<P>To me the most exciting news about the 1522 being "certified" by Amtrak is her vintage (Baldwin 1926), far earlier that what most of us think of as the "cream" of mainline steam, i.e. the 4449, 844, 614, 261, etc. <br>I have long been interested in P-2 class 4-8-2 GN 2507 currently in Pasco, WA. This locomotive was long on display in Maryhill Park along the Columbia River. It was removed and barged up the Columbia to Pasco during a failed restoration effort in the mid-80's. It is still owned by Klickitat County (WA). <br>This locomotive is a very near cousin to the 1522: same vintage, builder, configuration, wheel size, tractive effort, boiler pressure, drive gear, etc., etc. I am curious if the group that tried to restore the 2507 had any evaluation done by an outside expert (Gary Bensman, Scott Lindsey, etc.) and if any documents remain. Perhaps I am getting too narrow here for the discussion group but I know there is lots of participation by folks from the Pacfic NW. Perhaps Brian Fritz is the person who would know but I would appreciate anybody's input. The 2507 would be a great addition to the current steam fleet. I think the only other GN steam under restoration is a Pacific in the Midwest somewhere. I certainly would be happy to pay for copies of any documentation. Thanks to you all. <br>




shawsrus@dellnet.com

<P>> Perhaps Brian Fritz is the person who would know...<p>Trust me... he doesn't know, but would like to.<p>I did some poking around a couple of years back, and every once in a while a new lead comes my way. As far as I can tell... the effort to restore the locomotive broke down for the usual reasons, mostly realizing that the job was way bigger, and way more expensive than anyone thought.<p>There was a a story published in a newspaper from the tri-cities a couple of years back outlining a couple of proposals the the Klickitat County commisioners where considering for the locomotive. One party wanted the locomotive as a center piece for this RR themed campground. Another had this idea he could have it running for <$100K and use it to pull excursion/dinner trains on government owned tracks along the Columbia River. <p>So far, the locomotive continues to sit at the tail of a spur in the Port of Pasco.<p>It would be a beauty to see run again... I've talked to a couple of people who say it's a doable project, if you've got the money... and someplace to run it.<p>On the other hand... The PNW has the 4449, the SP&S 700, and one of these days the OR&N 197/UP3203. That's a lot of steam locomotives with more often than not, no place to go.<p>Mainline steam excursions live, or die, by the largess of the Class I railroads. Out here that means the BNSF.




Wastington Steam Railroads and Locomotives

brianfr@speakeasy.org

<P>Brian:<p>Just a question. Do you know if the 2507 ever wore the green boiler jacket that SOME Great Northern power wore? There seems to be a hint of green under the faded black paint in your photo. Perhaps someone has a list of which GN engines wore this classy green.<p>I got a little bit (very little) involved with this engine when I was doing some investigative work trying to find a substitute locomotive for the townsfolk in Thief River Falls, Minnesota who hold title to the only Monon steam locomotive in existence (Soo Line 2-8-2 #1024; ex-Monon #504). The folks said that they would have been willing to trade the 1024/504 for another steamer and money. Since the GN also went through Thief River Falls, I investigated the availability of #2507 only to then find out that any substitute steamer HAD to be Soo Line. So that effort to return Monon #504 back home to Indiana and restore her was for naught.<p>Les Beckman (Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum)<br><br>




midlandblb@cs.com