ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Santa Fe steam locomotive No. 2926 is scheduled to return to the Tractor Brewing Wells Park for a fundraising event on Aug. 26. The first visit was May 6 and marked the 4-8-4’s first public operation away from its restoration site [see “News photos: Santa Fe 2926 takes a short trip,” Trains News Wire, May 8, 2023]. The 1944-built locomotive will traverse the half-mile Sawmill Spur to the local brewery that is located at the 4th Street crossing.
“These trips are helping us prepare for longer and more exciting future excursions on the rails,” said John Roberts, president of New Mexico Steam Locomotive & Railroad Historical Society (DBA New Mexico Heritage Rail) which owns the Baldwin locomotive. “Events like this help cover costs and allow us the opportunity to show the public what we’ve accomplished.”
The “Tracks, Tunes & Taps!” fundraiser will feature No. 2926 under steam and on display from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Live music will be provided, and Tractor Brewing is scheduled to open at 12 p.m. New Mexico Heritage Rail looks to preview plans for a future relocation to the Rail Yards in downtown Albuquerque, a former Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway facility with sections redeveloped for venue purposes. Volunteers from NMHR are currently restoring the 1914 turntable.
For more information, visit the New Mexico Heritage Rail website.
Really? Mainline excursion service? I thought these were virtually extinct. Do you have any evidence to support this?
Laurence – Perhaps the Rail Runner line would be a possibility?
Born in May 1944 and it is still going on the rails in a gorgeous shape against the wind. Long may it run!
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
Rescued from Coronado Park in 2000, the giant steam locomotive has been restored to full operation by the all-volunteer crew of the New Mexico Steam Locomotive and Railroad Historical Society (NMSL&RHS).
NMSL&RHS is a non-profit organization staffed solely by dedicated volunteers whose mission is to fully restore the Santa Fe 4-8-4 No. 2926, to operational status while promoting and educating the public about the ties of State economic development with rail transportation.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
Santa Fe 2926 is a former ATSF class 2900 4-8-4 type steam locomotive, built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Eddystone (Philadelphia), Pennsylvania almost eighty years ago. It was used to pull passenger and fast freight trains, mostly throughout New Mexico until it was retired from revenue service in 1956. It was subsequently donated to a park in Albuquerque for static display. In 1999, it was purchased by the New Mexico Steam Locomotive and Railroad Historical Society to be rebuilt for operational purposes. After over twenty years of work, the restoration was finally completed, and No. 2926 was steamed up again on July 24, 2021. It will eventually be used in mainline excursion service between Albuquerque and Las Vegas, New Mexico.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün