This one didn't survive, but it is one of the NKP's NYC-design Mikados, pulled off the deadline and painted silver at Wilkinsburg, PA, on August 30, 1962, for the 75th anniversary of the city. An odd and unusual effort by the railroad.

http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/nkp/nkp-s950.jpg

Strange, indeed! I wonder if the Mike was offered to the city as a display piece?

Wow, that's got to rank up there as one of the most gosh-awful paint jobs I've ever seen on a display locomotive! I didn't care much for the gold paint on CB&Q 5632, but at least it was operational at the time.

Never thought I'd say that a steam engine was fugly-but that poor creature has made me change my mind. THAT'S FUGLY!!!
Ross Rowland

NKP 950 was selected from about 5 NKP engines awaiting the torch at the Dietch Co. scrapyard in Sharpsburg, PA and hauled to Wilkinsburg by PRR and painted there. After the relatively brief display period it was returned to the scrapyard where it and several Berkshires languished for some months more before being cut up. The Borough of Wilkinsburg hired someone to do the painting, neither NKP nor PRR had anything to do with that mess. And I agree, it is an abomination of the first rank.

Dave Hamley

my thoughtd excatly!!!

Did anyone notice what appears to be reinforcement applied around the cylinders? There is a fairly substantial steel rod which is located between the covers for the valve and piston on the righthand side. This application is apparently carried over to the fireman's side also. Did this locomotive have a cracked cylinder saddle and was this NKP's "fix" to keep her in service a little while longer?

Don C.

Actually this repair was one of the first things I noticed in the photo and it is a pretty standard repair to a cracked cylinder saddle. I have seen one or two existing locomotives with this type of repair.

John Bohon

The story of "silver" NKP 2-8-2 #950 (formerly NKP #500) is interesting. But the Spring 2006 issue of the Magazine of the Nickel Plate Road Historical and Technical Society contained not only this story, but a few others too.

The first was of sister NKP 2-8-2 #965 (fomerly NKP #524) which was rescued by Dick Jensen only to have it cut up by an overzealous new employee of the scrap company where it was located. Some of us (including yours truly) remember the story of the 965. The other story was even more interesting, and perhaps even more sad, as I had never heard of it before. It seems that in 1957, the folks in Frankfort, Indiana came to the Nickel Plate Road and asked for a steam locomotive to put in one of their parks. The Railroad approved the request and a meeting was set up between Frankfort's mayor and an NKP official, to discuss the move. What is particularly amazing about this is the engine that Frankfort requested; not a Berk, or a Hudson or even a Mike. Instead, they asked for a 900-series 2-8-0 Consolidation! The sixteen 900's were originally built for the Toledo, St. Louis & Western (The Clover Leaf) by Lima in 1916 and in 1921/22. After the Clover Leaf merged with the Nickel Plate, these 200 series engines were renumbered 901-916 and classified as G8 and G9. The locomotives had worked the old Clover Leaf territory until the district was dieselized in 1954 and most were retired at that time. But surprisingly two (numbers 911 and 915) had been re-assigned to the Wheeling District and were still on hand, although they had recently been laid up. So preservation of a 900 was a possibility! No one is certain just why the deal never went occurred. But this last chance to save a Clover Leaf locomotive fell by the wayside. One more sad story of a preservation that did not quite come about.

Les

Speaking of what could have been but wasn't... The late lamented Bill Fuehring told of failed negotiations between the City of Bellevue (OH) and then NKP over a Berkshire for display intown. My hazy memory is that the proposed engine was the one which ended up at Strasburg, after the city and railroad couldn't make an agreement. So the engine was saved, but a long way from home.

If Bellevue HAD gotten their Berk, then a different one would have gone to Strasburg, PA. Seven saved instead of six.

I seem to recall reading that the Nickel Plate Road set aside one of the ex-Wheeling & Lake Erie heavy 2-8-2's for preservation in Canton, Ohio but the town wanted an engine that the W&LE had built in their own nearby Brewster Shops. Thus NKP 0-6-0 #3960 (ex-W&LE #360) was donated in the stead of the Mike. And thus no U.S.R.A. heavy 2-8-2's were preserved.

Les

Ziel's "Twilight of Steam" remarks on several NKP Mikes that wound up in Mexico, post US steam. Apparently none of those survived, either.

Meaning no criticism of the RMPA, but the Berk needs serious smokebox repair, with corrosion having eaten away a tremendous amount of metal. Hopefully she will get that sooner, rather than later.

Rich -

Rather amazing that of all the used steam locomotives from U.S. railroads that went to Mexico and South Korea, none have apparently been preserved even though there was a rather strong program by these countries to save examples of historic steam power. In addition to the NKP Mikes in Mexico, there was also power from the IC, the NS, the C&NW, and other lines, that were not saved.

Les

May I submit to one and all that this thread proves the value of Bob's efforts in bringing various photographic topics to the membership ?

Plenty of discourse, and interesting and valuable information shared.

Keep them coming Bob !

The NKP applied these cylinder braces to most of their 2-8-2s and 4-6-2s (and the first batch of 4-6-4s) some time in the early 1930s, since they were experiencing a rash of cylinder cracks. The braces weren't fixes, but safety appliances designed to keep a cracked cylinder casting from flying off into space. The NKP repaired any cracked cylinder casting properly, through rewelding or replacement.

Of the three preserved NKP Mikes, all three had these braces at one time or another. 587 had hers removed when Frankfort Shops dolled her up for display in Indianapolis, and 624 and 639 still have theirs.