The recent mentions of ORM and now the recent post from Rob Gardner about ORM's Norfolk & Western 4-6-2 #578 getting a cosmetic restoration brings up another subject. MRHS operated their ex-Grand Trunk Western 2-8-2 #4070 on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic train for many years only to eventually get into a disagreement and be ousted as the organization providing the motive power. Then later I heard that they were trying to secure a lease on the 578 to restore and operate her. Obviously this was never done. But what has become of the 4070? Anyone out there know?

midlandblb@cs.com

i dont know, but i will say that the new operators of the old youngstown southern(owned by the Columbiana port authority) are steam friendly, and the 4070 guys may find a home there.

> i dont know, but i will say that the new
> operators of the old youngstown
> southern(owned by the Columbiana port
> authority) are steam friendly, and the 4070
> guys may find a home there.
I've read a message in another forum from a person who went to inspect some of their coaches for purchase for their operation. He indicated that the 4070 was in a roundhouse in Cleveland,Ohio in a state of disassembly with one of the drivers in the pit filled with water. The original message was in response to a possible double heading of two GTW locomotives.

jjpfeil@worldnet.att.net

GTW 4070 is safe and secure in the W.3rd Street roundhouse in Cleveland next to the CSX Clark Avenue yards. If you're eastbound on Route 490, look down to the right and you'll see the roundhouse with the collection of rolling stock around it.

4070 is in need of much work from what I gather and the MHRF is really focusing their efforts right now at securing the roundhouse for development into a museum. For some years now, the group has resided in three stalls of the roundhouse while a coating/galvanizing type operation occupied the remaining 5 or 6 stalls. That company is now gone and the group is pretty close to being given the rest of the building. The turntable, 90' long I believe, is functional. So there's a real good start to a museum within eye shot of downtown Cleveland.

4070's current status is the result of deferred maintenance not entirely to the owner's blame. Again, it's a matter of dollars and each group has different goals and success at raising those precious dollars. Don't count 4070 out, though.

The CVL went through some dark times before it resurfaced as the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic RR. As a result of the declining reliability of the 4070 in the last few years it operated, the operation, and steam in general, developed a bit of a black eye with the local community. Needless to say, things are much better today, so much so that Strasburg's live steam version of Thomas visited the line for the first time. The CVSR is now one of the finest tourist railroads in the eastern US and should be on anyone's list of places to ride if you're in the area. Ridership has been steadily increasing over the past few years and nine more Budd lightweight coaches were purchased last year from MARC.

Remember, it's an all'ALCO road with the exception of a GE 44-tonner that the volunteer group did a bang-up job or restoring to the B&O Blue with yellow stripes. ALCO smoke can be seen up and down the valley from March through Christmas.

This year the NPS/CVSR is about to begin limited operation on the Akron to Canton segment which Akron Metro just closed on with CSX last year. With the wyes at Willow and Akron Jct. still intact and in use, steam is not 100% out of the picture.

As for the old Y and S, now the Central Columbiana and Pennsylvania, there's a lot of trackwork to be done to open up the countless crossings that RVI either gave permission to tear out or pave over, sometimes with as much as 6" of new asphalt. Give them some time and perhaps something may develop there as well. There was limited steam before the line was embargoed a few years ago with the Porter(?) 2-4-0 that has most recently been running over in Scottdale, PA.

Hope all of that made some sense!
Rob Gardner

train@nls.net