Steam & Excursion > Steam Files - Ann Arbor

Ann Arbor 2493
Class K-7 Mikado
Alco Brooks 1923
 
The Ann Arbor Railroad extended from Toledo, OH approximately 292 miles north into Michigan to a car ferry terminal on Lake Michigan at Frankfort. Cross-lake ferries called at Manistique, MI, and Menominee, Kewaunee and Manitowoc in Wisconsin for connection with C&NW, MILW (via C&NW), SOO, GB&W, Manistee & Northeastern and Manistique & Lake Superior. At Toledo end they interchanged with many other roads such as the NYC, PRR, B&O, DTSL, W&LE, MC, C&O, Pere Marquette and Big Four. Other interchange partners in Michigan were the DT&I and GTW.
 
The first Mikes acquired were three Class H’s built by Alco in 1916. AA came back to Alco and picked up five more in 1923, classed as H-2’s originally numbered 183 – 187. In 1925 the Wabash gained a controlling interest in the AA, and the locomotives were integrated into the Wabash numbering system becoming 2490 - 2494 and Class K-7. They served well and went to scrap in 1951 – 1952.
 
Specs:
 
27” x 30” cylinders, 63 inch drivers, 200 psi, 59,014 lbs. of tractive effort.
 
Speaking of the Wabash, it seems like at one time or another they were just about everywhere from Omaha to St. Louis, Chicago, Detroit, Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Maryland, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and Wisconsin via the AA car ferries. They had controlling interest in the Annie from 1925 to 1963 just prior to Wabash being taken into the N&W fold along with Nickel Plate. At that time the AA went to the DT&I, which, was controlled by the Pennsy. Ironically prior to the Wabash interest in AA, they were under DT&I control. Also from 1928 to 1964 the PRR had a controlling interest in the Wabash through subsidiary Pennsylvania Company. The Pennsylvania Company had a majority of the preferred stock and 99.29% of common stock (ICC approval came in 1932). What a tangled web, the Wabash and PRR are fascinating histories.
 
I’ll let others detail what happened to the Ann Arbor after 1976, which is a saga all of its own.
 
For anyone interested in more, “The Ann Arbor Railroad in Color” by Robert L. Warrick is excellent. It would seem the modeling potential would be extremely interesting and varied as it was just a really neat little railroad.

Photo of AA 2493, thought to be at Owosso, MI. photographer and date unknown. In any case a nice nostalgic scene.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/24/25 07:35 by train1275.

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Interesting photo and nice to know the story as I live about 1/3 mile from the old AA and see it in Owosso when I head down there.

Reportedly, before the AA acquired the Alco FA units, they serioulsy considered Fairbanks Morse C-Liners... That would have been interesting in Wabash colors. 

Victor Baird



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/24/25 20:07 by wabash2800.

wabash2800 Wrote:
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> Reportedly, before the AA acquired the Alco FA
> units, they serioulsy considered Fairbanks Morse
> C-Liners... That would have been interesting in
> Wabash colors. 
>
> Victor Baird

Interesting, I've never heard that.
Would have been cool!

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