EMD SW9 82 Returns to the Ma & Pa

The Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society, after a years-long struggle, has finally returned a Ma & Pa locomotive to its home rails. EMD SW9 82 was lowered back to former Ma & Pa rails at High Rock, Pa. (just north of the society's Muddy Creek Forks operational base) on May 25, 2005.

82 posed for photographers at the High Rock cut as its first movement on "home rails" in decades.  All photos by Alexander D. Mitchell IV.

Part of the quartet of EMD switchers that replaced the final steamers on the Ma & Pa, 82 (c/n 15558, November 1951) was the only diesel to spend its entire working life on the M&P, and was on the M&P roster for longer than any other locomotive in the railroad's history. It last pulled a revenue train on the Maryland District (Whiteford, Md.-Baltimore) on June 11, 1958 and was regularly used on York-Whiteford trains until the end of service on the old main line in June 1978. In 1992 it was repainted in its original as-delivered paint scheme with paint and some volunteer labor supplied by the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad Historical Society (a predecessor group, not to be confused with the MPRRPS). The 82 was, in effect, the only former "original" Ma & Pa locomotive of any sort available for preservation.

Sidelined because of coolant leaks in engine in the summer of 2000, MPA 82 was stored out of service at Lincoln Yard in York, Pa. There were repeated reports from railroad sources during the next two years that No. 82 was about to be overhauled, but they proved unfounded. In September, 2002 word spread that No. 82 would be retired and might be made available for preservation. The Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society, which had meanwhile acquired several miles of former MPA main line in rural southeastern York County, immediately contacted Genesee and Wyoming, the new owner of York Railway Company (successor to MPA) to try to acquire it. Despite encouragement from G&W corporate headquarters, G&W RailLink subsidiary declined to donate the locomotive and offered the Society an option to buy it for $8000. The society immediately began a very successful fund-raising campaign among its members, and in the rail enthusiast's community, to acquire and move the locomotive.

On September 5, 2003, the purchase was completed and M&PRPS received a bill of sale for No. 82. York Railway (YRC) agreed to store the locomotive until December 31, 2003, without charge. It rapidly became apparent that the move could not be arranged before the end of the year. In November the Pfaltzgraff Company agreed to allow the locomotive to be stored on a siding at its pottery plant in Thomasville, PA. York Railway Co. moved the locomotive to the siding without charge.

More than a year was required to arrange the move. The nearest siding conducive to transloading from rail to road trailer was found to be east of York at the end of a former PRR line to Wrightsville and Lancaster. This, however, involved a short three-mile local movement over Norfolk Southern (former Conrail), with additional expense because of the loco's friction bearing trucks. After contacts with 6 companies and quotes from 2, Robbins Motor Transportation was hired to make the road part of the move and crane rentals were arranged with Eisenhart Crane. Norfolk Southern then agreed to donate the cost of the special movement, saving the Society approximately $3,400.

On April 6, 2005 the move began when York Rail moved No. 82 from Thomasville to Lincoln Yard in York. It was inspected there on April 7 by Norfolk Southern, and was moved to NS' Windsor Yard that evening. On April 8, NS completed the rail part of the move, delivering the locomotive to the siding at the Campbell Chain Plant of Cooper Hand Tools in East York. In the next two weeks Society volunteers spent three full days disconnecting the brakes and traction motors and removing the side bearing clips so that the locomotive could be separated from its trucks.

On May 3, 2005 truckers await final clearance from transportation officials to move former Maryland & Pennsylvania SW9 82 by highway trailer from the end of Norfolk Southern track at Stonybrook, east of York, PA, to the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society's former Ma & Pa trackage at Muddy Creek Forks, Pa.

On April 30, No. 82 was loaded on to a 19-axle trailer. (The massive size of the trailer seemed more appropriate for movement of a Mallet; however, the remote location of the destination included very steep and narrow roads, and the extra wheels no doubt kept the movement from becoming a gravity experiment!) The move, expected to be made on May 3, was halted by Pennsylvania DOT Motor Carrier Enforcement when they weighed the load and found it to be 1450 pounds (out of 376,000 pounds) overweight. This very marginal excess weight required a new permit, cost the Society $3400 for expenses of the aborted move, and delayed the move for an additional three weeks.

