from 1980s and 1990s excursion duty, Norfolk and Western Railway’s Class “A” No. 1218 and Class “J” No. 611, are pictured in Armour Yard in Atlanta, GA, in 1991. This was the last year 1218 ran, but 611 continued in service through the end of the Norfolk Southern historic steam program in 1994. Today, both engines are on display in the new Claytor Hall at the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke.
Atlanta and West Point RR No. 290 at Mile Post Zero
No. 290 departs Mile Post Zero in downtown Atlanta, GA for a fan trip to Stone Mountain operated by the New Georgia Railroad. This is a 1926 Lima Locomotive Works 4-6-2 “Pacific.” The A&WP was affiliated with Southern Railway, and used No. 290 and similar engines to pull the Southern Crescent Limited (Washington, D.C. to New Orleans) on that part of route from Atlanta to Alabama. Owned and restored for excursion service by the Southeast Railway Museum, 290 was leased to the New Georgia Railroad. State funding for the New Georgia was ended in the early 1990s, so 290 was returned to the museum in Duluth, GA. Not in operating condition, today 290 even needs extensive cosmetic repairs before it can be properly displayed. No. 290 appeared in the movie “Fried Green Tomatoes.”
290 on the Loop – Atlanta Sections of track from several railroads connected to form a loop around downtown, Atlanta, GA. The New Georgia Railroad, created by the state building authority, ran tourist trains around the loop for several years, plus trips to Stone Mountain, and visits other cities in Georgia, ending in the early 1990s. This locomotive is a 1926 Lima 4-6-2 “Pacific” which, in its service life, was used in passenger service by the Atlanta and West Point Railroad. No. 290 appeared in the movie Fried Green Tomatoes.