The Canadian National Class Z-1-a was a series of six electric locomotives built by

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

for the

Canadian Northern Railway The Canadian Northern Railway (CNoR) was a historic Canada, Canadian transcontinental railway. At its 1923 merger into the Canadian National Railway , the CNoR owned a main line between Quebec City and Vancouver via Ottawa, Winnipeg, and Edmonto ...

in 1917. They were used in service through the

Mount Royal Tunnel The Mount Royal Tunnel () is a rail transport, railway tunnel in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The tunnel is the third longest in Canada, after the Mount Macdonald Tunnel and the Connaught Tunnel, and connects the city's Central Station (Montreal), C ...

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 ...

until retirement in 1995, operating for 76 years, 7 months and 12 days. They were classified as a Box-Cab model 0440-E-166-4-GE-228-A by General Electric, delivered new to the

. They were very similar to 6 units built for the

Butte, Anaconda and Pacific Railway The Butte, Anaconda and Pacific Railway is a shortline railroad in the U.S. state of Montana. Founded in 1891, it was the main conduit for ore transport between Butte, Montana, Butte and Anaconda, Montana, Anaconda. The railroad operated as the ...

, as was the electrification system. Each unit weighed . They had a B+B wheel arrangement, a maximum

continuous tractive effort In railway engineering, the term tractive effort describes the pulling or pushing capability of a locomotive. The published tractive force value for any vehicle may be theoretical—that is, calculated from known or implied mechanical proper ...

of , capable of operating at a maximum safe speed of . They were given the following classification: Class: Z-1-a by the CNoR in 1919; CN continued to use the same classification after 1919. One unit, CN 6713, was retired in 1993 and was then cannibalized for

spare part A spare part, spare, service part, repair part, or replacement part, is an interchangeable part that is kept in an inventory and used for the repair or Refurbishment (electronics), refurbishment of defective equipment/units. Spare parts are an i ...

s to supply the remaining class Z-1-a locomotives. Another, CN 6712, was donated to the Town of Mount Royal, and was stored at that city's municipal garage pending selection of a suitable display site. Such a site was never found; the unit was cannibalized and scrapped in 2011.

Preservation

Four locomotives were preserved. * CNoR600/CNR9100/100/6710 - Sit in Parc Bélair in Deux-Montagnes, Quebec. Pulled the Last train with 6711; fully restored in 2020 at display site. * CNoR601/CNR9101/101/6711 — Preserved at

Exporail ExpoRail was a train service provider in Sri Lanka. ExpoRail used to provide premium services on several routes in Sri Lanka, in partnership with Sri Lanka Railways. Although it did not operate its own trains for scheduled services, it operated ...

Delson Delson is an off-island suburb ( South shore) of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is situated 8 mi/13 km SSE of Montreal within the regional county municipality of Roussillon in the administrative region of Montérégie. The population as ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

. Pulled the last train with 6710 ; also pulled first train into tunnel October 21, 1918. * CNoR604/CNR9104/104/6714 — Was preserved at the

Connecticut Trolley Museum The Connecticut Trolley Museum, also known as the Warehouse Point Trolley Museum, is the oldest incorporated museum dedicated to electric railroading in the United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States ...

in East Windsor, Connecticut. Built in Canada, at

Canadian General Electric GE Canada (or General Electric Canada) is the wholly-owned Canadian unit of General Electric, manufacturing various consumer and industrial electrical products all over Canada. GE Canada was preceded by the company Canadian General Electric (CGE ...

Peterborough Peterborough ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in the City of Peterborough district in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Cambridgeshire, England. The city is north of London, on the River Nene. A ...

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 ...

. Parts were shipped from

Schenectady Schenectady ( ) is a City (New York), city in Schenectady County, New York, United States, of which it is the county seat. As of the United States Census 2020, 2020 census, the city's population of 67,047 made it the state's ninth-most populo ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

. As of 2023, it is scheduled to be moved to the

Halton County Radial Railway The Halton County Radial Railway is a working List of transport museums, museum of electric tram, streetcars, other railway vehicles, buses and trolleybuses. It is operated by the Ontario Electric Railway Historical Association (OERHA). It is focu ...

Milton, Ontario Milton (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census population 132,979) is a town in Southern Ontario, Canada, and part of the Regional Municipality of Halton, Halton Region in the Greater Toronto Area. Between 2001 and 2011, Milton was the fastest growing m ...

. * CNoR605/CNR9105/105/6715 — Preserved at the

Canada Science and Technology Museum The Canada Science and Technology Museum (abbreviated as CSTM; ) is a national museum of science and technology in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum has a mandate to preserve and promote the country's scientific and technological heritage. The m ...

in Ottawa, Ontario. Built entirely in Canada, at Canadian General Electric, Peterborough, Ontario.

References

{{GE electrics General Electric locomotives Canadian Northern Railway Canadian National Railway locomotives Electric locomotives of Canada Bo+Bo locomotives Passenger locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1917

Preservation

See also

References