Collection Type: RAIL: FREIGHT

Mechanical drive; clutch and four-speed transmission. The Whitcomb Locomotive Company of Rochelle, IL built this 15-ton, model SRD industrial switching locomotive. It was a gasoline-mechanical engine, but it was later given an 87 HP, 3 cylinder, GM diesel engine. It has a clutch and manual transmission that has four speeds in both directions. This drives the rear axle wheels via a double chain drive, with the front ones powered by the side rods ("B" classification). Mechanically driven locomotives never got much bigger than this one, capable of slowly moving a few cars in an industrial plant. The clutch and transmission could not handle the weights or speeds of long trains, even as a railroad switch engine. The diesel-electric locomotive, with electrical transmission of its power was developed for those jobs. This engine is 19 feet long and has 80-inch drive wheels. The "dome" on top of the engine hood is the sandbox. All locomotives carry sand to drop on the railheads when needed for extra traction. This locomotive was used at the St. Louis City's Howard Bend Water Plant. It was purchased in 1978.

Baggage - mail heavyweight. Mail was retrieved, sorted and dropped off without the train having to stop.

One of two Class B locomotives preserved is #1575 used on an electric freight line, one of the last B's built which used a cast steel underframe. It operated in freight service across the Illinois Traction System, and later Illinois Terminal. The country's second largest interurban network was the Illinois Traction System - the McKinley lines - that stretched across much of the state of Illinois and lasted into the late 1950's. The ITS shops in Decatur were perhaps best known for the large fleet of boxcab locomotives that were designed and built entirely in-house. The earliest of these homebuilt units were the Class B's.

Built at the Plymouth Locomotive Works of Plymouth, Ohio, #2003 is a propane-electric unit used in short line freight service on the Joplin-Pittsburg Railroad and later on the Kansas City Public Service Freight Operation as # 1. It weights 140,000 pounds, has a maximum speed of 35 mph, and contains four 110 horsepower Westinghouse motors. In 1964, #2003 was donated by James G. Ashley, Sr. of Kansas City Public Service Freight Operation.

In 1914, to operate on the Panama Canal, 40 mules were built by GE. #662 is one the mules, named after the pack animals. Mules were used for side-to-side and braking control through the locks. Four mules were used per ship, one on each side and one on each end. They each cost $13,092 and were used on the Pacific side of the canal at the Pedro Miguel locks. They each weighed 86,300 pounds and were 32'-2 1/4" in length. The mule ran on 5' gauge rails.

Union Pacific #2804 Cutaway Locomotive--locomotive body is off showing locomotive's engine and equipment; engine is cut open showing engine functions and cylinder size. Built by General Electric, this model U28C freight locomotive has a 16-cylinder, 4-cycle turbo charged engine and produces 2,800 horsepower.  This engine is 67 feet 3 inches long, weighs 360,000 pounds and has a 2,900 gallows capacity fuel tank.  Union Pacific removed its protective hoods and partly cut-away the engine so it could be used as a mechanical training locomotive. A diesel-electric locomotive uses a diesel engine to turn an electrical generator.  This produces direct current electricity which runs electric traction motors.  The traction motors, located in the wheel assemblies, use gears on the axles to turn the wheels and pull the train.  While steam locomotive used numbers to describe wheel arrangements, diesel locomotives are described using letters for the powered axles in a group.  For example "A" equals 1 powered axle, B=2, C=3, D=4, etc.  Also any unpowered or "idler" axles are identified by numbers.  This C-C locomotive, number 2804, was donated to the museum in 1995 by the Union Pacific Railroad.

Sabine River & Northern Railway Locomotive painted in Bumble Bee colors; engine had 900 horsepower Winston Model 201-A engine, cast frame, with top speed of 50 mph. This Model NC diesel-electric switcher cost $91,500.00 and weighs 250,000 pounds.

#4502 is one of twelve RS-3s Missouri Pacific bought from ALCO in early 1955. It weighs 229,000 pounds and is 55' 11" long. The engine was sold in 1975 and used as a short line freight engine and later as a switcher. #4502 ALCO RS-3 had a max speed of 65 mph; built by ALCO for heavy freight.

Manufacturers Railway #211 ALCO RS-2 Locomotive built to produce 1000 horsepower by ALCO in 1948.

Built as a heavy freight locomotive, and powered by a 645E3 V-20 turbo-charged diesel engine. It was the first V20 engine ever made, overcoming two design challenges: making a very long crankshaft tough enough to take the torque it would endure when in service; and the firing order for 20 cylinders. The engine is 65'8" long, and weighs approximately 391,000 pounds.