St. Louis–San Francisco 1352

St. Louis–San Francisco 1352 is an Alco built 2-8-2 Steam locomotive. Built in 1912 as a 2-8-0 Consolidation-type by the American Locomotive Company of Schenectady, New York, for the St. Louis–San Francisco Railway (SLSF or "Frisco"), the engine was later rebuilt into a 2-8-2 Mikado-type to keep up with the traffic demands from World War II. After being retired from the Frisco, the locomotive was moved to many locations under several owners, until it ended up in a small engine house in Rural, Illinois. The locomotive was disassembled by a group with the intent to restore it to operation. Later, the American Steam Railroad ("ASR") was founded, and they purchased the No. 1352 locomotive in 2008 with the hopes of restoring it to operating condition. However, it was left partially disassembled in Taylorville, Illinois, due to the ASR being busy working on restoring another steam locomotive Reading 2100. In November 2023, the No. 1352 locomotive was purchased by the Valley Railroad located in Essex, Connecticut.

St. Louis–San Francisco 1352
Type and origin Power type Steam Builder American Locomotive Company Build date April 1912 Rebuild date June 1944
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte New: 2-8-0 Now: 2-8-2  • UIC 1'D1' Gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) Driver dia. 63 in (1,600 mm) Wheelbase 74.16 ft (22.60 m) ​  • Engine 36.90 ft (11.25 m)  • Drivers 17 ft (5.2 m) Adhesive weight 225,600 lb (102,300 kg) Loco weight 322,600 lb (146,300 kg) Tender weight 207,500 lb (94,100 kg) Total weight 530,100 lb (240,400 kg) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 18 t (18 long tons; 20 short tons) Water cap. 10,700 US gal (41,000 L; 8,900 imp gal) Firebox: ​  • Grate area 50.30 sq ft (4.673 m2) Boiler pressure 195 psi (1,340 kPa) Heating surface: ​  • Firebox 350 sq ft (33 m2) Cylinders Two, outside Cylinder size (2) 26 in × 30 in (660 mm × 760 mm) Valve gear Walschaerts
Performance figures Tractive effort 53,356 lb (24,202 kg) w/ booster: 63,355 lb (28,737 kg) Factor of adh. 4.23
Career Operators St. Louis-San Francisco Railway (Frisco) Class 1306 (formerly) 1350 (currently) Numbers StLSF 1321 StLSF 1352 Retired 1956 Current owner Essex Steam Train and Riverboat Disposition Stored in Taylorville, Illinois, awaiting shipment to Essex, Connecticut

History

The locomotive was built in April 1912 as engine No. 1321, a 2-8-0 "Consolidation" type, by the American Locomotive Company at the former Schenectady Locomotive Works. Due to the demands of World War II the Frisco railroad needed more heavy power to keep up with the demands in traffic. The War Production Board at that time would not allow new locomotive designs, but would allow existing locomotive designs to be built or existing locomotives to be rebuilt, so the Frisco took the task of rebuilding 6 of their existing 2-8-0s into 2-8-2 "Mikados". In June 1944 No. 1321 was rebuilt into a 2-8-2 and renumbered 1352. The locomotive went through a major overhaul/modernization including adding of Nicholson Thermic Syphons, Superheaters and a Coffin feedwater heater system.

The locomotive continued in regular service until it was retired in 1956, and it was subsequently donated to Swope Park in Kansas City, Missouri, for static display. Stored outside in the park, Frisco 1352 deteriorated greatly during the years on display and being exposed to the weather and vandalism took its toll on the locomotive.

Due to flooding and vandalism, the KC Park Board wanted No. 1352 removed, and in the late 1970s and early 1980s, it was donated to the Smoky Hill Railway and Historical Society (SHR&HS), who removed the locomotive from the park. The Missouri Pacific Railroad (MoPac) refused to allow its rail to be cut for a temporary turnout, so the movers constructed, for lack of a better description, a "vertical frog and vertical points" to lift the locomotive over the rails and then onto the MoPac mainline.

After its removal from Swope Park, the SHR&HS kept No. 1352 in an industrial park in Riverside, Missouri, where it suffered flooding on one occasion. The financially distressed SHR&HS sold the locomotive again to Ted Lemen, who moved it to Illinois for storage. In November 2023, it was announced that the Valley Railroad, located in Essex, Connecticut, purchased the No. 1352 locomotive, and it would eventually ship it east for operational restoration work.

Further reading

• Stagner, Lloyd E. (1976). Steam Locomotives of the Frisco Line (1st ed.). Pruett Publishing Company. ISBN 0-87108-588-7.

External links

• American Steam Railroad official website
• [1] 1352