I received an e-mail from the chap alleging to be the owner of Washington Terminal 59 in Salem, NJ, telling me that the loco has NOT been forgotten and is not, at least for now, in jeopardy.

Meanwhile, I was told at the WUT Centennial that a quartet of ex-WT RS1's is supposedly still at work at a power plant somewhere down along the RF&P in Virginia. This is in addition to the Tioga Central set. Any info?

He is indeed the owner. My understanding is that the primary reason the unit remains there is the fact that it has friction bearings. Any rumor that that unit was abandoned by is owner is just that - a rumor.
GME


(Edited to remove a typo 1535 10 Oct 08)

Careful there, Sandy, the owner of that WT RS-1 is a regular here, and I happen to know he's an expert at hand-to-hand combat as a National Guard veteran!!!

The totally spurious issue of plain bearings on locomotives and the "disasters" that would result from moving them, keeps locos like RS-1s on the "difficult to move" list.

Howard P.
Koolax, CT

Thank you for the kind words, COL Edwards and Professor P. In all honesty, though, I prefer some breathing room between myself and an OPFOR.

EDM
SFC, USAR (Ret.)
M79, NJ

The Museum of Transportation in St. Louis has two RS-1s, with Arkansas & Missouri #22 being the oldest surviving example with a 1943 birth date, and this one is fully operational. It also has Minneapolis & St. Louis #546, later #213, built in 1946 and not operational. I believe this one is available to a good home with the later acquisition of #22.

Rec'd photos today of a quartet of ex-Washington Terminal RS1's at Morgantown and Chalk Point power plants in southern Maryland, near the Rt. 301 bridge across the Potomac. Allegedly one is still in service, with the other three as parts sources......