   #copyright

Pere Marquette 1225

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Railway transport

   CAPTION: Pere Marquette 1225

   Pere Marquette 1225
   Pere Marquette 1225 on a May 31, 2003 excursion
   Power type Steam
   Builder Lima Locomotive Works
   Build date 1941
   Configuration 2-8-4
   Gauge 4  ft 8½  in (1435  mm)
   Driver size 69 in (1.75 m)
   Length 101 ft 8 in (30.99 m)
   Weight on drivers 278,000 lb (126,100 kg)
   Total weight 436,500 lb (198,000 kg)
   Locomotive and tender combined weight 794,500 lb (360,400 kg)
   Tender capacity 22,000 U.S. gallons (83,000 L) of water, 22 short tons
   (20 metric tons) of coal
   Fuel consumption 1 short ton of coal per 12 miles travelled (1 metric
   ton every 21 km)
   Boiler pressure 245 psi (1.70 MPa)
   Fire grate area 90.3 ft² (8.39 m²)
   Cylinders 2
   Cylinder size 26 in (660 mm) diameter x 34 in (864 mm) stroke
   Power output 3,000 hp (2.24 MW)
   Tractive effort 69,350 lbf (308.5 MN)
   Career PM, C&O
   Class N-2
   Number in class 12
   Number PM 1225, C&O 2659
   Locale Michigan
   Retired 1951
   Restored 1985
   Current owner Michigan State Trust for Railway Preservation

   Pere Marquette 1225 is a 2-8-4 (Berkshire) steam locomotive built for
   Pere Marquette Railroad (PM) by Lima Locomotive Works in Lima, Ohio.
   1225 is one of only two surviving Pere Marquette 2-8-4 type locomotives
   and it is the only example in operable condition. PM used 1225 in
   regular service from the locomotive's construction in 1941 until the
   railroad was merged into Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) in 1947; it
   remained in use on C&O's Michigan lines until 1951. In 1971, efforts
   began to restore 1225 to operation using parts from sister engine 1223,
   an effort that culminated in its first excursion run in 1988. 1225's
   blueprints were used as the prototype for the locomotive image and its
   sounds were used in the 2004 film The Polar Express. The locomotive,
   listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is now used on
   excursion trains over the Tuscola and Saginaw Bay Railway.

History

   The locomotive was built in 1941 by Lima Locomotive Works for Pere
   Marquette Railroad (PM). PM ordered this type of locomotive in three
   batches from Lima: class N-1 in 1937 (PM road numbers 1201-1215), class
   N-2 in 1941 (numbers 1216-1227) and class N-3 in 1944 (numbers
   1228-1239). 1225 was built at a cost of $200,000 in 1941. Adjusted for
   inflation, that amount would be $2.5 million.

   All of these locomotives remained on the roster through the PM's merger
   into Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) in 1947; class N-1 were
   renumbered to 2685-2699, class N-2 to 2650-2661, and class N-3 to
   2670-2681. Part of the merger agreement, however, included the
   stipulation that locomotives that were acquired and fully paid for by
   PM would remain painted for PM after the merger. Although all the
   Berkshires received new numbers, only class N-1 was repainted into
   standard C&O livery. The majority of the class N locomotives were
   scrapped between 1954 and 1957, but class N-1 1223 and class N-2 1225
   were both preserved.

   For the first part of its service life, 1225 was used to shuttle steel
   and wartime freight to and from Detroit, Saginaw, Flint and northern
   Indiana steel mills.

   Retired from service in 1951, 1225 was due to be scapped in New
   Buffalo, Michigan when in 1957 a group from Michigan State University
   bought the locomotive for $1 to use as a monument to the age of steam
   power. The New Buffalo yardmaster picked the 1225 for MSU because of
   the numeric significance of Christmas Day.

   The locomotive remained on static display near Spartan Stadium on the
   Michigan State campus in East Lansing, Michigan for a decade. In 1969,
   a group of interested preservationists (some being MSU Students) formed
   the Michigan State University Railroad Club with the goal of restoring
   the locomotive to operation.

   1225's restoration began in 1971. The student effort was able to fire
   up the boiler in 1975 and blow the 1225's whistle for the first time in
   two decades. In order to find parts for 1225's restoration, the team
   turned to sister locomotive 1223. With many of 1223's parts used to
   rebuild 1225, 1223 is no longer operational but it is still preserved.

   However, the restoration effort had turned 1225 into an eyesore.
   Michigan State officials told the student group to find 1225 a new home
   or they'd get rid of it.

   Supporters of 1225 formed the Michigan State Trust for Railway
   Preservation in 1981 and soon after was given ownership of the 1225 by
   Michigan State. The MSTRP moved 1225 to the former Ann Arbor Railroad
   shops complex in Owosso in 1983.

   The 1225 moved under its own power in November 1985 for the first time
   since its retirement in 1951. The first excursion service occurred in
   1988 on a trip between Owosso and Chesaning. In August of 1991, 1225
   pulled a 31 car excursion train during the National Railway Historical
   Society's annual convention in Huntington, West Virginia.

   Today, 1225 is operated on Excursion trains over the Tuscola and
   Saginaw Bay Railway several times per year.
   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pere_Marquette_1225"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
