BELINGTON, W.Va — The Durbin & Greenbrier Valley Railroad has unveiled a GP8 locomotive repainted to honor the Western Maryland Railway in that railroad’s red and white “Railblazer” paint scheme, known to fans as the “circus” scheme.
The locomotive, repainted at Durbin & Greenbrier Valley’s Belington Shop, was built for the Wabash Railroad as a GP7. After rebuilding by Precision National Corp. in the 1970s, it went to the Illinois Terminal Railroad, then was a mine switcher for the Oneida Coal Co. It made its way to West Virginia short line Elk River Railroad in the 1990s, remaining there until that railroad shut down in 2022.
A private owner bought the Elk River locomotives and moved them to the Durbin & Greenbrier Valley, which has leased the GP8 for freight and excursion service since 2023.
Repainting began in August, with the red-and-white scheme selected because it has made only one other appearance in preservation, on Western Maryland Scenic Railroad GP30 No. 501. The D&GV rolled the locomotive out for its official portrait today (Oct. 21, 2024). The shop staff, which looks forward to seeing the unit in service, thanks Eric Werner for his hand-lettering of the Western Maryland markings.
Awesome job D&GV and the employees involved!
Hot damn- that looks nice!