U.S. Sugar 148

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U.S. Sugar 148
U.S. Sugar No. 148 with the inaugural Sugar Express excursion train in Lake Placid, Florida, in December 2021
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
BuilderALCO's Richmond Works
Serial number61769
Build dateApril 1920
Rebuild date2017-2020
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 • Whyte4-6-2
 • UIC2′C1′ h
Gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Driver dia.68 in (1,727 mm)
Adhesive weight126,500 lb (57.4 tonnes)
Loco weight204,000 lb (92.5 tonnes)
Tender weight162,000 lb (73.5 tonnes)
Total weight366,000 lb (166.0 tonnes)
Fuel typeRecycled vegetable oil, originally bunker C oil
Fuel capacity3,500 US gallons (13,000 L)
Water cap.7,300 US gallons (28,000 L)
Firebox:​
 • Grate area47.1 sq ft (4.4 m2)
Boiler66+5⁄8 in (1,692 mm)
Boiler pressure180 psi (1.24 MPa)
Heating surface:​
 • Firebox160 sq ft (14.9 m2)
Superheater:
​
 • Heating area440 sq ft (40.9 m2)
CylindersTwo, outside
Cylinder size22 in × 26 in (559 mm × 660 mm)
Valve gearWalschaerts
Valve type11-inch (279 mm) piston valves
Performance figures
Maximum speed70 mph (113 km/h)
Tractive effort28,314 lbf (125.95 kN)
Factor of adh.4.47
Career
OperatorsFlorida East Coast Railway
(1920-1952)
U.S. Sugar Corporation
(1952-1968, 2020-present)
Black River and Western Railroad (1971-1973)
Morristown and Erie Railway (1974-1977)
Class141
Number in class8 of 10
Numbers
  • FEC 148
  • USSC 148
  • BRW 148
Retired1968 (revenue service)
1977 (1st excursion service)
Restored1970 (1st restoration)
April 2020 (2nd restoration)
Current ownerU.S. Sugar Corporation
DispositionOperational
References:[1]

U.S. Sugar 148, formerly Florida East Coast 148, is a 4-6-2 steam locomotive built in April 1920 by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) of Richmond, Virginia, originally for the Florida East Coast Railway (FEC). It hauled passenger and freight trains on the FEC's Overseas Railroad to Key West, Florida until the line was destroyed in 1935. The locomotive was sold in 1952 to U.S. Sugar Corporation (USSC) to haul sugarcane trains in Clewiston, Florida.

During the 1970s, No. 148 was sold again to New Jersey, where it served excursion service on the Black River and Western (BRW) and Morristown and Erie (ME) railroads. Between 1983 and 2005, the locomotive was sold multiple times to various different owners in Connecticut, Michigan, and Colorado who have attempted to restore No. 148 to operation but never succeeded.

In late 2016, U.S. Sugar reacquired the No. 148 locomotive and restored it to operating condition by 2020 for use in excursion service on their South Central Florida Express shortline railroad as part of their heritage tourist passenger train named the Sugar Express, touring visitors all around the Lake Okeechobee counties.

History[edit]

Revenue service on the FEC and U.S. Sugar[edit]

No. 148 was the eighth member of ten 4-6-2 Light Pacific class 141 steam locomotives built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) of Richmond, Virginia in April 1920 for the Florida East Coast Railway (FEC).[2] Designed with 68 in (1,727 mm) driving wheels, No. 148 was capable enough to reach 70 mph (113 km/h).[1] The locomotive was assigned to haul passenger and freight trains between Jacksonville and Miami, Florida.[3] It also ran the FEC's Overseas Railroad between Miami and Key West, Florida until 1935 when the Labor Day Hurricane destroyed many of the route's long bridges and the FEC permanently closed it down due to the Great Depression.[3] During that time, the FEC began to retire most of their older 4-6-2 locomotives for scrap or selling them to other railroads in order to recoup their financial losses.[3][4][5] No. 148 remained in service with the FEC until June 1952, when it was sold to U.S. Sugar Corporation (USSC) in Clewiston, Florida, where it worked alongside its sister locomotives Nos. 98, 113, and 153 to haul sugarcane trains from the harvest field to USSC's sugarcane mills.[3][6][7]

