From Railway Preservation News via Railfan & Railroad Magazine’s website:
The Delaware & Ulster Railroad will be mechanically parting out their GE 44-tonner, Western Maryland #76, to revive New Haven #0814, Middletown & New Jersey #2 and Hoboken Manufacturers Railroad #700, owned by Danbury Railroad Museum, Operation Toy Train and Tri-State Railway Historical Society, respectively. Parts will also be set aside as spares for Danbury’s other 44-tonner. After the parts are harvested from WM #76, it will then be cosmetically restored as an NYO&W 44-tonner and put on display at the Port Jervis Transportation History Center.
From Dan Myers:
The article says that after the organs have been donated to other engines by the former Western Maryland engine, it will be cosmetically restored to O&W livery and displayed in Port Jervis along with MNJ #2. This engine is physically different from the O&W’s engines in that it has end radiator grills but it would be a nice gesture. It is also different from MNJ #2 as the top of the hood has a tilting vent for the engine room instead of flat, rotating vents.
Too bad that MNJ #1 got cut up. It was the only native resident of Orange County having been bought brand new for the M&U RR in 1946.
We rode behind the WM engine in 2009 and it was steaming like a teakettle likely due to cracked heads even before we climbed the hill toward Highmount. If you look carefully you can steam coming out of the radiator overflow pipe at the rear of the engine. I don’t think it has run since. I am sure there are a still lot of good parts to be salvaged.
Here are a couple of photos. The first was in 1983-85 and the engine is running around the train at Fleischmans, NY for the run back west to Arkville. The second shot shows the engine parked on a side track at Arkville in 2014. Finally a shot was taken in 2017 when the engine was brought out and put on display beside Route 28.
Editor’s Note: I would like to thank Dan Myers for sending us this news and the wonderful photos.
