Steam Locomotives

Graham County Railroad #1925 — The locomotive was built by the Lima Locomotive Works in February 1925. This Shay type of locomotive, named after the inventor, was designed for the steep grades, sharp curves and bad track conditions found on logging railroads. The Shay locomotives were different in that pistons were vertically mounted on the engineer’s side of the boiler, using connecting shafts and gears to turn the wheels. The 1925 was used by the Graham County RR to haul logs out of the Snowbird Mountains to the Bemis Lumber Company mill in Robbinsville, NC. The logging portion closed in 1948, but the railroad continued to carry general freight between Robbinsville and Topton, NC, where an interchange was made with the Southern Railway. Due to dropping freight levels and track conditions, the Graham County ceased operations in 1970. In 1974, a tourist operation, the Bear Creek Scenic Railroad, tried to re-open the line to Robbinsville, but also ceased operation within a few years. The 1925 was donated to the NCTHC in 1988, and restored to operation in 1998 to pull the on-site train ride.

North Carolina Transportation Museum

Southern Railway #542 — The locomotive was built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1903. This 2-8-0 Consolidation operated in North Carolina on the Southern Railway around Statesville and Winston-Salem. Repairs were performed at Spencer Shops. Similar class 2-8-0 locomotives were extensively used by the Southern for local freight trains throughout the entire system. In North Carolina they were found from Raleigh to Asheville. Southern owned only 90 of this rare J class locomotive, and the 542 is the sole remaining example. In 1954 the Southern donated the locomotive to Tanglewood Park, near Clemmons, NC. A trade was made in 1991 using the ex-Illinois Central 0-8-0 1894 to obtain the 542 for the museum. It is now stored awaiting restoration.

North Carolina Transportation Museum

Atlantic Coast Line #1031 — The locomotive was built by the Baldwin Locomotive works in June, 1913. This 4-6-0 Ten Wheeler was one of 25 ordered at that time by the ACL. These class of locomotives earned the nickname “Copperhead” because of the bright copper rings around the tops of the smokestacks. The ACL used them for freight and passenger service around Fayetteville, Rocky Mount and Wilmington in NC, and many places from Richmond, VA to Jacksonville, FL.

The Atlantic Coast Line had their corporate headquarters in Wilmington, NC from 1900 until 1960, when it moved to Jacksonville, FL. It was the only Class 1 railroad to be headquartered in this state. As dieselization occurred, many of these locomotives found use on smaller subsidiary lines of the ACL. The 1031 was used on the East Carolina Railway in Tarboro, NC during the mid-1950s and the Virginia & Carolina Southern in Lumberton, NC during the later part of the decade. In 1959 it was placed on display in Florence, SC behind the passenger station adjacent to the rail yards. The City of Florence donated the 1031 to the NCTHC in 1994, resulting in a cosmetic restoration to a 1940s appearance in 1996 for display in the Robert Julian Roundhouse.

North Carolina Transportation Museum

Carolina Power and Light #3 — The locomotive was built by the H.K. Porter Locomotive Company in February 1937. This 0-4-0 switcher is a “fireless steam-storage” locomotive. There is an insulated tank instead of a firebox and boiler. It could be charged (filled with steam) in about 15 minutes and would run for two to five hours, depending on working conditions. These locomotives were used in power plants, lumberyards, textile mills and other areas where a large, ready supply of steam was available or burning cinders were dangerous. The number 3 arrived at the CP&L Lumberton Plant (known as the Weatherspoon Plant after 1958) in 1949 and used until March, 1980. The locomotive was donated in August 1980 to the State of North Carolina and is currently on display in Stall 13 in the Robert Julian Roundhouse.

North Carolina Transportation Museum