On Saturday, March 25th, 2006 historic steam locomotive #765 ran its first mainline trip after completion of an exhaustive, ten year rebuilding effort by the volunteer members of the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society (FWRHS). A series of break-in runs were held from Fort Wayne, Indiana east to Van Wert, Ohio on the tracks of the Chicago, Fort Wayne, and Eastern railroad.
Over 13,000 volunteer hours and over $700,000 were spent putting history to work in order to return the 765 to the way it looked and operated in the service of the Nickel Plate Railroad from 1944 to 1958. This was a huge undertaking that was made possible by a successful grant application, support of our members and donors, and the support and cooperation of multiple government entities and corporations.
Allen County Commissioners – Recommended our grant proposal for funding.
Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) – Provided state level administration of our TEA-21 grant money.
Allen County Highway Department (ACHD) – Administered the grant at the local level and disbursed the funding. They went out of their way to understand a project that was totally foreign to them.
Members and Donors – For providing the 20% match that went with the TEA-21 money. Donations ranged from as little as $1 to several thousand.
Fort Wayne Community Foundation – For providing a grant of $25,000 that went toward our 20% matching requirement.
Volunteers – For working over 13,000 donated man hours. Many of them had not seen the 765 before and simply took it on faith that the project could be accomplished.
Casad Industrial Park – For allowing us to use their track for access to interchange with Norfolk Southern. Just prior to our move they completed track repairs to ensure a trouble free ride.
Norfolk Southern – For working us into their busy train schedule to move us across town to interchange with the CF&E and return us to our property.
Chicago, Fort Wayne & Eastern (Rail America) – For providing us with the opportunity to operate our break-in run. They were very accommodating which enabled us to meet all of the objectives we set for the run.
Van Wert, Ohio, Fire Department – For supplying us with much needed water to operate the locomotive.
Monroeville, Indiana, Fire Department – For volunteering to serve as a back up source for water.
The locomotive performed flawlessly, with railroad officials commenting that the 765 “is a sleek machine with some serious power.” FWRHS Operations Officer Rich Melvin, who ran the 765 during the break in runs declares, “The 765 has never run better than it did that weekend. The overhaul is an unqualified success. The engine’s performance is a shining testimony to the men and women of our all volunteer crew.”
These runs were not publicly announced for a number of reasons, one of which was at the request of the railroads involved, but from Indiana to Ohio, townspeople poured to the streets at the sound of the locomotive’s characteristic whistle. Many souls were enlivened, smiles broadened, and friends were made.
The 765 had spent the early part of its retirement in Lawton Park in downtown Fort Wayne, Indiana, and after years of exposure to the elements, the FWRHS was formed to restore the locomotive to operating condition. In 1979, five years after being removed from the park, the 765 was successfully moved under its own power for the first time in twenty-one years. For the next fourteen years, the locomotive would become a roving historic landmark, bringing the sights, sounds, and smells of a bygone era to over a million passengers and people who watched trackside.
This break in run was the next step toward returning to excursion service. We’ll continue to build relationships with railroads and explore business opportunities that will allow us to bring the sights, sounds and smells of historic railroading to life. This 61 year old machine has a stellar history and a bright future. We at the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society cannot wait to share our pulse quickening history lesson with the world again.
