Steam & Excursion > Army Steam, Ft. Eustis, VA, 1970

Three shots during a Washington, DC NRHS trip in October, 1970. Did one of these locomotives go to the Great Smoky Mountain RR?

B&OBill



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/19/10 18:27 by bandob.

---

---

---

Bill

The 607 is in the Fort Eustis Transportation museum and the 612 went to the Cass Scenic Railroad.

The engines did not see much use after the summer of 1971. The 612 was down for a shoe and wedge job and the 607 had a loose crown brass and they did not what to run her hard.

The 612 was put back together, moved to Cass and never used again.

MRS11818

I'm going to resend these images to a friend who was at Ft Eustis back about that time. He made a career in the US Army's railroading arm, but he's not a member of Trainorders. Thanx for posting these.

Con

After getting my draft notice in 1965, I tried to enlist in the U.S. Army, Railway Battalion Corps to work on steam, but was told that there was no guarantee I'd get it. I didn't like the sound of that as Viet Nam was ramping up, so I enlisted in the Navy as a boilerman/ boilermaker instead. Ya gotta take steam where you can get it!

Beasts!

Is there not a similar engine undergoing restoration
somewhere? If I recall the restoration is a relatively
new project but can't recall the group /engine.

Was it Alaska Railroad? Or an engine in PA?

/Mitch

Mgoldman Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Beasts!
>
> Is there not a similar engine undergoing
> restoration
> somewhere? If I recall the restoration is a
> relatively
> new project but can't recall the group /engine.
>
> Was it Alaska Railroad? Or an engine in PA?
>
> /Mitch

Not sure about that, but remember the 610 is in Chattanooga, TN and the TVRM.
It looks nothing like these engines though.
Also I seem to recall one of these engines at Intervale, VA on the old C&O Hot Springs
Line, when those two Pacifics were there(1238 and 1286), that Showalter owns. Not
sure of the number. There was a 611 engine also. It or 612 was the last to operate
as I recall. Visited the place with my family circa 1962-4, and nothing operating at
the time we were there, but got to tour the facilities.

I believe similar type engines were sent overseas after WW2 to replace engines in France particularly,
and while the French got the Liberation class 141R's, they also got some of these I think, as did Greece,
and perhaps others.
Greg Scholl

The last steam to run was 607 and 0-4-0 Porter # 714 in 1972. Not sure if anything was fired up in 1973.

I was sent to Germany March of 72 to preform switching operations there and we used 60 Ton Baldwins Diesel Electrics. We did get to use some German 052 Class 2-10-0's a few times.

MRS11818

> Also I seem to recall one of these engines at
> Intervale, VA on the old C&O Hot Springs
> Line, when those two Pacifics were there(1238 and
> 1286), that Showalter owns. Not
> sure of the number.

The one from the ACR is now reassembled and placed in a park in Crewe VA lettered for the N&W as #606.

http://www.crewerailroadmuseum.org/new.htm

Its with the NW GP7U.

http://www.crewerailroadmuseum.org/

Michael

Here's the map of the railroad in 1971. Found this with the passenger handout for the trip.

B&OB

---

Bill

Summer of 1971 the 607 had her rods down for new bushings. After the work was done she saw very little service before going into retirement.

The photo of a GI running the 607 is not me but it gives you and idea of the engineers side of the engine. I am a small person and the 607's tight cab layout fit me. One of the MRS1 EMD's had been wrecked and the 6 SL brake equipment was saved and used in 607. Easy fun engine to run.

MRS11818

---

---

---

Bill

Summer of 1971 was hard times for the 612. While running the right front wedge that holds the cross head to the piston rod was so worn that it was struck by the side rod of the number 1 driver. This caused the engine to lock up.

We moved the engine into the shop. Dropped all of the wheels. Rebuilt the driving boxes. Did the shoes and wedges. The engine was reassembled and sold to Cass. They have had it stored outside never to run again.

MRS11818

---

---

---

Very interesting information! Thanks so much for posting.

Bill

Found one more view of the 612, 10/31/1971.

B&OBill

---

What about TVRM 610. Is it essentially identical to these?

I was there from 67-68 and the only steamers we ran were the 606 & 612. The other two were in pieces behind the shop at Hanks Yard. One of those two had a strong arm Johnson bar. They were coal burning but made so you could drop in oil tanks making them oil burners.

