Please enjoy this photo gallery of Gulf, Mobile and Ohio locomotives selected from files in Kalmbach Media‘s David P. Morgan Library.
Progression of Gulf, Mobile and Ohio locomotives: 2-10-0 No. 261, photographed in 1941, shows off more than a decade of modifications to the original design, among them a Coffin feedwater heater mounted on the front of the smokebox, a second sand dome, and a large single-phase air pump replacing one of the original pair. GM&O predecessor Gulf, Mobile and Northern had 29 2-10-0s, built by Baldwin and Richmond between 1919 and 1927. Bernard Corbin photo
In the 1920s, predecessor Mobile and Ohio bought 10 4-6-2s that were copies of USRA light Pacifics. The principal point of difference between the USRA locomotives and the M&O’s Pacifics was the cab roof: the USRA roof had a deeper curve. John B. Allen photo
Gulf, Mobile and Ohio motorcar 2506 pauses at Delavan, Ill., in October 1958. The GM&O’s Bloomington to Kansas City run was the longest for a motorcar in the U.S. Monty Powell, Brian M. Schmidt collection
The first Gulf, Mobile & Ohio Alco FA1s had a lower headlight grille than later models, and the same curved drip rail behind the cab as on PAs. The railroad had 55 FA1 units, built 1946-47. Alco photo
Gulf, Mobile and Ohio is an early Phase II F3, with screen between the portholes and four tall radiator fans. The railroad had 32 F3A units and 11 F3B units built 1946-47. EMD photo
Truly one-of-a-kind, Ingalls Shipbuilding’s model 4-S No. 1900 poses in its second Gulf, Mobile and Ohio livery at Mobile, Ala., in 1962. Painted in GM&O red and maroon but lettered for the builder as “Ingalls 1500” when built in June 1946 (with builder No. 1501), the unit had an 8-cylinder Superior diesel prime mover rated at 1,500 hp. R. R. Wallin photo
Gulf, Mobile and Ohio locomotives shared its Ridgeley Yard facilities in Springfield, Ill., with Baltimore & Ohio. GM&O F3 806B and two GP30s share space with B&O GP9 6465. R. R. Wallin photo
Five Gulf, Mobile and Ohio locomotives rest at Montgomery, Ala., in April 1971: four GP38s next to Alco RS1 1109. J. David Ingles photo
Gulf, Mobile and Ohio GP38 No. 726 is one of 20 such units on the railroad, built in 1969. The railroad also had GP38AC and GP38-2 units as well. J. David Ingles photo
The Gulf, Mobile and Ohio was one of the first major railroads to completely dieselize, with the last steam locomotive dropping its fire in October 1949. The GM&O was an early Alco customer, operating a large fleet of FA cab units before turning to EMD for GP30s, GP40s, and other power in the 1960s. The roster includes the Alton, which the GM&O merged in 1947 (former Alton engines are indicated in the notes). The GM&O merged with Illinois Central to form Illinois Central Gulf on Aug. 10, 1972.
Each month since October 2019, Classic Trains editors have selected one Fallen Flag to honor. A Fallen Flag is a railroad whose name and heritage have succumbed to bankruptcy, merger, or abandonment, but whose memory lives on and well among railfans and historians today.
The GM&O, the 1940 merger of former logging road Gulf, Mobile and Northern (GM&N) and bankrupt ex-Southern stepchild Mobile and Ohio, was a diesel salesman’s dream. GM&O locomotives were light in horsepower and old in age, and a world war was in the offering. In keeping with the best military strategy, Alco got there “firstest with the mostest.”