ClassicTrainsMag.com 9LS&I 23 may steam again
Regarding the former Lake Superior & Ish-
peming steam locomotives mentioned in
Dave Ingles’ story [“Northwoods Odyssey–1:
Sailing to the U.P.,” page 56], No. 23 was
purchased for $10,000 at auction by Kent
Reeves. He was the founder of New York’s
Catskill Mountain Railroad. I believe the
auction of former Marquette & Huron
Mountain equipment was held in Munising,
Mich., in December 1984.
The engine was put on a depressed cen-
ter flatcar donated by the Chesapeake &
Ohio, and the tender rode on a convention-
al flat. They were routed on the Chicago &
North Western to the Indiana Harbor Belt in
Chicago and then on Conrail to Kingston,
N.Y. An effort was begun to return No. 23 to
steam. The boiler shell thickness was test-
ed and is reportedly very close to original.
A new smokebox was constructed and riv-
eted to the boiler. The tender tank was
rusted too thin and was replaced, but the
frame and arch bar trucks are the originals.
In time, ownership of No. 23 was trans-
ferred to the Empire State Railway Museum
located in Phoenicia, N.Y. Work on the proj-
ect slowed and eventually stopped but, in
- No. 23 was moved in pieces 25 miles
west to a new two-track car barn and sub-
sequently reassembled.
No. 23 has a complete set of new boiler
flues. All the heavy parts and appliances
are in a truck trailer and a former Delaware
& Hudson boxcar. The museum has begun
a cosmetic restoration. People who were
there in 1984 are still involved, and a return
to operation, while costly and lengthy, is a
dream they have not yet let go of.
Tom Comito, Curator, Empire State
Railway Museum, Phoenicia, N.Y.R&LHS membership is only $35 per year. Join today at rlhs.org
Promontory and more
In the Spring-Summer 2019 issue of Railroad History:
Reflections on 150 years of transcontinental rail-
roading; an 1870 guide for riding coast to coast; a
comprehensive list of railroads with “Pacific” in their
names; and the final installment of “Inside EMD,”
a step-by-step look at locomotive final assembly.
Railroad History is the journal
of the Railway & Locomotive
Historical Society. Get your
copy by joining R&LHS, or
as a non-member for $
postpaid (PayPal accepted)
from Alden Dreyer,
91 Reynolds Rd., Shelburne,
MA 01370; 413-625-6384;
[email protected]T
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tFourteen (14) historic FULL-COLOR MKT (“Katy”) Railroad photos,
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Steam and diesel era photos by Leon H. Sapp, Earl Holloway, John
B. Charles and others.
$13.95, postage paid. Order your 2020 Katy Lines Calendar
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