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The Pennsylvania Railroad Class GG1 is a class of
streamlined Streamlines, streaklines and pathlines are field lines in a fluid flow. They differ only when the flow changes with time, that is, when the flow is not steady flow, steady. Considering a velocity vector field in three-dimensional space in the f ...
electric locomotive An electric locomotive is a locomotive powered by electricity from overhead lines, a third rail or on-board energy storage such as a Battery (electricity), battery or a supercapacitor. Locomotives with on-board fuelled prime mover (locomotive), ...
s built for the
Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad ( reporting mark PRR), legal name as the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, also known as the "Pennsy," was an American Class I railroad that was established in 1846 and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At its ...
(PRR), in the northeastern United States. The class was known for its striking
art deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
shell, its ability to pull trains at up to 100 mph, and its long operating career of almost 50 years. Between 1934 and 1943,
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 ...
and the PRR's
Altoona Works Altoona Works (also known as Altoona Terminal) is a large railroad industrial complex in Altoona, Pennsylvania. It was built between 1850 and 1925 by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), to supply the railroad with locomotives, railroad cars and rel ...
built 139 GG1s. The GG1 entered service with the PRR in 1935 and later ran on successor railroads
Penn Central The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American class I railroad that operated from 1968 to 1976. Penn Central combined three traditional corporate rivals, the Pennsylvania, New York Central and the ...
,
Conrail Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do busine ...
, and
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
. The last GG1 was retired by
New Jersey Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit or NJTransit and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey and portions of the states of New York and Pennsylvania. It ...
in 1983. Most have been scrapped, but sixteen are preserved in museums.


Technical information


Body and mechanical

The GG1 was long and weighed . The
frame A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent. Frame and FRAME may also refer to: Physical objects In building construction *Framing (con ...
of the locomotive was in two halves joined with a ball joint, allowing the locomotive to negotiate sharper curves. The body rested on the frame and was clad in welded steel plates. The control cabs were near the center of the locomotive on each side of the main oil-cooled transformer and oil-fired train-heating boiler. This arrangement, first used on the PRR's Modified P5 class, provided for greater crew safety in a collision and provided for bi-directional operation of the locomotive. Using
Whyte notation The Whyte notation is a classification method for steam locomotives, and some internal combustion locomotives and electric locomotives, by wheel arrangement. It was devised by Frederick Methvan Whyte, and came into use in the early twenti ...
for
steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, Fuel oil, oil or, rarely, Wood fuel, wood) to heat ...
s, each frame is a
4-6-0 A 4-6-0 steam locomotive, under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives by wheel arrangement, has four leading wheels on two axles in a leading bogie and six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles with the abs ...
locomotive, which in the Pennsylvania Railroad classification system is a "G". The GG1 has two such frames back to back, 4-6-0+0-6-4. The related
AAR wheel arrangement The AAR wheel arrangement system is a method of classifying locomotive A locomotive is a rail transport, rail vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. Traditionally, locomotives pulled trains from the front. However, Push–pu ...
classification is 2-C+C-2. This means one frame mounted upon a set of two axles unpowered (the "2") and three axles powered (the "C") hinged with the ball and socket to another frame of the same design (the +). The unpowered "2" axles are at either end of the locomotive. The GG1 was equipped with a Leslie A200 horn.


