CUMBERLAND, Md. — Western Maryland Scenic Railroad (WMSR) recently announced that 2-6-6-2 No. 1309 is ready to return to excursion service, beginning May 9. The locomotive was sidelined during the 2024 season for extensive work on the pistons, cylinders, and running gear [see “Western Maryland Scenic No. 1309 nears reassembly,” News Wire, Jan. 22, 2025]. […]
ABILENE, Kan. — The operating season is ramping up for the Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad. The same is true for major work on the railroad’s former Rock Island branch — between Abilene and Enterprise — and its Santa Fe steam locomotive No. 3415. Accoring to a May 7 article from KSAL radio, the railroad’s […]
WOODSTOWN, N.J. — The Woodstown Central Railroad will see another expansion to its excursion fleet, this time in the form of a favorite among tourist railroad circles: the open air car. Former Lehigh & New England Railroad composite gondola No. 10301 will debut on May 10 as part of the Woodstown Central’s Scenic Rambler between […]
STRASBURG, Pa. — The Strasburg Rail Road wasted no time unleashing its workhorse, 2-10-0 No. 90 back onto the tourist railroad’s main line through the Amish countryside. The locomotive began 45-minute excursion runs by early April, mechanically fresh from a federally mandated 1,472-day boiler inspection that began in early 2024. Cosmetically, the gold numbers, lettering, […]
CORINTH, N.Y. — The Saratoga Corinth & Hudson Railway, the heritage railway located on the former Delaware & Hudson Adirondack Branch, has added a third Alco RS3 with the arrival this week of No. 4085, a former D&H diesel long stored in Port Jervis, N.Y. The Delaware & Hudson Railway Historical Society announced the acquisition […]
NORTH FREEDOM, Wis. — The move, scheduled to begin May 5, bringing Chicago & North Western 4-6-0 No. 1385 back to the Mid-Continent Railway Museum has been postponed, says Jeffrey Lentz, museum office manager. A statement from the museum indicates that the trucking firm slated to handle the road move withdrew its services “on short […]
WOODSTOWN, N.J. — Woodstown Central Railroad steam locomotive No. 9, an Alco 0-6-0, suffered an overheated journal on its central axle during the 12 p.m. excursion on April 18. The railroad’s mechanical team determined the damage was beyond in-house repair capabilities at its South Woodstown, N.J., shop. The wheelset has been removed for repairs at […]
ELBE, Wash. — A major wooden trestle on the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad has been destroyed in a potential arson fire, a major blow that has the operation asking for financial support. The heritage railway, in a Facebook post, says a fire at a 28-span bridge between Mineral and Morton, Wash., was reported about 6:40 […]
Rail preservation often comes with challenges, and the Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation (ORHF) is no exception. Yet despite challenging times, the organization continues to find times for celebration — especially with the continued success of the Oregon Rail Heritage Center in Portland and the iconic locomotives it protects. The foundation’s story began in the 1990s […]
ARKVILLE, N.Y. — The Delaware & Ulster Railroad, a heritage rail operation that last ran in 2019, has announced plans to resume operation beginning in May. “The railroad is heading in a new direction literally and figuratively,” Todd Pascarella, executive director of the Catskills Revialization Corp., the nonprofit organization that operates the railroad, said in […]
WILMINGTON, Del. — The Wilmington & Western Railroad, which announced an indefinite halt to operations earlier this year, has experienced more turmoil, with unhappy volunteers picketing the railroad, potential legal action, and the operation briefly posting then removing an announcement that excursions would return this fall. On Thursday, about 20 volunteers mounted a protest outside […]
CUMBERLAND, Md. — Western Maryland Scenic Railroad 2-6-6-2 No. 1309 is slated to return to operation beginning May 3, powering “Frostburg Flyer” excursions on Saturday and Sundays, the railroad said in an email to customers on Tuesday (April 8, 2025). Plans also call for the locomotive, built by Baldwin in 1949 for the Chesapeake & […]
