Magnolia State Railway

he Magnolia State Railway was a tourist hauling operation located in northeastern Mississippi that operated from 1984 to 1987, hosted by the historic Mississippian Railway shortline. Based in Amory, Mississippi, trains were sponsored by a non-profit educational group of the same MSR name. Trips along the shortline made use of secondhand coaches pulled by former Mississippian #77 — a 1920 Baldwin Consolidation steamer that had worked for the freight shortline with sister #76 from 1947-67. Upon her retirement from freight service, #77 was purchased by the North Alabama Railroad Club for excursion service. After several trips in Alabama in the early 1970s, the locomotive fell dormant until leased to the Magnolia State Railway in 1984 — bringing the Baldwin back to Mississippi for the first time in 15 years. The tourist trains out of Amory ended after a few seasons, and after 1987, #77 went north to Canada for tourist service there.