Electrical and propulsion

A
pantograph A pantograph (, from their original use for copying writing) is a Linkage (mechanical), mechanical linkage connected in a manner based on parallelograms so that the movement of one pen, in tracing an image, produces identical movements in a se ...
on each end of the locomotive body was used to collect the 11,000  V, 25  Hz
alternating current Alternating current (AC) is an electric current that periodically reverses direction and changes its magnitude continuously with time, in contrast to direct current (DC), which flows only in one direction. Alternating current is the form in w ...
(AC) from the overhead catenary wires. In operation, the leading pantograph was usually kept lowered and the trailing one raised to collect current, since if the rear pantograph failed it would not strike the forward pantograph. A
transformer In electrical engineering, a transformer is a passive component that transfers electrical energy from one electrical circuit to another circuit, or multiple Electrical network, circuits. A varying current in any coil of the transformer produces ...
between the two cabs stepped-down the 11,000 V to the voltages needed for the
traction motor A traction motor is an electric motor used for propulsion of a vehicle, such as locomotives, electric vehicle, electric or hydrogen vehicles, or electric multiple unit trains. Traction (engineering), Traction motors are used in electrically powe ...
s and other equipment. Twelve GEA-627-A1 traction motors (AC commutator motors, not AC induction motors) drove the GG1's diameter
driving wheel On a steam locomotive, a driving wheel is a powered wheel which is driven by the locomotive's pistons (or turbine, in the case of a steam turbine locomotive). On a conventional, non-articulated locomotive, the driving wheels are all coupled t ...
s on six axles using a quill drive. The power required was such that double traction motors were used, with two motors driving each axle. The traction motors were six-pole field, 400 volts, 25 Hz rated each at . The motors were frame-mounted using quill drives to the sprung driving wheels, providing a flexible suspension system across a relatively-long locomotive frame, which allowed full wheel weight to rest on the rail for good traction regardless of track condition. A series-wound commutator motor's speed is increased by increasing the applied voltage to the motor, thus increasing the current through the motor's armature, which is necessary for increasing its torque and thus increasing motor speed. The engineer's cab had a 21-position controller for applying voltage to the motors. Four unpowered
leading In typography, leading ( ) is the space between adjacent lines of type; the exact definition varies. In hand typesetting, leading is the thin strips of lead (or aluminium) that were inserted between lines of type in the composing stick to incre ...
/ trailing wheels were mounted on each end of the locomotive.


Steam generation for heating

In the 1930s, railroad passenger cars were heated with steam from the locomotive. The GG1 had an oil-fired
steam generator Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is inv ...
to feed its train's "steam line."


History

Beginning in the late 1910s, the PRR received the FF1, but decided that it was too slow for passenger trains; it was relegated to heavy freight service. In the mid-1920s, it received the L5 electric, which had a third-rail power supply at the time. When the Pennsylvania built the O1 and the P5, it chose the P5 over the O1 for its ability and power on the rails. After a grade-crossing accident with the P5a, the cab was moved to the center and was designated P5a (Modified). The P5a’s rigid frame did not track well at high speeds and began developing cracks, leading the PRR to seek an improved design. They found two contacts as early as 1932. The mechanical design of the GG1 was based largely on the EP3, which the PRR had borrowed from the
New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , commonly known as The Consolidated, or simply as the New Haven, was a railroad that operated principally in the New England region of the United States from 1872 to 1968. Founded by the merger of ...
to compare it to the P5a. In 1933, the PRR decided to replace its P5a locomotives; it asked General Electric and Westinghouse to design prototype locomotives with a lighter axle load and more power than the P5a, a top speed of at least , a streamlined body design, and a single (central) control cab. Both companies delivered their prototypes to PRR in August 1934. Westinghouse's R1 was essentially "little more than an elongated and more powerful version of the P5a" with an AAR wheel arrangement of 2-D-2. General Electric delivered its GG1. Both locomotives were tested for ten weeks in regular service between New York and Philadelphia and on a test track in Claymont, Delaware. PRR chose the GG1 because the R1's rigid wheelbase prevented it from negotiating sharp curves and some
railroad switch A railroad switch (American English, AE), turnout, or (set of) points (Commonwealth English, CE) is a mechanical installation enabling railway trains to be guided from one Rail tracks, track to another, such as at a Junction (rail), ...
es. On November 10, 1934, the railroad ordered 57 locomotives: 14 assembled 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 ...
in Erie, 18 by the PRR's own
Altoona Works Altoona Works (also known as Altoona Terminal) is a large railroad industrial complex in Altoona, Pennsylvania. It was built between 1850 and 1925 by the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), to supply the railroad with locomotives, railroad cars and rel ...
, and 20 more in Altoona with electrical components from Westinghouse in East Pittsburgh and
chassis A chassis (, ; plural ''chassis'' from French châssis ) is the load-bearing framework of a manufactured object, which structurally supports the object in its construction and function. An example of a chassis is a vehicle frame, the underpart ...
from the
Baldwin Locomotive Works The Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) was an American manufacturer of railway locomotives from 1825 to 1951. Originally located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, it moved to nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania, Eddystone in the early 20th century. The com ...
in Eddystone. An additional 81 locomotives were built at Altoona between 1937 and 1943. On January 28 1935, to mark the completion of electrification of the line from
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, to
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
, PRR ran a special train hauled by Pennsylvania Railroad 4800 before it opened the line for revenue service on February 10. It made a round-trip from D.C. to
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
; it completed the return leg in a record 1 hour and 50 minutes. In 1945, a Pennsylvania GG1 hauled the funeral train of
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
from
Washington Union Station Washington Union Station, known locally as Union Station, is a major train station, transportation hub, and leisure destination in Washington, D.C. Designed by Daniel Burnham and opened in 1907, it is Amtrak's second-busiest station and North ...
to New York Pennsylvania Station. In the mid-1950s, with declining demand for passenger train service, GG1s 4801–4857 were re-geared for a maximum speed of and placed in freight service. They initially retained their train-heating steam generator, and were recalled to passenger service for holiday-season mail trains and 'Passenger Extras' such as those run for the annual Army–Navy football game in Philadelphia. Timetable speed limit for the GG1 was until October 1967, when some were allowed for a couple of years. When Metroliner cars were being overhauled in the late 1970s, GG1s were again allowed 100 mph for a short time when hauling
Amfleet Amfleet is a fleet of single-level intercity railroad passenger car (rail), passenger cars built by the Budd Company for American company Amtrak in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Budd based the Amfleet design on its earlier Budd Metroliner, Me ...
cars on trains scheduled to run from New York to Washington in 3 hours and 20 to 25 minutes. On June 8, 1968, two Penn Central GG1s hauled Robert F. Kennedy's funeral train from New York Penn Station to Washington, D.C.