The 1820 was wrecked out at King Jct when it ran into a stopped range train. The rear brakeman was sitting on the steps, rather than back where he could flag us, when we came around the curve. My fireman yelled "train ahead" and I plugged it. Didn't see what we hit until the last second because of running long hood forward. It broke the frame in two at the lead trucks center casting. It was sitting in the shop at Hanks Yard a few days later, up on blocks when a hot shot hostler was moving a steam engine outside the shop door. He had the boiler too full, the throttle hydroed and it went through the doors and knocked the 20 into the drop pit. Four big brass had just climbed out of the pit less than 4 minutes before.

Of all the diesel power there, EMDs, Alcos, BLHs, only two SW-8s were allowed off post to interchange with the C&O, the 2036 & 2037.


Nudge

TVRM 610 is an As and most of the others were S-160s. For more info on the S-160, go here. http://www.lner.info/locos/O/s160.shtml

The 611, rather late in the game, was equipped with the Franklin System of Steam Distribution (poppet valves) and was tested on the Ma & PA. Franklin Railway Supply Company was owned by BALMAR of Baltimore, Maryland, which I believe was owned by Lima (then Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton). I've only found limited info on the 611's specific equipment. It was at TVRM but was recently sold to someone in the Eastern US.

Great photos! Thanks for posting.

So, does this mean you were part of the 714th Railway Operating Battalion?

JDE

AdamPhillips Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> TVRM 610 is an As and most of the others were
> S-160s. For more info on the S-160, go here.
> http://www.lner.info/locos/O/s160.shtml
>
> The 611, rather late in the game, was equipped
> with the Franklin System of Steam Distribution
> (poppet valves) and was tested on the Ma & PA.
> Franklin Railway Supply Company was owned by
> BALMAR of Baltimore, Maryland, which I believe was
> owned by Lima (then Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton). I've
> only found limited info on the 611's specific
> equipment. It was at TVRM but was recently sold to
> someone in the Eastern US.
>
> Great photos! Thanks for posting.


Adam

Again the summer of 1971 was not a good year for Army steam. The 611 was stored on the Doanbrook Spur on the James River Sub-division. The steam guys needed some parts so the Hanks Yard switcher headed out to tow it into the steam shop.

The fireman's side crosshead had been removed and the main rod was cabled up to the crosshead guide. On the way in the cable was cut and the main rod fell to the ground just before bridge #3 at Wagner station. The rod stuck in the ground, lifted the engine up on 4 wheels, rotated to the rear and the crew got stopped on the bridge.

The steam shop guys had to go out and cable up the rod before the 611 could continue on it's way to Hanks Yard.

Photo 1 is the 611 behind the steam shop with the 714, 606 and 610 after the damage was done.
Photo 2 and 3 are the 611 on bridge 3.

MRS11818

---

---

---

More 611 accident summer of 1971.

MRS11818

---

---

---

spnudge Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I was there from 67-68 and the only steamers we
> ran were the 606 & 612. The other two were in
> pieces behind the shop at Hanks Yard. One of those
> two had a strong arm Johnson bar. They were coal
> burning but made so you could drop in oil tanks
> making them oil burners.
>
> The 1820 was wrecked out at King Jct when it ran
> into a stopped range train. The rear brakeman was
> sitting on the steps, rather than back where he
> could flag us, when we came around the curve. My
> fireman yelled "train ahead" and I plugged it.
> Didn't see what we hit until the last second
> because of running long hood forward. It broke the
> frame in two at the lead trucks center casting. It
> was sitting in the shop at Hanks Yard a few days
> later, up on blocks when a hot shot hostler was
> moving a steam engine outside the shop door. He
> had the boiler too full, the throttle hydroed and
> it went through the doors and knocked the 20 into
> the drop pit. Four big brass had just climbed out
> of the pit less than 4 minutes before.
>
> Of all the diesel power there, EMDs, Alcos, BLHs,
> only two SW-8s were allowed off post to
> interchange with the C&O, the 2036 & 2037.
>
>
> Nudge

Nudge

I have seen photos of the 606 always running up until the late 60's. When I was assigned to the 714th summer of 1971 the 606 was just a parts engine and looked really bad. It was hard to believe that in 3 years time the 606 would go from being in action to what it was when I saw her.

MRS11818

---