Excursion service in New Jersey and ownership changes[edit]

No. 148 in storage at Traverse City, Michigan during the 1990s

In the 1960s, USSC began to retire most of their steam locomotives in favor of diesel power, including No. 148 who was the last one to be removed from the USSC roster.[3][8] In September 1968, it was purchased by Sam Freeman, who restored it to operation in 1970 to use the locomotive in excursion service on the Black River and Western Railroad in Ringoes, New Jersey.[8][9] In 1973, the No. 148 locomotive was sent to the New Hope and Ivyland Railroad workshop in New Hope, Pennsylvania, for repair work to its boiler and running gear.[3] In 1974, it was moved to the Morristown and Erie Railway, which ran along the Whippany River and 9 miles (14 kilometers) out of Whippany, New Jersey.[10][11]

In September 1975, No. 148 took part in recreating the Jersey Central's (CNJ) Blue Comet train on former Erie trackage.[8][10] On October 25, No. 148 was temporarily leased by the Main Line Steam Foundation, and it pulled a doubleheader excursion with Canadian Pacific 972 on the Lehigh Valley (LV) mainline from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania to South Plainfield, New Jersey and return.[12][13] The foundation planned to retain both locomotives for a second doubleheader excursion on December 6 on the CNJ mainline from Raritan to Bay Head, but No. 972 was sidelined from mechanical problems, so the consist had to be reduced, and No. 148 pulled the train solo.[12][14] Tom Snyder, the host of The Tomorrow Show, was on board the excursion with camera crews, and No. 148 subsequently appeared in one of The Tomorrow Show segments.[10][12][15]

When No. 148 became inoperable in 1977 and Freeman died in 1983, the locomotive was donated to the Valley Railroad in Essex, Connecticut and was sold off to Bob Carr in Traverse City, Michigan five years later.[8][11][a] By 2000, No. 148 was sold again to a Missouri-based firm, Zerr's Historic Steam Train, and they disassembled the locomotive for an overhaul, with the intention of using it to power tourist trains between Traverse City, Williamsburg, and Kingsley.[17] In 2005, No. 148 was purchased by the Denver and Rio Grande Historical Foundation in Monte Vista, Colorado, who originally planned to continue the locomotive's restoration and operate it for tourist operations on the former Denver and Rio Grande Western branch line between South Fork and Creede, Colorado, but never succeeded it due to the Great Recession in 2008.[18][19]

Current excursion service with U.S. Sugar[edit]

No. 148 at the former Atlantic Coast Line Lake Placid Depot with the inaugural Lake Placid Limited excursion in December 2021

In late 2016, USSC CEO Robert H. Buker, Jr. reacquired the No. 148 locomotive and restored it to operating condition for use in excursion service as part of the new Sugar Express tourist passenger train running on the South Central Florida Express main line.[20][21][22] During the restoration work, which started in early 2017, No. 148 received a lot of fabrication work to its wheelset, crankpins, and bearing boxes.[23][24] Additionally, it was given a new front boiler course and smokebox, which were both completely welded.[7][25] No. 148's cab was equipped with a radio speaker system to allow the engineer and fireman communicating the train dispatcher.[1] The locomotive's firebox was also modified to burn recycled vegetable oil instead of bunker C oil.[26]

