In case you missed it in the Classifieds, this is the current condition of US Army 611, which is being made available by the Tennessee Valley RR Museum. Rebuilt with Franklin poppet valves, it was tested by pulling trains on the Maryland & Pennsylvania (then numbered 2628). In the 1960s, it sometimes operated for rail enthusiasts at Ft. Eustis, Virginia and later spent time at the Texas State Railroad before coming to Chattanooga.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=26005

Dave -

All of the steam locomotives that operated over the historic MA & PA were, unfortunately, scrapped. The one exception is US Army #2628 (now USA #611). I am not certain how long the 2-8-0 was used on the railroad or for how many trips, but I think that it operated not only in freight service, but even pulled the lines regular passenger train on at least one occassion. I believe that there is an organization that has restored a small portion of the Maryland & Pennsylvania's trackage and it would seem to me that the 2628 should go to that location. Even if the 2628 is never restored to operation, it does represent a steam engine that did, in fact, run over MA & PA rails.

Les

I think it is the only type B Franklin Poppet
set up around.

A few questions for the TVRM folks,

What condition is the boiler as looks can be deceiving? Are all her rods and linkages still with her? Are all the parts for the poppet valve gear present?

What condition is her tender?

Just a few obvious questions.

JD Johnson, Morehead and North Fork Railroad Historian

As indicated in the Classified listing, no boiler survey has been done and no representations will be made as to condition of the boiler or any other component. The locomotive was received by TVRM in "kit" form and as stated in the ad, there is no tender tank, only a frame.

We would expect, of course, that any party seriously interested in the USA 611 would want to schedule a day to inspect the engine, at which time we would endeavor to identify all the loose parts that would be included.

Yes, this engine did operate briefly on the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad in 1950, and yes, the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society at Muddy Creek Forks was contacted earlier this year and made aware that the engine was available. They declined it and that is why it is being advertised to a wider audience.

Alan Maples
Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum

Here it is in the early 1960's at Ft. Eustis, under steam. Lt. James A. Coon photo.

Here is a link to some possible donors of a tender.

http://members.aol.com/belpaire/us.html

I checked the website at Galveston, looks like they took a beating.

http://www.galvestonrrmuseum.com/index.htm

Wow, I sure would like to hear that engine run once. I hope it finds a good home with someone who will restore it.