Finally, on May 24 the move to High Rock was made without difficulty. The next morning, two 165-ton cranes arrived at 8 a.m. to unload No. 82. It was on the track by noon. By late afternoon the trucks had been reconnected. The locomotive was moved the 0.6 miles to Muddy Creek Forks by the Society's 18-ton Plymouth, arriving at about 6 pm.

At High Rock after the cranes put 82 back down on the rails.

So far the Society has raised and spent more than $50,000 to preserve No. 82. The move itself cost about $43,000. To make No. 82 operable the Society expects to completely replace the prime mover (less expensive than repairing the original) with a 12-567B/C. The equipment rack also needs to be replaced, as do the water expansion tank, oil cooler, and load regulator are not serviceable. While the locomotive was stored out of service its brass bell and air horn disappeared and must also be replaced. Funds are still needed to cover the cost of needed repairs, estimated to be about $30,000.

Four companies played essential roles in moving No. 82 without any payment:

The Pfaltzgraff Co. let us store No. 82 on their active siding for 16 months.

Cooper Hand Tools let the Society and movers use their siding and paved lot to load No. 82, and were gracious and patient when the locomotive's expected stay of 10 days lengthened to more than 7 weeks.

York Railway Company moved No. 82 from York to Thomasville and back to the Norfolk Southern interchange in York without charge. Al Richards and Glenn Bake of the YRC locomotive shop provided advice and assistance with preparing No. 82 to move.

Norfolk Southern contributed the transportation of No. 82 from York to Cooper Tools and was extremely helpful and cooperative in getting the Society through the difficult arrangements for the move.

The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society was founded in 1986 to preserve the heritage of the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad and rural communities it served. The Society is an all volunteer operation and a tax exempt charity under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The Society operates a museum at Muddy Creek Forks, PA that includes several historic buildings including the A. M. Grove General Store (which houses the railroad station and post office), Muddy Creek Forks Roller Mills, grain elevator, fertilizer warehouse, and railroad tool house. The village is listed as a historic district on the Nation Register of Historic Places.

The Society has two M&P cabooses, an M&P flatcar, and an 1890's era Jackson & Sharp coach similar to those used on the M&P under restoration. The village is open on summer Sunday afternoons and motorcar trains are run through the Muddy Creek Valley. Information is available at the MPRRPS website.

(Craig Sansonetti and Alexander D. Mitchell IV)

New Gallery to Open in O. Winston Link Museum

Event will celebrate gallery opening as well as an important milestone

On June 25 a gallery that recreates a photograph in the O. Winston Link Museum's collection will open. The Heritage Gallery is a vignette of Link's 1957 photograph, titled "Egg Stove and Bananas," taken of the general store in Vesuvius, Va.

The new gallery's opening coincides with "Celebration at the Station" from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the same day. The event, which includes 1/8 scale locomotive rides, live music and vendors celebrates the opening of the new Heritage Gallery as well as the 100th anniversary of the N&W Railway passenger station that now houses the Link Museum.

In the 1950s Link traveled up and down the N&W Railway in Virginia and surrounding states to capture on film the last days of steam locomotion in the U.S. Locations such as the general store in Vesuvius provided authentic glimpses into the lives of people who lived in the areas served by the railroad.

Many of the original fixtures from the store were saved when the store closed in the late 1960s and have been donated to the O. Winston Link Museum. The store's wood stove, called "The Egg" because of its shape, is included in the exhibit.

The Heritage Gallery is located in the lower level of the Museum and is adjacent to the Roanoke, Radford, Shenandoah, Pocahontas and Scioto Galleries.

The O. Winston Link Museum, which houses the largest collection of the acclaimed 20th century photographer's work, opened last year in downtown Roanoke's restored Norfolk and Western Railway passenger station built in 1905.

The O. Winston Link Museum also houses, in addition to Link's collection, his photographic equipment, prints not on formal display and N&W Railway artifacts. Link's dramatically-lit black and white photographs of the final chapter of steam locomotion attracted critical and popular acclaim in the 1980s. Link shot many of those photographs in and around the passenger station which now houses the Museum. Link died in 2001 in New York at the age of 86.

The O. Winston Link Museum, at 101 Shenandoah Ave., is open Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday noon to 5 p.m. Event tickets on June 25 cost $4 per person. Group discounts and packages are available.

For more information, visit the museum website or call (540) 982-5465.

(O. Winston Link Museum press release)