In April 2020, after an extensive restoration work with assistance from FMW Solutions, Steam Operations Corporation, and Continental Fabricators Inc, No. 148 moved under its own power for the first time in 43 years.[25][27] It began its first revenue service on that same year of May 28, pulling the last sugarcane train of USSC's 2019–2020 harvest season.[22] On October 1, 2020, No. 148 kickstarted USSC's 90th harvest season and was christened with a bottle of champagne by Buker's wife Barbara.[28] On December 12, 2020, U.S. Sugar went into partnership with the U.S. Marines and Toys for Tots organization, using No. 148 to haul the annual Santa Express train loaded with toys donated to children in Moore Haven, Clewiston, Belle Glade, and Port Mayaca.[29] A year later, No. 148 ran its first Sugar Express public excursion train, the Lake Placid Limited from Clewiston to Lake Placid, Florida and back.[30][31]

On January 29-30, 2022, USSC and Trains Magazine hosted a private photo charter of the No. 148 locomotive pulling passenger and freight consists.[32] On that same year of April 9-10, No. 148 pulled its second excursion train, the Moore Haven Meteor from Clewiston to Moore Haven and back.[33] On April 23-25, 2022, No. 148 hauled a consist of eight different heritage passenger cars for the American Association of Private Railroad Car Owners' (AAPRCO) special Sugarland Limited train on a multi-day tour around the Lake Okeechobee counties.[34][35] No. 148 continued to pull more of USSC's scheduled Sugar Express excursions, including sponsorship from the Florida East Coast Railway Society.[36][37]

