How about the Paulsen Spence collection? Thirty steam locomotives initially saved with only four ultimately escaping the torch.

In the Swanberg/Stauffer book "New Haven Power", there's a picture of a New Haven 4-4-0, which says something to the effect of "unfortunately, efforts to preserve it failed". It was a beautiful little 4-4-0, somewhat similar to the one running on the Wilmington and Western.

In other resource, I saw pictures of a gathering at the Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Potomac roundhouse in Richmond, VA. The locals came out to view one of the RF&P's beautiful 4-8-4s....they came, they saw, they left, it got scrapped.

But in the "almost" category, the one that makes me heartsick is the story about the two N&W Y-6s that were cut up in Roanoke in the 1970s.

ET&WNC # 11 (sister the engine used at Tweetsie today) was offered to Johnson City where the enginehouse was when the 3-foot section of the railroad was abandoned in the 50s, but it was turned down and scrapped. Oddly, the 'favorite' engine of the railroad got the torch and # 12 became famous...

Speaking of New Haven power, what about that 2-8-2 that was used as a snow melter, and wound up the "biggest" star in a movie called "It Happened to Jane," alongside Doris Day, Jack Lemon, and Ernie Kovacs? She was offered for exhibit after the film, but the town involved turned her down; later, the town had second thoughts, but the torches were at work on the engine as the phone call came through, at least as related in the same "New Haven Power" book mentioned above.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_Happened_to_Jane

Complete movie, in 10 parts:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbSnSH4F ... 2077023E8E

Then there were the two C&O Kanawhas and the last C&O 2-8-2 that were cut up at Russell, Ky. in the 1970s:

http://www.steamlocomotive.com/berkshire/russell.shtml

http://www.steamlocomotive.com/berkshire/co1189-2.jpg

http://www.steamlocomotive.com/berkshire/co1189-3.jpg

http://www.steamlocomotive.com/berkshire/co2781-1.jpg

http://www.steamlocomotive.com/berkshire/co2781-4.jpg

At least the others got out, including this lovely lady (wearing her second number, to avoid conflict with those leased RF&P 4-8-4s, one of which had her original number):

http://www.steamlocomotive.com/berkshire/co611-4.jpg

http://www.steamlocomotive.com/berkshir ... 5-1604.jpg

With her old number back:

http://www.trainnet.org/Libraries/Lib014/614-4MG.JPG

Should have guessed, something on this was here before:

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=12665

Going on about this tickles those brain cells, and more bits and pieces come up. Among them, Virginian Railway 900, class AG, near duplicate of C&O's H-8 Alleghenies, scrapped after an overhaul by a virulently anti-steam management running the newly merged N&W-VGN system; I believe the last PA 4-6-2, and the last VGN 4-4-0, along with some other power, went with her.

The snafus that lead to the loss of the last EM-1 2-8-8-4 on the B&O are fairly well known, but there was also the poor judgement shown by B&O steam designer George Emmerson, who ordered the scrapping of the former "Director General" (a high-wheeled former Vauclain compound 4-4-0 from the glorious Royal Blue days,) the first successful electric locomotives for a main line road (B&O steeplecab No. 1 from the Howard Street tunnel electrification, dating from the 1890s), and perhaps the most significant loss of all, the scrapping of No. 2400, the "Old Maude," B&O's pioneering 0-6-6-0 from 1904, the first Mallet in America. All of these scrappings were about 1940 or so, after the establishment of the historical collection, and reportedly this lead to intervention by B&O president Dan Willard to prevent the scrapping of the rest of the collection, which became the nucleus of the B&O Museum.

Actually, as there often turns out to be.... There is another aspect to this story. Railroad management tried to donate the locomotive to anyone who might possibly want it such as the city of macon and (as it existed) the Atlanta Chapter of the NRHS. The city was not interested because of reasons previously posted about expenses related to moving and or maintenance. The Atlanta Chapter told the C of Ga they had no place to store it as they were already occupying a bit more track space at southern's Inman yard than they thought they should be.

