For years, the city of Gainesville has been looking for a more secure, more interactive home for its red-and-black locomotive, Engine 209.

Those plans are finally gaining steam.

The city of Gainesville is looking for a vendor to move the iconic Engine 209 from its Jesse Jewell Parkway location to the proposed Midland Wye area at the intersection of Grove and Davis streets. A wye is a railroad junction.

City officials hope that its new location will allow visitors to have more interaction with the engine.

“We want the train to be something you can walk up to, touch and interact with, not just see from the car as you’re driving by,” Christina Santee, spokesperson for the city, said to The Times. “This piece of beloved history will be much more approachable and accessible for residents and visitors, including those who are out walking the greenway.”

The iconic Gainesville Midland Engine 209 moved across town Saturday, Aug. 14.

The train has been located on the corner of Jesse Jewell Parkway and West Academy Street in downtown Gainesville since 1991, but it will now be the centerpiece of a park at the intersection of Davis and Grove streets in the midtown area of Gainesville.

An August 14, 2021 article in the Gainesville Times:
Link: Gainesville's Midland Engine 209 train moves across town to new park

This 2006 photo just came through on my Flickr feed. She is looking like she is getting decent care.

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