WATERLOO, Ontario — The Southern Ontario Locomotive Restoration Society, operator of the Waterloo Central Railway heritage operation, is seeking funds to support its effort to purchase former Canadian Pacific Railway No. 1238, a G5c class 4-6-2 locomotive.
The locomotive, built in 1946 by the Montreal Locomotive Works, operated in excursion and tourist rail service in the U.S. from the 1960s to the 1990s, then brought back to Canada by a private owner. It is currently stored at the Prairie Dog Central Railway in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and the society has signed a purchase agreement with Vintage Locomotive Society, operator of that railroad. The society is now embarking on a campaign to raise C$150,000 by Christmas. This will satisfy initial terms of the agreement and secure the rest of the deal, according to Bob Fallowfield, general manager of the Waterloo Central.
The locomotive is said to be good condition, and “although in need of some time and money to put it back in service, it is well within our experience and expertise to return it to steam,” Fallowfield writes. The Waterloo Central says that, once restored, the locomotive would be the second largest operating steam locomotive in Canada.
Donations, eligible for a charitable tax receipt, are being accepted via a link at the Waterloo Central website, or by check to SOLRS, 50 Isabella Street, PO Box 546, St. Jacobs, ON, N0B 2N0. Checks should be marked “For 1238 Fund.”
No. 1238 has five surviving sister engines:
* No. 1201 is currently on static display inside the Canada Science and Technology Museum in Ottawa, Ontario in Canada.
* No. 1246 is currently in storage at the Railroad Museum of New England in Thomaston, Connecticut in the United States.
* No. 1278 is currently on static display at the Age of Steam Roundhouse in Sugarcreek, Ohio in the United States.
* No. 1286 is currently with No. 1238 in storage at the Prairie Dog Central Railway in Winnipeg, Manitoba in Canada.
* No. 1293 is currently on display at the Age of Steam Roundhouse in Sugarcreek, Ohio in the United States, waiting for a rebuild.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
Ah, my faith in the good doctor is restored.😁
Just needed a wee bit of patience.😀
During June 1981, while it was still on loan to the Southern Railway, No. 1238 was also used in Montpelier Station (depicting Greenwood), Virginia during filming of the BBC mini series Nancy Astor, which portrayed the career of Nancy Astor (1879 – 1964), the American-born socialite and Conservative Party politician who pioneered the role of women in the House of Commons, and it starred Lisa Harrow, Lise Hilboldt, and Pierce Brosnan. During this time, No. 1238 was relettered to Chesapeake and Ohio, and it was fitted with a vintage wooden cowcatcher.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
No. 1238 was constructed as the sixth member of the Canadian Pacific Railway’s (CPR) G5c class. It was initially assigned to pull passenger trains throughout Quebec and Ontario, and as the CPR dieselized their locomotive fleet, No. 1238 was reassigned to pull freight trains. It was retired from revenue service by 1959, and it sat idle for the next five years.
Dr. Güntürk Üstün
Coulda sworn Dr. Ustun would have chimed in by now with the full, omitted history of this locomotive.