Mr. Purdie had informed me about this, he also said that if any one person from the chapter (which he was a member of even at that time) had talked to him....he would have been able to get everything arranged. And, he said that the locomotive WOULD have been used in the Southern's steam program by the early to mid-70's.....he said that was actually brought up in conversation between him and Graham Claytor. The man still got worked up talking about that even in the mid to late 90's.

Between Purdie and the members of the C of Ga Historical Society whom I have talked to about this, the 451 was scrapped in Macon, Ga at or near the Central's main shop. steamlocomotive.com says that the locomotive was actually "displayed" in Columbus, ga and was scrapped there. Based on what I have been told that is incorrect, anyone have something to add?????

The 451 was one of three locomotives saved by the Central for PR purposes(the others being the 509 and 349, the 349 was also offered to the the Atlanta Chapter circa late 80's ish before being donated to TVRM). They were towed here or there for temporary display, apparently for community events/special occasions. Would be interesting to find out what cities and for what functions the locomotives were actually utilized.

I would say this one came a bit closer than "almost" making it to preservation.

Cheers, Jason

I was told that in 1949 the Minnesota Railfans Association was offered the Omaha Road's last 4-4-2, #364, which was backup power for the Namakegon Hudson, WI-Ashland motor train. MRA had no place to store it and turned it down.
Aaron Isaacs, editor
RMQ/Trainline

Actually the 3660 is not the only W&LE locomotive to be saved. NKP 384 started life as W&LE 3984 Alco built and is currently in Wellington Ohio.

Thanks Jack. I should have remembered that NKP 384 was originally W&LE 3984.

Les

Did anyone stop and realize that a lot of preserved engines would have been cut up in WW2 scrap drives? I know of a few that went to the torch that way. Plenty of historical stuff went to the scrapper, including plenty of historic church bells, civil war artillery, the majority of the Smithsonian's WW1 collection, the USS Oregon from the span-am war, etc. God alone knows how many steam engines went to the torch that otherwise might have been saved.

I believe that the Missouri Pacific offered 2-8-0 #124 to Dupo, Illinois. The 124 was one of the Consolidations that double headed the MoPac's last steam operated train (consisting of a number of to-be-scrapped steamers) and its preservation would have been a fitting memorial to the end of the steam era on the MP. But Dupo didn't want the whole engine, settling instead for just the very front end only which was cut off and mounted up against a concrete wall. So in this case, a PARTIAL "almost".

Les

Actually, quite a few pieces that WERE "preserved" perished in the U.S. and U.K. to scrap drives. I don't remember/can't pull up specifics (I seem to recall a couple vintage locos "collected" at Purdue University went to scrap), but I know that the purge was ruthless, and furthermore that a great deal of it turned out, in the end, to be more about propagandistic rallying motivation rather than an actual desperate need for the metals in question. On one 44-mile rail line alone that I'm studying, they supposedly yanked an entire wye and several passing sidings just for the war scrap drive, and ended up re-laying the wye and one siding after the war.

Not long ago, a contributor mentioned a story about three PRR J1's which sat in Altoona as "emergency power" until 1960. One was selected to go to the Northumberland collection but derailed three times while being moved. The Pennsy gave up in frustration and cut her up where she sat. Perhaps apocryphal, but it makes a great story, none the less.

Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes 2-6-2 #24 - was purchased by a rail fan in 1935, enclosed in a shed and then scrapped in 1937 when he couldn't afford to keep her. Would have been the only Maine Two Foot locomotive with a tender preserved.

In fact, the Pennsylvania Railroad listed about 135 steam locomotives as "available for service" after Nov. 1957. As their flue times expired, they were purged from the roster. At the end of 1959, an order was circulated officially retiring all remaining steam locomotives on Dec. 31, 1959. The engines included 2-8-0's, 2-8-2's and 4-8-2's plus a few J-1's. I have never heard the tale of a J being held for preservation, and I can't imagine the PRR would try to move one to Northumberland since the entire class was restricted from service east of Altoona due to their lengthy rigid wheelbase.