Canadian Pacific 2816

Canadian Pacific 2816

The Canadian Pacific 2816 Empress on an excursion in 2008.

Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Montreal Locomotive Works Serial number 68535 Build date December 1930

Specifications Configuration 4-6-4 Gauge 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) Driver dia. 75 in (1.9 m) Length 91 ft 1 in (27.76 m) Adhesive weight 194,000 lb (88 t) Loco weight 360,000 lb (160 t) Total weight 658,000 lb (298 t) Fuel type Coal (Converted to burn oil during restoration) Fuel capacity 17 short tons (15 t) Water cap 12,000 imp gal (55,000 l; 14,000 US gal) Boiler pressure 275 psi (1.90 MPa) Cylinders Two Cylinder size 22 in × 30 in (559 mm × 762 mm)

Performance figures Power output 4,700 hp (3,500 kW) Tractive effort 45,300 lbf (202 kN)

Career Operators Canadian Pacific Railway Class H1b Numbers 2816 Official name Empress Last run May 26, 1960 Restored 2001 Disposition Stored Serviceable

Canadian Pacific 2816, named the Empress, is a 4-6-4 H1b Hudson type steam locomotive built by the Montreal Locomotive Works in 1930 for the Canadian Pacific Railway. After being used for heavy passenger service, the locomotive was retired in 1960 and donated to Steamtown, USA in Bellows Falls, Vermont. After an extensive restoration, the locomotive returned to service in 2001 and has been used by the Canadian Pacific Railway in occasional excursion service. The 2816 is the only non-streamlined H1 Hudson to have survived into preservation.

Locomotive 2816 was one of ten H1b-class (the "H" meant the 4-6-4 wheel configuration, the "1" was the design number and the "b" meant it was the second production run) 4-6-4 Hudson built by the Montreal Locomotive Works in 1930. It was first assigned to the line between Winnipeg and Fort William, Ontario. Later, it was transferred to service between Windsor, Ontario, and Quebec City, and finally it ran a commuter train between Montreal and Rigaud, Quebec. It made its last run on May 26, 1960, after more than 2 million miles (3.2×10^⁶ km) in active service. In 1963, the locomotive was sold to Monadnock, Steamtown & Northern Amusements Corp. Inc. (AKA: Steamtown, USA), which evolved into the Steamtown National Historic Site in 1986.

When Steamtown USA moved from Bellows Falls, Vermont, to Scranton, Pennsylvania in the 1980s, the 2816 was relocated to the new site with the rest of the collection. When the National Park Service took over from the Steamtown Foundation, 2816 also passed to the NPS, now Steamtown National Historic Site, and the NPS decided to divest itself of foreign locomotives. In 1998 Canadian Pacific purchased 2816 after hearing of its availability from the crews who were running the Royal Hudson 2860, who had been looking for parts for 2860 and were offered the entire locomotive.