According to reports on the Michigan Railroads (http://www.michiganrailroads.com) Michigan Shortline discussion board, preparations have been underway for a couple of weeks to move Florida East Coast Pacific #148 from Traverse City, Michigan, where it has been sitting for nearly ten years. During that time, some progress was made on restoring it, but the project ground to a halt a couple of years ago.

Word is that it is being moved to Colorado, with hopes to use it on the ex-D&RGW Creede branch (http://www.wagon-wheel-gap-route.freehomepage.com which hasn't been updated recently enough to cover this).

Jack Hengartner's web site at http://members.tripod.com/MEWDI/ has photos of #148 undergoing restoration over the past few years.

-Fritz Milhaupt
Web Guy, Pere Marquette Historical Society, Inc.
http://www.pmhistsoc.org

As a lifelong fan of the high wheeled light FEC pacifics, I would be hard pressed to choose a more esthetically pleasing, beautifully proportioned, yet totally inappropriate choice of steam locomotive for a low speed mountain railroad. Please, somebody - point them in the direction of a nice low drivered consolidation, or a logging mike? They will run like the wind on the level Florida flats with a few lightweight commuter cars in tow, but the Creede branch? What are they thinking?

dave

Does this outfit have the funding to make a go of it? This locomotive is a real boomer; from Florida to New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New England, Michigan, and now Colorado. Maybe someone can offer a mini history of her travels?

Heh.. most likely, cheap. Or, it was the only game in town. Or, a combination of both.

To answer Tom's question, it is unclear what funding they have. They acquired the Creede branch from the UPRR for something on the order of $350K (a bit over $30K per mile). After acquiring a number of pieces of equipment, mostly freight cars but a couple pax cars/cabeese, it seems they disappeared from view, especially after local opposition to the venture surfaced amongst Creede's populace.

Evidently, they have scraped enough money together to afford purchasing, if not moving the #148. It should be noted that this group eventually wanted to convert the line (back) to narrow-gauge..

More recent word than I had earlier this morning reports that the loading crew in Traverse City now says that it's headed for Buena Vista for the Leadville, Colorado & Southern.

The dangers of second-hand information. That it's moving I can verify. Now exactly where, I'm not sure I'm willing to commit for fear of spreading any more potentially inaccurate information.

-Fritz Milhaupt
Web Guy, Pere Marquette Historical Society, Inc.
http://www.pmhistsoc.org

Buena Vista, Colorado? For Leadville? By rail?

Tennessee Pass has been closed for years. Maybe it's going to Leadville, but unless UP reopens 70-100 miles of unused railroad, I don't see how it gets any closer to Buena Vista or Leadville than Parkdale.

JAC

I hear ya' Dave, as I have always like these engines and this one in particular made an early impression on a young railfan from Joisey.

However, does it really matter at 10 or 20 mph? As long as she goes chuff and her whistle blows, it will be another steam operation in the community, and another chance to draw more interest.


Rob

Leadville doesn't seem logical. C&S 2-8-0 #641 is already there and on display. From the last information I read about #148, I certainly doubt that #641 could be in any worse shape. The amount of money spent transporting the Pacific to Leadville would be a pretty good headstart on the 2-8-0. But then, stranger things have happened.

Don C.

If you to Steam Locomotive Info & read the notes on #148 whoever takes this project on may like punishment....................................Wooly

[quote="fmilhaupt"]More recent word than I had earlier this morning reports that the loading crew in Traverse City now says that it's headed for Buena Vista for the Leadville, Colorado & Southern.[/quote]

All the more interesting if it's really going to Leadville! The LC&S is not a non-profit organization. The track is rather precariously perched on the mountainside, and there's quite a hairpin turn just below French Gulch Tank to be negotiated.

Strange as to why the indigenous loco, C&S#641, isn't being considered...

I too have been puzzled by equipment choices at Creede. I think they have acquired an ex-B&O car and a Seaboard streamlined observation car, among other things, which have nothing to do with the history of the line. They do have an ex-D&RGW 44-tonner, which is more appropriate. Most of their operation has been with motorcars, a good choice to get started. I never could understand organizations spending the money to acquire and move items that have no historical involvement to the area where they bring them, yet the practice continues.

Well, Bob, indigenous or not, at least something with operating characteristics that suit the track you are going to run it on. There's a very interesting tiny cabbage cutter 2-8-2 in Arkansas that would do very nicely on the Creede branch.

dave