Soo Line 1003 is a class "L-1"

2-8-2 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, usually in a leading truck, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles and two trailing wheel ...

Mikado Mikado may refer to: * Emperor of Japan or Arts and entertainment * ''The Mikado'', an 1885 comic opera by Gilbert and Sullivan * ''The Mikado'' (1939 film), an adaptation of the opera, directed by Victor Schertzinger * ''The Mikado'' (1967 f ...

" type

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

built by the

American Locomotive Company The American Locomotive Company (often shortened to ALCO, ALCo or Alco) was an American manufacturer of locomotives, diesel generators, steel, and tanks that operated from 1901 to 1969. The company was formed by the merger of seven smaller locomo ...

(ALCO) in March 1913 as a member of the

Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad The Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad (MStP&SSM) was a Class I railroad subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway in the Midwestern United States. Commonly known since its opening in 1884 as the Soo Line after the phonetic spe ...

("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 American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

Upper Midwest The Upper Midwest is a region in the northern portion of the U.S. Census Bureau's Midwestern United States. It is largely a sub-region of the Midwest. Although the exact boundaries are not uniformly agreed-upon, the region is defined as referring ...

History

Revenue service

The locomotive was built in 1913 by the

(ALCO). It was used by the Soo Line until retirement in August 1959, when it went into serviceable storage in

Gladstone, Michigan Gladstone is a city in Delta County in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. First settled in 1877, Gladstone's original name was Minnewasca. The population was 4,973 at the 2010 census. U.S. Highways 2 and 41 run concurrently t ...

as part of the railroad's strategic reserve. On December 30, 1959, the railroad donated the locomotive to the city of

Superior, Wisconsin , native_name_lang = oj , nickname = , total_type = , motto = , image_skyline = Tower Avenue.jpg , imagesize = , image_caption = Downtown Superior , ima ...

where it was put on public display. In the mid 1970s, Superior Shortline Steam Railroad Ltd. was organized to restore the locomotive to operations.

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 The Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range Railway (DM&IR) , informally known as the Missabe Road, was a railroad operating in northern Minnesota and Wisconsin that used to haul iron ore and later taconite to the Great Lakes ports of Duluth and Two Harb ...

'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 Soo Line 2719 is a 4-6-2 "Pacific" type steam locomotive built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) for use on passenger trains operated by the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway (" Soo Line"). No. 2719 was used to haul th ...

. 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.

References

External links

Steam Locomotive Heritage Association website
{{Soo Line steam locomotives

1003 Year 1003 ( MIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * February 9 – Boleslaus III is restored to authority with armed support from Duke Bol ...

ALCO locomotives 2-8-2 locomotives Individual locomotives of the United States Railway locomotives introduced in 1913 Standard gauge locomotives of the United States Preserved steam locomotives of Wisconsin

History

Revenue service

Excursion service

See also

References

External links