On March 16, 2024, during the Clewiston Sugar Festival, No. 148 temporarily wore a six-chime whistle, which was on loan from the Gold Coast Railroad Museum in Miami, Florida, and was originally used on sister locomotive No. 153, which was also currently owned by the Gold Coast Railroad Museum.[38][39] During the April 20-21 photo charter, No. 148 was repainted into its original FEC appearance.[40]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ During this time, the Strasburg Rail Road of Pennsylvania had considered acquiring and restoring No. 148 for use in their tourist operations, but they subsequently settled on Norfolk and Western 475, instead.[16]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Frequently Asked Questions". Sugar Express. U.S. Sugar. Archived from the original on October 16, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
  2. ^ Drury (2015), p. 178.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "The History of Engine No. 148". Sugar Express. U.S. Sugar. Archived from the original on October 25, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  4. ^ Bramson (2003), p. 244.
  5. ^ Ziel (1990), p. 57.
  6. ^ Bramson (2003), pp. 236–238.
  7. ^ a b Wrinn (2022), p. 38.
  8. ^ a b c d Ziel (1990), p. 61.
  9. ^ Jagger (2016), pp. 87–89.
  10. ^ a b c Boland, Michael (August 1976). "When yesterday became today for the tomorrow show: Mr. Synder, meet No. 148". Trains. Vol. 36, no. 10. Kalmbach Publishing. pp. 22–28. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
  11. ^ a b Wrinn (2022), p. 39.
  12. ^ a b c "Railnews - Main Line Steam Foundation". Railfan. Vol. 1, no. 6. Carstens Publications. Spring 1976. p. 14.
  13. ^ Bleyer, Bill (October 27, 1975). "Far Hills railroad buff runs own excursion". The Courier-News. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ Township, Raritan (December 5, 1975). "Steam Engine Returns to Rails". Asbury Park Press. Vol. 96, no. 286. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Wrinn (2022), p. 34.
  16. ^ Bell, Kurt (September 1995). "N&W 475: From Blacksburg to Strasburg". Railfan & Railroad. Vol. 14, no. 9. Carstens Publishing. p. 47.
  17. ^ "Preservation Points - Fresh Start in Michigan". Trains. Vol. 61, no. 2. Kalmbach Publishing. February 2001. p. 87. Retrieved February 27, 2024.
  18. ^ "Joint Line High Wide Loads Florida East Coast Steam Engine and Boeing 737" (PDF). Rocky Mountain Rail Report. No. 547. Rocky Mountain Railroad Club. April 2005. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 30, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  19. ^ Tichy-Smith, Laura (March 4, 2017). "The locomotive legacy of U.S. Sugar". The News-Press. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
  20. ^ Hartley, Scott A. (November 2, 2016). "Florida East Coast engine to steam again". Trains. Kalmbach Media. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2023.
  21. ^ "Historic steam train returns to Clewiston". WFTX-TV. December 13, 2016. Archived from the original on June 12, 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  22. ^ a b "U.S. Sugar Steam Locomotive No. 148 Hauls Sugarcane Train to Mill Ending Harvest Season, New "Sugar Express" Launched". U.S. Sugar. May 28, 2020. Archived from the original on November 17, 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  23. ^ "Restoration project underway to restore vintage steam locomotive". Florida Weekly. Hoffmann Media Group. January 19, 2017. Archived from the original on February 10, 2023. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  24. ^ "Locomotive Bearing Box, Crankpin, and Wheel Work on U.S. Sugar No. 148". FMW Solutions. October 19, 2018. Archived from the original on August 29, 2022. Retrieved August 29, 2022.
  25. ^ a b "Fabricator rebuilds locomotive boilers from the 1900s". BIC Magazine. February 1, 2019. Archived from the original on August 25, 2022. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  26. ^ Kelley, E.J. (May 8, 2023). "In South Florida, an Iron Horse Returns to the Rails". Inhabit. Corcoran. Archived from the original on May 10, 2023. Retrieved June 21, 2023.
  27. ^ Burkhart, M.T. (April 20, 2020). "A Sweet Surprise: U.S. Sugar 4-6-2 Steams Again in Florida". Railfan & Railroad. White River Productions. Archived from the original on January 10, 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  28. ^ "U.S. Sugar Christens Historic Steam Locomotive as 90th Harvest Season Begins". U.S. Sugar. October 2, 2020. Archived from the original on March 1, 2022. Retrieved July 24, 2022.
  29. ^ "U.S. Sugar's Historic Steam Locomotive Becomes "Santa Express," Delivering Early Holiday Greetings and Good Cheer to Glades Communities in Partnership with U.S. Marines and Toys for Tots". U.S. Sugar. December 12, 2020. Archived from the original on November 18, 2021. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
  30. ^ "Sugar Express Offers First Public Excursion, Santa Express Returns". Sugar Express. U.S. Sugar. November 11, 2021. Archived from the original on November 19, 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  31. ^ "Lake Placid Limited". Sugar Express. U.S. Sugar. Archived from the original on December 7, 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  32. ^ "Trains Magazine event features U.S. Sugar steam operation". Trains. Kalmbach Media. January 31, 2022. Archived from the original on January 31, 2022. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  33. ^ "Steam-powered train rides to Moore Haven April 9th and 10th". Sugar Express. U.S. Sugar. March 14, 2022. Archived from the original on March 15, 2022. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  34. ^ "AAPRCO 2022 Sugarland Limited". American Association of Private Railroad Car Owners, Inc. Archived from the original on January 21, 2022. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  35. ^ "Sugar Express to Host Historic Railroad Passenger Train". Sugar Express. U.S. Sugar. April 19, 2022. Archived from the original on April 20, 2022. Retrieved May 3, 2022.
  36. ^ "Sugar Express Announces 2022-2023 Season". Sugar Express. U.S. Sugar. October 18, 2022. Archived from the original on November 14, 2022. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
  37. ^ "Sugar Express Steams into 2023". Sugar Express. U.S. Sugar. January 12, 2023. Archived from the original on January 29, 2023. Retrieved February 2, 2023.
  38. ^ "ATTRACTIONS". Clewiston Sugar Festival. Archived from the original on March 18, 2024. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
  39. ^ "Gold Coast Railroad Museum - official website". Gold Coast Railroad Museum. Archived from the original on March 4, 2024. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
  40. ^ "U.S. Sugar to Restore 4-6-2 to Florida East Coast Appearance for Photo Charter". Railfan & Railroad. White River Productions. March 12, 2024. Archived from the original on March 12, 2024. Retrieved April 21, 2024.

Bibliography[edit]

External links[edit]

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