Soo Line 2719

Soo Line 2719

Soo Line 2719 on display in 2015

Type and origin Power type Steam Builder American Locomotive Company Serial number 64314 Model H-23 Build date May 1923 Total produced 6

Specifications Configuration 4-6-2 UIC class 2′C1′ h2 Gauge 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Leading dia. 36 in (914 mm) Driver dia. 75 in (1,905 mm) Trailing dia. 50 in (1,270 mm) Wheelbase 31 ft 10 in (9.70 m) Length Loco: 46 ft 7 1⁄2 in (14.21 m), Loco & tender: 82 ft 6 3⁄4 in (25.17 m) Width 10 ft 5 in (3.18 m) Height 15 ft 3 1⁄2 in (4.66 m) Adhesive weight 172,400 lb (78,200 kilograms; 78.2 tonnes) Loco weight 281,080 lb (127,500 kilograms; 127.50 tonnes) Total weight 497,080 lb (225,470 kilograms; 225.47 tonnes) Fuel type Coal Fuel capacity 35,000 lb (16,000 kilograms; 16 tonnes) Water cap 12,000 US gal (45,000 l; 10,000 imp gal) Firebox:  • Firegrate area 52.75 sq ft (4.901 m2) Boiler pressure 200 lbf/in2 (1.38 MPa) Feedwater heater Worthington SCA-2A Heating surface 4,639 sq ft (431.0 m2)  • Flues 3,172 sq ft (294.7 m2)  • Firebox 207 sq ft (19.2 m2) Superheater: ​  • Heating area 1,260 sq ft (117 m2) Cylinders Two, outside Cylinder size 25 in × 26 in (635 mm × 660 mm) Valve gear Walschaerts Valve type Piston valves

Performance figures Tractive effort 36,833 lbf (163.84 kN) Factor of adh. 4.68

Career Operators Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railroad ("Soo Line") Class H-23 Number in class 2 of 6 Numbers 2719 Locale Wisconsin and Minnesota, United States Delivered May 1923 Retired June 21, 1959 (revenue) September 2013 (excursion) Restored 1996–1998 Current owner Lake Superior Railroad Museum Disposition Display Soo Line Locomotive 2719 U.S. National Register of Historic Places Location Duluth, Minnesota Area less than one acre Architectural style Other, Steam Locomotive NRHP Reference # 93001453 Added to NRHP January 10, 1994

June 21, 1959 (revenue)

Display

Soo Line 2719 is a restored 4-6-2 steam locomotive originally operated by the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway ("Soo Line"). The 2719 was used to haul the Soo Line's last steam-powered train, a June 21, 1959, round-trip excursion between Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Ladysmith, Wisconsin. It was then displayed in Eau Claire, Wisconsin until 1996. It was restored and operated excursions from 1998 until 2013 when its boiler certificate expired. In 2015 it was sold to the Lake Superior Railroad Museum, where it is displayed.

The 2719 was built in May, 1923 in Schenectady, New York. It was one of 6 H-23 Pacific class steam locomotives built for the Soo Line. It operated until the mid-1950s when it was overhauled and put into storage. It was brought out of retirement to haul the last steam trains on Soo Line's tracks in 1959. It is estimated that the 2719 traveled more than 3 million miles during its time on the Soo Line.

2719 was then given to the City of Eau Claire, Wisconsin and displayed in Carson Park until 1996.

On May 23, 1996, a fund raising dinner, entitled "An Evening in the Club Car", was held at the Holiday Inn Convention Center in Eau Claire to benefit the restoration of the 2719. Restoration was undertaken by the Locomotive and Tower Preservation Fund, Ltd. After a very aggressive restoration schedule, the inaugural running was on September 19, 1998, running a "triple-headed excursion" with Northern Pacific 328 and Soo Line 1003. The 2719 did not have a museum and excursions occurred over different tracks belonging to different railroads.

In June 2000, the 2719 was moved to the Wisconsin Great Northern Railroad in Spooner. It operated during the summers in Spooner until the purchase of the Wisconsin Central by Canadian National Railway in 2001. It returned to the roundhouse in Altoona, Wisconsin, for the winter.