Surviving Alcos

[Matt L]

Oh... I forgot I saw another Dereco survivor during my visit to the Tioga Central during the summer! This one has a bit more complicated ancestry than #506. Tioga Central's S2 #14 was built as #46 for the Buffalo Creek Railway, which was a subsidiary of the Erie and the Lehigh Valley RR serving Buffalo's waterfront. The joint ownership continued throughout the Erie Lackawanna era, including the Dereco years of 1968-72 and even into the beginning of Conrail. While most of the Buffalo Creek switchers met the scrapper's torch, two of them survive. Number 14 was purchased by the Tioga Central RR and she has been operating for them ever since.

Here is #14 shortly before the dinner train departed:




Photo taken by me Saturday 8/21/2010 at Wellsboro Junction, PA.

[Matt L]

Here we see #14 pulling a photo freight on the Tioga Central 3 years ago:



Photo taken by me Saturday 9/15/20-007 in the village of Wellsboro, PA. That's my (former) chase vehicle in the foreground.

[Matt L]

And what is an Alco without some smoke? This is #14 at Wellsboro Junction later that same afternoon 3 years ago:



Photo taken by me Saturday 9/15/2007. Number 14 wears an-LV inspired paint scheme, which reflects both her ancestry (partial ownership by LV) and the Tioga Central's origins on a former LV branchline in the 1980s. The Tioga Central moved to a former NYC branchline in 1994 and has remained there to this day.  

[Kentucky & Indiana Terminal RR]

Also the LNAC had two big ol C 424m's from the CP.  I only ever saw them in pictures but they were near the NS interchange for awhile and then stored, all the times I've been up there I havent found them but they were there at least in the last few years according to the shots I found on railpics. You would think they had a coal mine open up with those bruisers sitting around  ;D

[Matt L]

The Buffalo Southern acquired a former CP C424 a few years back and they are working on the old girl to get her ready for service. No mine work, though. Centuries are excellent shortline locomotives- a number of shortlines in NY and PA are still using them. 

[Matt L]

love that rs11 shot from the ontario midland by the way.

Speaking of Ontario Midland's #36 (which is ex-N&W #361), I finally had a chance to catch the RS11 in action yesterday. The Alco was running long hood forward, in classic N&W style.



Photo taken by me Monday 10/25/2010 in Sodus, NY. Previously, I'd either photograph OMID's Alcos while parked or see them when I had no camera.

[Matt L]

Here is #36 switching, a few miles "down the road" from the previous location.



Photo taken by me Monday 10/25/2010 in Williamson, NY. Unfortunately, I ran into a downpour after the train started down the tracks again and lost sight of #36. At least I got to see her in action!

[BryanJones]

Also the LNAC had two big ol C 424m's from the CP.  I only ever saw them in pictures but they were near the NS interchange for awhile and then stored, all the times I've been up there I havent found them but they were there at least in the last few years according to the shots I found on railpics. You would think they had a coal mine open up with those bruisers sitting around  ;D

that pair of C424's never operated on the LNAC and spent their entire lives on the LNAC stored in the woods near Corydon Junction. They were sold about 2 years or so ago to the Arkansas & Missouri RR

Bryan Jones
Brooks,KY

[Kentucky & Indiana Terminal RR]

Hey Matt, you haven't mentioned the southern, I guess n&w was more your style, but the Arkansas and Missouri that Bryan mentioned has an old southern Rs1 or 2 or something like that. One of the old rs series  is on their roster, not sure if it's one of those that's in service or one that's donated her parts to sister units. also they list four ex nw units, t6's and something else.

[Matt L]

Hey Matt, you haven't mentioned the southern, I guess n&w was more your style, but the Arkansas and Missouri that Bryan mentioned has an old southern Rs1 or 2 or something like that. One of the old rs series  is on their roster, not sure if it's one of those that's in service or one that's donated her parts to sister units. also they list four ex nw units, t6's and something else.

Oh, please don't misunderstand me. I haven't referenced any Southern Alcos because I haven't see one yet. All of my photos in this thread are surviving Alcos that currently operate within a day's drive from home. I live in Rochester, NY... and will chase as far south as northern PA. There are only a few Southern survivors in my neck of the woods and none of them are Alcos. I would like to see some Southern Alcos someday... but I'm content with chasing the ex-N&W/NKP/Dereco Alcos for now. 

The A&M does seem like a nice operation. In addition to the Southern and N&W Alcos, they have 6 former Lehigh Valley C420s! LV used those C420s on the Apollo/Mercury intermodal trains- a joint LV/N&W operation back in the '60s and '70s. (The D&H took over the eastern end of those runs after LV was folded in Conrail in 1976.)

[Kentucky & Indiana Terminal RR]

I know the feeling, I lived in Kentucky all my life until recently moving to southern indiana, pretty much still kentucky, and I dont think there is any preserved southern anything in KY, diesel, steam, anything. There is a nw gp9 which is pretty classy looking, and some old southern cars and maybe a tender at the KRM, but no loco's that I know of.  I guess the closest we get is Cormans f units that are former southerns.  Southern railroad heaven and nothing to show for it, sigh.... ;D

[Matt L]

I caught up with #1802 again on the Falls Road a week ago yesterday. The RS11 was running through lake effect snow squalls, just like she did when she was NKP #863 back in the late '50s and '60s.



Photo taken by me Sunday 12/5/2010 in Brockport, NY. The excursions (which are operated by the Medina RR Musuem in conjunction with the Falls Road) operate pull-pull, so #1802 was a very nice FRED on the outbound leg of the trips that day.

[Matt L]

Number 1802 is pulling the train back to the former New York Central RR yard on the return (eastbound) portion of the excursion last weekend. The NKP is long gone but the old Alco is in good hands on the Falls Road.



Photo taken by me Sunday 12/5/2010 in Brockport, NY.