Locomotive #4
Locomotive #4 is a 2-6-2 Baldwin, serial number 41652. The locomotive was ordered on July 15, 1914 by the Burton-Swartz Cypress Company of Florida and has a BLW specification of 10 26¼ D 134. The locomotive weighs about 109,000 pounds in working order, exclusive of the tender. It was built with a working steam pressure of 180 PSI and has 21,400 pounds of tractive effort. The locomotive has 16"x24" cylinders and 44" drivers. The tender weighs about 70,000 pounds fully loaded. Baldwin referred to #4 as a "Double-Ender" style locomotive, meaning that it was designed to operate in either direction with equal pulling power and stability at speed. This style of locomotive was designed for service in connection with lumbering operations.
Locomotive #4 was originally operated at Perry, Florida hauling logs from the timber areas to a large sawmill. By 1943 the locomotive was moved further south in Florida to Copeland. The company name was changed to Lee Cypress Company and in 1947 became known as Lee Tidewater Cypress Company. In 1958 there was yet another name change to JC Turner Lumber Company. By 1962 the locomotive was already out of service and was sold to F. Nelson Blount of Steamtown. Blount sold #4 to George Silcott in 1968 who then sold it to John Thompson of Monee, Illinois. The locomotive was to become part of a rail operation on the Thompson Winery and was joined by several other locomotives. But #4 never operated at Monee and was sold again in 1998 to the Hardin Southern Railroad of Hardin, Kentucky. The HSRR operated a tourist railroad in western Kentucky for several years and began the rehabilitation of #4. But the work was never completed and the HSRR closed down operations by the mid 2000's. The locomotive was for sale and the WK&S was contacted through a third party about the availability of #4. In December 2007, the locomotive was inspected and subsequently purchased in January 2008. The locomotive was moved to Kempton in May 2008. There is much work to be done before #4 runs again, the volunteers of the WK&S are committed to see it back in operation.
Check out Locomotive #1, another surviving LTCC 2-6-2 located at Steamtown.
Also, check out Locomotive #2, another surviving LTCC 2-6-2 located in Naples, Florida.
Here's the boiler being loaded on the trailer in Hardin. WK&S volunteers moved the locomotive mostly by themselves, arranging the trucking, driving the trucks, arranging the cranes, doing the rigging and tie-downs, and convoying the heavy loads back to Kempton. One outside person came along to ramp-load the tender. The move took place from May 17 to May 21, 2008.
Here's the chassis after being lifted and getting ready to set onto another trailer.
The tender has been pulled up to crossing to be ramp-loaded onto the 3rd trailer. Yes, the GMC truck easily pulled the tender despite the fact it hadn't rolled in almost 10 years. A winch pulled it up the rest of the way.
One truck delivered the tender, which was simply ramped off the trailer.
After the tender was unloaded, WK&S #35 was loaded onto the same trailer and moved to its new owner.
A second truck moved the boiler and cab, which were craned onto LNE flatcar 719.
Photo by Adam Christman
A third truck carried the chassis, which was craned onto the back track. Photo by Adam Christman.