ROANOKE, Va. — Norfolk Southern’s Norfolk & Western heritage locomotive, ES44AC No. 8103, will take part in the 75th anniversary celebration for Class J 4-8-4 No. 611 at the Virginia Museum of Transportation, the museum has announced.
The event is set for May 30-31, 2025, at the museum in Roanoke.
“This is a powerful homecoming,” Mendy Flynn, the museum’s executive director, said in a press release. “Bringing these two locomotives together, one a steam icon and the other a modern tribute to the past is a visual and symbolic celebration of the legacy of Norfolk & Western and its continued influence on American railroading.”
The NS heritage locomotive is one of 20 to receive the paint schemes of the railroad’s predecessors as part of Norfolk Southern’s 30th anniversary in 2012. No. 8103 wears the historic N&W blue and gold design. It will be displayed as part of the celebration of No. 611, build in Roanoke in 1950, operated by NS as part of its steam excursion program between 1982 and 1994, and restored to operation by the museum in 2015.
“Having the 8103 at the museum brings the 8103 and the 611 back together once again,” said Zac McGinnis, the museum’s rail historian. “In 2014, the 8013 led the 611 to the North Carolina Transportation Museum for its restoration and return to steam in 2015. We cannot thank Norfolk Southern enough for its commitment to its history and continued support for the museum and the 611.”
In addition to the display of No. 8103, the 75th anniversary event will feature tours of the cabs of No. 611 and Class A 2-6-6-4 No. 1218, the historic landmark dedication ceremony for the two steam engines [see “N&W No. 1218 gains …,” Trains News Wire, April 3, 2025], and other events. More information is available at the museum website.
