Hi everyone. I hope you're all well. I was wondering if anyone has ever come across photos of new steam in transit being delivered from one of the big three to the owner railroad. Would they be shipped as a batch, or individually as the builder turned them out? I suspect they would'nt be shipped under steam, unless shipped in batch, and then only the lead locomotive would be under steam? If not under steam, would the rods be apart for ease of transport (like nowadays), or would the host & owner railroads not care seeing as this was a different time and the locomotives were brand new? Just thinking it would be neat to see a picture of a couple of brand new Big Boys enroute to the UP from New York, for example. What say you guys? God bless. Seth

Hi Seth,
The link pasted is a photo of the "Prosperity Special" in which a shipment of new locomotives was being delivered from Baldwin Locomotive Works to SP. I don't know exactly what year or the other questions you asked,but they did make a shipment of locomotives as a batch, as you called it.
Leverett Fernald http://texashistory.unt.edu/permalink/meta-pth-1215:1

The Prosperity Special was a pr event. SP 4449 was shipped west from Ohio dead in tow with rods removed, and I believe this practice was quite common. Alco did the same thing with diesels (dead in tow).

Speaking of the UP "four thousands" I still want to know what route they were shipped west. Someone said probably D&H to Binghamton and then west on Erie to Chicago due to their wide clearances, and avoiding the busy NYC. Can anyone add anything further?

Joshua

I've seen photos taken by the late John W. "Crackin' Jack" Haines, Sr. of Millersburg, Pa., of quite a variety of new Baldwin steam locomotives passing through, running light under their own steam. These included B&LE 2-10-4's and Northern Pacific articulated engines. I've been told the PRR routed these engines west via Buffalo to keep them off the Main Line west of Harrisburg, where a mechanical failure would have tied up the whole railroad.

In 1942 Frisco took delivery of their first 15 of the 4500 class 4-8-4s from Baldwin. They were delivered to the Lindenwood yard (St. Louis) by the Terminal RR Assn via their belt line which ended at Southeastern Jct. This is the 4506 being shoved toward the roundhouse by another Baldwin product, Frisco 205, a VO-1000. The BLW sign is on the running board and the engine messenger is sitting in the cab. His little stove's stack can be seen above the cab roof.

Have seen photos of RF&P 4-8-4's moving under steam from Baldwin at Eddystone to Potomac Yard via the B&O.

I can't say much about delivery of locomitives under steam, but I do know that acceptance was not always where you might expect. Illinois, for example, had a personal property tax and thus very little equipment was received there so as not to be subject to a levy for the life of the asset. The IC ran right by the Pullman plant, but usually took title to cars in Tennessee.

Close inspection of the builder's photo of Pere Marquette 1225 show that it has no piston rods, for delivery dead in train. Pistons and rods were blocked into the coal bunker. The engines were actually delivered to the Pere Marquette Railway of Indiana, to avoid taxes in Michigan or Illinois.

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I have a photo of a Western Maryland challenger sitting lite in the PRR Chambersburg, PA station under steam and being delivered to the WM in Hagerstown, MD. WM also ran thru Chambersburg but the challengers were to big to run over the Reading from Rutherford to Shippensburg so they ran down the PRR instead of over home rails. These engines were built by Baldwin.

John Bohon

A photo of a UP 4000-class going through Binghamton NY would be a treasure--I have a friend who grew up in that area (long after the days of steam) and he would probably enjoy seeing a photo of one of these giants going through his home town.
Regarding "taking delivery" of locomotives in certain states for tax purposes: I think this is still true for new diesels. I've seen mention of new units being kept out of California (for example) until a certain number of days has elapsed. It can even apply to motorhomes--an RV builder here in Southern California has a service whereby a certified driver will drive your new coach to Las Vegas and sign the papers as "delivered in Nevada", if you're not a Calif. resident.