ABILENE, Kan. — Santa Fe 4-6-2 No. 3415 took one last bow on Oct. 7. The locomotive wrapped up its duties for not only the 2023 steam schedule on the Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad, but also its 15-year service life following a 2009 restoration. The locomotive is now slated for a federally mandated 1,472-day […]
WILLIAMS, Ariz. — The 2023 steam schedule for Grand Canyon Railway and Hotel concluded on Oct. 9 with 2-8-2 No. 4960 making an appearance at the depot in Williams for the Employee Fall Festival. This comes after the final “First Saturday” steam excursion of the year to Grand Canyon National Park a couple of days […]
Part two of a two-part update on the East Broad Top Railroad ROBERTSDALE, Pa. – Building on the 2020 rebirth of the historic narrow gauge East Broad Top Railroad, the Friends of the East Broad Top nonprofit auxiliary group is beefing up volunteer work, raising unprecedented amounts of cash, and penciling more projects onto its […]
Part one of a two-part update on the East Broad Top Railroad ROCKHILL FURNACE, Pa. — For the first time since 1956, the narrow-gauge East Broad Top Railroad ran a steam locomotive over a newly restored portion of main line south of this town, signaling the railroad’s intent to reopen all of its 20-mile route […]
In late September 2023, Norfolk & Western steam locomotive No. 611 operated on the Buckingham Branch Railroad, in preparation for its fall excursions. The J-class 4-8-4 is scheduled to run the Shenandoah Valley Limited as part of the Virginia Scenic Railway, a passenger excursion operator for the short line railroad. […]
CHEHALIS, Wash. — The Chehalis-Centralia Railroad & Museum has reached an agreement with an short line in Oregon and Washington that will allow the Washington heritage railway to resume excursion operations, beginning with “Polar Express” trains starting in November. The Centralia Chronicle reports that the museum, which has been unable to operate trains since March […]
THOMASTON, Conn. — The Railroad Museum of New England is launching a fundraising campaign to restore Sumter & Choctaw Railway 2-6-2 No. 103 to service. No. 103 has been part of the RMNE collection since 1986 and was one of the first heritage steam locomotives to operate in the Northeast, from 1962 to 1975. No. 103 […]
CHAMA, N.M. and ANTONITO, COLO. — The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad has named Steven Butler as its new general manager. Butler takes over from Scott Gibbs, one of the railroad’s Colorado commissioners, who had temporarily stepped in to run day-to-day operations. A life-long rail enthusiast, Butler’s family owned a tourist railroad in the Midwest. […]
RUSSIAVILLE, Ind. — For the first time since 1940, Union Traction Co. of Indiana interurban car No. 429 has moved under its own power. The 83-year-old vehicle is currently being restored by the Hoosier Heartland Trolley Co. No. 429 was built in 1925 by the St. Louis Car Co. and designed to hold 44 passengers. […]
DULUTH, Minn. – The North Shore Scenic Railroad resumed service Sept. 29, quickly recovering from washouts that closed the railroad’s route to Two Harbors, Minn., for several days. Northeast Minnesota saw record rainfall the weekend of Sept. 23-24, with the town of Knife River on NSSR receiving 7.6 inches of rain in less that 8 […]
Ryan Gerhardt has taken on multiple management roles on the Chesapeake & Delaware, LLC, and the Black River & Western Railroad in New Jersey. He serves as the Steam Committee Chairman who oversees the maintenance and operation of the latter tourist railroad’s Great Western 2-8-0 No. 60. Still in his 20s, Gerhardt – like many […]
MONTREAL — As part of its fall conference, the HeritageRail Alliance announced the 2023 awards for significant achievements in railway preservation. The annual meeting was held Sept. 20-23 in Montreal with the Canadian Railroad Historical Association and Exporail serving as hosts. Railroading Heritage of Midwest America was the recipient of the Jim Wrinn Award for […]
