I don't recall seeing this mentioned here, my apologies if it was, and anyway, this is more about the big guys than most of us: https://www.rtands.com/freight/nrhs-rai ... ion-award/

"The National Railway Historical Society recently entered into a new partnership with Railway Age and Railway Track & Structures to present the “Outstanding Railroad Historic Preservation Award,” designed to recognize a railroad for its efforts in railway preservation. The intent is “to honor and recognize a North American common-carrier railroad for a historically significant preservation project completed or put into operation within the past five years.”

yeah, I voted for AT&SF 5704.
https://www.railwayage.com/mechanical/l ... e-requiem/

I am guessing it will be sort of a congratulations to Union Pacific for the Big Boy restoration and the donation of the Challenger etc. to Silvis, but none of that equipment was in danger and so wasn't really preserved in the past five years. Two examples of equipment that was in imminent danger and preserved by a Class I is the ex- Southern Pacific dome car bought from the Iowa Pacific trustee and restored by Canadian Pacific, and the ex-Lackawanna office car by Norfolk Southern, both for their office car trains. Both of those were damaged and hanging on by a thread.

Personally, I think hands down the leading candidate is an ATSF locomotive, but it's 2926.

What was the common carrier role in that restoration?

Comes of not reading carefully. I withdraw the suggestion in favor of 4014... and the donation of so much stuff to the outfit in Silvis when UP itself didn't want to stay in the active preservation game, and could easily have played dog in the manger.