Canadian National 6218 is a

4-8-4 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles and four trailing wheels on two axles. The type wa ...

U-2-g Northern type locomotive built by the

Montreal Locomotive Works Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW) was a Canadian railway locomotive manufacturer that existed under several names from 1883 to 1985, producing both Steam locomotive, steam and diesel locomotives. For many years it was a subsidiary of the American ...

(MLW) in 1942 for the

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue a ...

. It became famous after it was brought back by CN for their Steam Excursion Program from 1964 to 1971. It is now on static display at the Fort Erie Railway Museum in

Fort Erie Fort Erie is a town in the Niagara Region of Ontario, Canada. The town is located at the south eastern corner of the region, on the Niagara River, directly across the Canada–United States border from Buffalo, New York, and is the site of ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

History

Revenue service

Built By the

(MLW) in September 1942, No. 6218 was designed for pulling mainline

passenger train A passenger train is a train used to transport people along a railroad line, as opposed to a freight train that carries goods. These trains may consist of unpowered passenger railroad cars (also known as coaches or carriages) push-pull train, ...

s between

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

and

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

, for the

(CN). The locomotive was one of 65 U-2-g/h “ Confederation” locomotives that were built in the early-mid 1940s during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. 6218 was eventually reassigned to pull freight and mail trains after diesel locomotives took over the high-priority passenger trains. After a mostly uneventful career with CN, 6218 was retired in 1960 after CN made a complete transition to diesel power.

Excursion service

After being retired, 6218 was put into storage inside a roundhouse. In 1964, No. 6218 was selected by CN to be used on their steam

excursion An excursion is a trip, usually made for leisure, education, or Physical exercise, physical purposes. It is often an adjunct to a longer journey or visit to a place, sometimes for other (typically work-related) purposes. Public transportatio ...

program as a replacement for their previous locomotive, U-2-e class 4-8-4 6167. The 6218 was overhauled in the

Stratford, Ontario Stratford is a city on the Avon River (Ontario), Avon River within Perth County, Ontario, Perth County in southwestern Ontario, Canada, with a 2021 Canadian census, 2021 population of 33,232 in a land area of . Stratford is the County seat, s ...

, shops in November 1963, before the shops subsequently closed for good. The 6218 was brought back under steam in 1964, and in September of that year, it performed a

Double header "Double Header" is the fourteenth episode of the fourth season of ''The Ren & Stimpy Show''. It originally aired on Nickelodeon in the United States on January 7, 1995. Plot Ren and Stimpy are at a bus station late at night. Ren demands to ...

with 6167 shortly before that engine’s retirement. For the rest of the 1964 operational season, 6218 pulled fall-foliage trains sponsored by the

Canadian Railroad Historical Association The Canadian Railroad Historical Association (CRHA) ( (ACHF)) is a non-profit organization established in 1932 in Canada and is "devoted to preserving and interpreting Canada's railway heritage, which its founders and members have safeguarded from ...

(CRHA). The engine spent the next seven years famously pulling several excursion runs between

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, and many other cities. During the rest of the engine’s new lease on life, the 6218 would have its

smoke deflectors Smoke deflectors, sometimes called "blinkers" in the UK because of their strong resemblance to the Blinkers (horse tack), blinkers used on horses, and "elephant ears" in US railway slang, are vertical plates attached to each side of the smok ...

removed and reinstalled frequently. The locomotive became even more famous in November 1968, when it pulled a few excursions on the Grand Trunk Western between Chicago, Illinois and South Bend, Indiana, sponsored by the Illinois Railroad Club. As the constant boiler extensions for the 6218 continued to become shorter, though, CN decided to operate the final excursion trips to usher out what appeared to be the end of their steam fantrip program. In 1970, the 6218 pulled a series of fan trips that were dubbed “Countdown 6218”, as orchestrated by the Montreal-based St Lawrence Region Department of Public Relations. On July 3 and 4, 1971, the 6218 performed its final runs between Belleville and Anson Junction. After the final runs ended, No. 6218 was retired by CN, and it became replaced on the fantrip program by U-1-f

4-8-2 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels, eight powered and coupled driving wheels and two trailing wheels. This type of steam locomotive is commonly known as ...

No.

6060 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics A six-sided polygon is a hexagon, one of the three regular polygons capable of tiling the plane. A hexagon a ...

Disposition

After its retirement from excursion service, 6218 was put into storage. In 1972, the locomotive was donated to the Fort Erie Railway Museum in

, along with a

Caboose A caboose is a crewed North American railroad car coupled at the end of a freight train. Cabooses provide shelter for crew at the end of a train, who were formerly required in switching and shunting; as well as in keeping a lookout for load ...

. A second restoration was considered in 2010, but the cost was estimated to be around $429,000 at the time. Another restoration possibility was considered in 2017, as it was within several options that were explored to change the locomotive’s future. However, the Fort Erie city council chose to keep the locomotive at the museum, and a cosmetic restoration would be performed, instead. The locomotive remains on static display at the museum today.

References

{{Reflist Canadian National Railway 6218 4-8-4 locomotives Steam locomotives of Canada Preserved steam locomotives of Canada Individual locomotives of Canada 2′D2′ h2 locomotives

History

Revenue service

Excursion service

Disposition

See also

References