![]() ![]() It hauled freight until it was retired in 1951 and was sent to be scrapped in New Buffalo Michigan. I decided to dig into the history of the 1225 Pere Marquette and discovered it was built in 1941 by the Lima Locomotive Works for the Pere Marquette Railway. I'm absolutely fascinated with the powerful, majestic and absolutely breathtaking 1225 Pere Marquette Steam Locomotive. The Steam Railroading Institute parking is marked and easy to find. ![]() The 1225 was also influenced by the use of a fictional Polar Express locomotive in the 2004 feature film by the name of a similar title to the most best-selling Christmas book the Polar Express since 1985.There is paid parking right across the street from the Steam Railroading Institute (about $10) if you are running late.įree parking is SUPER close, located at the NCG Cinema, and takes like 5-6 minutes to walk on paved walkways. Still, the only-operable PM steamer hadn't gave up its best quality in performances later in 19 right before the dawn of the 21st Century. The 1995 Steamtown Grand Opening tried to invite the Pere Marquette 1225, but the locomotive's trip was cancelled with only two days when the Scranton organizers declined to boost the Preservation Group's compensation for the extra 500 miles for the locomotive to travel through Ohio and Pennsylvania. On Saturday while on the double-header run to Hinton, West Virginia, the 1225 began having a problem with a leak in one of the thermic syphons, which led this problem to the 765 for the whole trip.Īlthough the syphon leak had dampened the 1225's performance, it hadn't dampened its triumphant actions for the 1991 NRHS Convention when it traveled home to Owosso. Once arrived into Huntington the next day by the late afternoon, the two Berkshires began their 1st event of the convention on Friday August 9th by racing side-by-side on a 38-mile eastbound run to St. The doubleheader steam train was a frosting to a cake for Rod as well. There a tribute of whistles and exhausts from both of these engines ricocheted the brick walls of the old buildings that turned out both machines a half-century old.įor MSTFRP member Rod Crawford, it was a emotional moment, a dream come true where two preserved Lima-built Berkshires became a duo together at their old home where they were built. To this day, both the 1225 and 765 make a good team together as they perform in photo freights and excursion runs, they even hauled the 1st freight bound for Cincinnati as they passed by the former Lima Locomotive Works in Ohio, their old home. 765 as they hauled two freight trains together along the way to Huntington. In 1990, the 1225 rode on the high iron hauling two freight trains in a test trial to determine if the PM steamer was suited for next year's National Railway Historical Society convention at Huntington, West Virginia.Ī year later, despite having slapped with a 20 mph speed restriction for lacking a speed-recorder on board, the 1225 was accompanied by its Nickel Plate cousin no. Years later with the first restoration stages in the 1970's, the locomotive was eventually moved to the former Ann Arbor steam shops on the Tuscola and Saginaw Bay railroad in the early 1980's where it was finally restored by the State Trust for Railway Preservation by 1985. Retired from revenue service in 1951, the 1225 was since pushed into a display locomotive at the Michigan State University. Similar to Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 Berkshires by the appearance, Pere Marquette's N-1 Class 2-8-4 number 1225 is another preserved locomotive which was once one of nearly forty 2-8-4's for the Pere Marquette Railway in 1944. ![]()
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