Canadian National Railways U-1-f class locomotives were a class of twenty

4-8-2 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels, eight powered and coupled driving wheels and two trailing wheels. This type of steam locomotive is commonly known as t ...

or Mountain type locomotives built by

Montreal Locomotive Works Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW) was a Canadian railway locomotive manufacturer which existed under several names from 1883 to 1985, producing both steam and diesel locomotives. For a number of years it was a subsidiary of the American Locomotive ...

in 1944. They were numbered 6060–6079 by CN and nicknamed "Bullet Nose Bettys" due to their distinctive cone-shape smokebox door cover.

Construction history

The order for these engines came during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

when steel was of extreme value. The mountain type locomotive was a step down in size from the much more prevalent Northern Type (

4-8-4 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles and four trailing wheels on two axles. The type w ...

). As a result of the step down in size the mountain type had less power but more speed and served well as a general purpose workhorse.

Modifications

Half the class had been converted to oil-firing by October 1944. This resulted in the 18-ton coal/ tender being exchanged for a oil/ water tender. In later years several locomotives lost the distinctive cone-shaped smokebox door cover.

Preservation

Of the twenty locomotives that were built, only three remain in existence: 6060 owned by the

Rocky Mountain Rail Society The Rocky Mountain Rail Society (RMRS) is a registered nonprofit organization of volunteers dedicated to the preservation of Canadian National Railway steam locomotive 6060, ''The Spirit of Alberta''. Their goal is to ensure that ''The Spirit of A ...

at the Alberta Prairie Railway, Stettler, Alberta; 6069 at

Sarnia, Ontario Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes where Lake Huron flo ...

; and 6077 at the

Northern Ontario Railroad Museum The Northern Ontario Railroad Museum and Heritage Centre is a rail transport museum located in the community of Capreol in Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. The museum's mandate states it is, "focused on the preservation of historical artifacts t ...

, at Capreol, Ontario.

6060's restoration and run to Expo 86

In 1985 through to early 1986, Harry Home led efforts to restore CN 6060 and run it to

Expo 86 The 1986 World Exposition on Transportation and Communication, or simply Expo 86, was a World's Fair held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada from May 2 until October 13, 1986. The fair, the theme of which was "Transportation and Communicatio ...

in Vancouver. The 6060 was rebuilt in Jasper, Alberta, and was run under its own power to Vancouver for the "Cavalcade of Steam", an event which celebrated operational steam locomotives from around the world. 6060 arrived in Vancouver on the second-to-last day of the steam exhibit, and was welcomed by an extremely large crowd of people, happy to see the success of the restoration.

References

*{{cite web , url=http://www.cnrha.ca/node/704/ , title=Canadian National Railways U-1-f locomotive diagram , work=CN Lines Special Interest Group , accessdate=May 17, 2018 4-8-2 locomotives Steam locomotives of Canada U-1-f MLW locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1944 Standard gauge locomotives of Canada Passenger locomotives