Southern

Southern Railway 2-8-2 #4501 Summerville Steam Special April 20, 2019: "A Southward Rainy Chase to Summerville Georgia"

Early in the morning of April 20th, 2019, the town of Chattanooga lay quiet, but in the Soule Shops of the TVRM simmers a Southern Railway Ms-1 Class Mikado, awaiting to pull the TVRM's famed "Summerville Steam Special." With rain clouds rolling in before the train departed Grand Junction, the #4501 sat with a consist of 5 Cars, and a diesel in tow. The Diesel was Behind the 4501 as it needed to be transported to LaFayette, all the work was done by the Baldwin 1911 Mikado, making a great show for those who ventured out to see her. Before the train departed, we scouted out a spot near the Missionary Ridge Tunnel. Constructed in 1858, it is the only remaining Horseshoe Type Tunnel in the entire state of Tennessee. After the tunnel, we continued farther up the line, to see the 4501 in East Chattanooga and the Norfolk Southern Interchange. Shortly after crossing the border into Georgia, the train rolled through some abandoned factories, starting to tackle the grade. Then we spotted the 4501 and the train at the Chickamauga Battlefield, near the Wilder Tower, and the Chickamauga station. At the most filmed location of the RR, 4501 put on a great show, steaming up the grade in Rock Spring. As we approached Summerville, we caught the train a few more times. As the rain began to pick up, we traveled back to Grand Junction to railfan the Southern Ks-1 #630. We would not hear the melodic top-lever Southern 3 Chime again until we caught the train at the Belt-Line Hill.

Check out my Southern 630 Cab Ride Video Here!    • Southern #630: Missionary Ridge Local Cab ...  

“The 01” as she’s generously referred to by the crews is an Ms-1 Mikado-type built by the Baldwin Locomotive works in 1911. The 2-8-2 was the first of her class, working for the Southern Railway until they dieselized, being brought back to service on the Kentucky & Tennessee, becoming their #12. After being retired in 1964, the #4501 was brought into excursion service in 1966 by the TVRM. From there the 4501 hauled many excursions, went through many different paint schemes, and had many uprgrades, such as a Mechanical Stoker and Feedwater heater. In 2015, NS decided to put an unfortunate end to their 21st century steam program, even though the N&W #611 and the NKP #765 continued to operate on NS trackage. Having not seen the mainline since 2015, the #4501 resides at the TVRM, living out her days as the main motive power for the Summerville Steam Specials for all to enjoy!