Fairbanks-Morse, the Beloit, Wisconsin-based locomotive manufacturer, was celebrated for its powerful and innovative designs during the transition from steam to diesel. Nevertheless, not all of its creations achieved commercial success. The following examines three Fairbanks-Morse locomotive models that, despite their ambitious engineering, struggled to find a foothold in the market. Fairbanks-Morse H20-44 The H20-44, introduced […]
BUTTE, Mont. – Turn off Harrison Ave. into the parking lot of the Butte Civic Center and there between the asphalt and the Town Pump gas station next door sits Northern Pacific No. 25, one of 13 2-8-0s built in 1899 by the Schenectady Locomotive Works for the railroad. No. 25 lugged freight and passenger […]
WICHITA, Kan. — Santa Fe FP45 No. 93, donated to the Great Plains Transportation Museum by BNSF in 1999, is being moved to Mid-America Car in Kansas City, Mo., for a complete cosmetic restoration to its original Warbonnet paint scheme. The locomotive began its move on Sunday, Aug. 17, after nearly two years of fundraising […]
Tru-Vue was a stereoscopic viewing system and line of films first marketed in the 1930s. Two simultaneous exposures of the same object or scene were made from slightly different angles. When seen through a special viewer, the paired photos combined to form a three-dimensional image. Although stereoscopic photo cards and viewers had been around since […]
TILTON, N.H. — Dwight A. Smith, founder of the Conway Scenic Railroad, has died at age 100. Smith, a U.S. Navy veteran who served in World War II, had been living at the New Hampshire Veterans Home in Tilton since 2020. The Conway Scenic said in a statement that it “mourns the passing of its […]
Most railfans will not dispute this statement: The most iconic General Electric locomotives to be employed by Amtrak were the Genesis series. These streamlined, monocoque-body (single shell) workhorses have been everywhere along the passenger carrier’s regional and long-distance services since the 1990s. The impact of the Genesis series locomotives can make it easy to forget […]
ROCKHILL FURNACE, Pa. — The East Broad Top Railroad celebrated two notable events on Friday (Aug. 8, 2025), returning 2-8-2 No. 16 to operation after it was sidelined for several months, with the locomotive bringing ta train to the campus of Southern Huntingdon County High School adjacent to the railroad. It is the first train […]
In introducing the issue-length article on Santa Fe’s 2-10-4s dominating the August 1975 issue of Trains Magazine, Editor David P. Morgan wrote: “We broke our word. We promised you after our single-subject issues in 1972 on L&Ns “Big Emma” 2-8-4 and Electro-Motive’s 50th anniversary that Trains would not publish any more all-steam or all-diesel editions. […]
After 80 operating years as one of the most glamorous transport agencies of the old American West, the Virginia & Truckee Railroad, running from Reno to Carson City and Minden, Nev., closed its books on May 31 and on that day its last train rolled down a clear track into the realm of legend. To […]
CHAMA, N.M. — The Cumbres & Toltec Scenic will host a five-day celebration Aug. 13-17 marking the 100th anniversary of the Denver & Rio Grande Western’s K-36 steam locomotives, delivered from Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1925. Nine of the 10 locomotives still exist; five are at the C&TSRR, with four still in regular operation. A […]
A century can seem like a long time, especially given the accelerating rate of change that oppresses all of us. At the same time, 100 years is one long lifetime. Almost 100,000 now-living Americans were on this Earth in 1925, the year a group of Black Pullman employees organized the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters […]
HARTFORD, Wis. — Soo Line No. 1003 will make its 2025 debut while also marking the 75th anniversary of the Wisconsin Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society. A partnership between the chapter and the Steam Locomotive Heritage Association — the non-profit organization that maintains and operates the locomotive — calls for the 1913-built Mikado […]
