Soo Line 1003

Soo Line 1003
Soo Line No. 1003 operating in Slinger, Wisconsin on November 2, 2019
Type and origin References: Power type Steam Builder American Locomotive Company (ALCO) Serial number 52826 Build date March 1913 Rebuild date November 1941
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 2-8-2  • UIC 1′D1′ h2 Gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Leading dia. 33 in (838 mm) Driver dia. 63 in (1,600 mm) Trailing dia. 42 in (1,067 mm) Loco weight 290,000 lb (131,500 kg; 131.5 t) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 35,000 lb (15,900 kg; 15.9 t) Water cap. 10,000 US gal (38,000 L; 8,300 imp gal) Boiler pressure 170 lbf/in2 (1.17 MPa) Cylinders Two, outside Cylinder size 28 in × 30 in (711 mm × 762 mm) Valve gear Walschaerts Valve type Piston valves
Performance figures Maximum speed 50 mph (80 km/h) Tractive effort 53,947 lbf (239.97 kN) Factor of adh. 4.15
Career Operators Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad ("Soo Line") Class L-1 Number in class 3rd of 10 Locale United States Upper Midwest Retired August 1959 Preserved December 30, 1959 Restored October 27, 1996 Current owner Steam Locomotive Heritage Association Disposition Operational

Soo Line 1003 is a class "L-1" 2-8-2 "Mikado" type steam locomotive built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) in March 1913 as a member of the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad ("Soo Line") L-1 class. It was retired from regular revenue service in August 1959 and restored to operating condition on October 27, 1996. Today, it is occasionally operated on the major railroads of the American Upper Midwest.

History

Revenue service

The locomotive was built in 1913 by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) as a L-1 class 2-8-2 “Mikado” type steam locomotive. A very efficient locomotive design, the design enabled the L-1 class to pull passenger and freight trains. In November 1941, some major repairs and replacement parts were carried out on the locomotive. A larger sandbox was installed, the wooden pilot was swapped out with a new boiler tube steel pilot, and the wood and canvas roof was swapped out for steel and the cab became bigger. The last improvement was that a feed water heater was installed and the superheater itself was replaced with a Elesco type A. No. 1003 was used by the Soo Line mostly to pull freight trains until retirement in August 1959, when it went into serviceable storage in Gladstone, Michigan as part of the railroad's strategic reserve. The strategic reserve is the main reason why the No. 1003 was not cut up for scrap. On December 30, 1959, the railroad donated the locomotive to the city of Superior, Wisconsin where it was put on public display. In the mid 1970s, Superior Shortline Steam Railroad Ltd. was organized to restore the locomotive to operation. However, the plan of restoring the locomotive to operating condition never came to fruition.

Excursion service

The locomotive was sold partially disassembled in 1993 to Wisconsin Railway Preservation Trust (WRPT), another organization whose goal was to return the locomotive to operations. WRPT raised $250,000 for the locomotive's restoration. It was originally hoped that the locomotive could be used for excursion trips on the weekend of October 5, 1996, but boiler tests showed the engine to not be ready in time.

No. 1003's first run after restoration under its own power occurred on October 27, 1996, when it steamed up the Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range Railway's Proctor Hill. It performed a few more test runs before its first public excursion in 1997. In 1998, it ran the "triple-header" excursion with Northern Pacific 328 and Soo Line 2719.

In 2000 and 2001, No. 1003 pulled excursion trains on the Wisconsin and Southern Railroad (WSOR). In July 2002, No. 1003 lead that year's Circus World Museum (CWM) train on the WSOR from Baraboo to Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The locomotive made its final journey under its FRA-mandated 15-year boiler certificate on November 13, 2010. But shortly afterwards, the operators raised funds to have the engine overhauled and certified for another 15 years of operation. No. 1003 returned to service in September 2012, but flue problems delayed its first excursion run until November 2014.

See also

• Chicago and North Western 1385
• Soo Line 2713
• Soo Line 2718
• Union Pacific 618

Bibliography

• Gilchinski, Steve (February 1997). "Soo Line 2-8-2 back in steam". Trains magazine. Vol. 57, no. 2. pp. 24–25.
• Nelson, Bruce (2013). America's Greatest Circus Train (1st ed.). Heimburger House Publishing Company. ISBN 978-0-911581-64-5.

External links

• Steam Locomotive Heritage Association website