Shell design

The first designer for the GG1 project was industrial designer Donald Roscoe Dohner, who produced initial scale-styling models, although the completed prototype looked somewhat different. At some point, the PRR hired famed industrial designer Raymond Loewy to "enhance the GG1's aesthetics", leading to the final 'Art Deco' design it became known for. Although it was thought until 2009 that Loewy was solely responsible for the GG1's styling, Dohner is now understood to have contributed as well (Dohner's GG1 designs influenced the modified P5as, which debuted before the GG1 — not, as was thought, the other way around). Loewy did claim that he recommended the use of a smooth, welded body instead of the
rivet A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener. Before being installed, a rivet consists of a smooth cylinder (geometry), cylindrical shaft with a head on one end. The end opposite the head is called the ''tail''. On installation, the deformed e ...
ed one used in the prototype. Loewy also added five gold pinstripes and a Brunswick green paint scheme. In 1952, the paint scheme was changed to Tuscan red; three years later, the pinstripes were simplified to a single stripe and large red keystones were added.


Incidents

On September 6, 1943, the ''Congressional Limited'' crashed at Frankford Junction, in the
Kensington Kensington is an area of London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, around west of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up by Kensingt ...
section of
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
, Pennsylvania. The train was pulled by GG1 4930. The accident was caused by a
journal box A bogie or railroad truck holds the wheel sets of a rail vehicle. Axlebox An axlebox, also known as a journal box in North America, is the mechanical subassembly on each end of the axles under a railway wagon, coach or locomotive; it contai ...
fire (a hot box) on the front of the seventh of the train's 16 cars. The journal box seized and an axle snapped, catching the underside of the truck and catapulting the car upwards. It struck a signal gantry, which peeled off its roof along the line of windows "like a can of sardines". Car #8 wrapped itself around the gantry upright in a figure U. The next six cars were scattered at odd angles over the tracks, and the last two cars remained undamaged. In total, 79 passengers died, all from cars #7 and #8, and 117 were injured, some seriously. On January 15, 1953, train 173, the overnight '' Federal'' from Boston, was approaching Washington behind GG1 4876. The train passed a signal north of
Washington Union Station Washington Union Station, known locally as Union Station, is a major train station, transportation hub, and leisure destination in Washington, D.C. Designed by Daniel Burnham and opened in 1907, it is Amtrak's second-busiest station and North ...
between , and the engineer decreased the throttle and started applying the brakes. When the engineer realized that the train was not slowing down, and applying the emergency brake had no effect, he sounded the engine's horn. A signalman, hearing the horn and noting the speed of the 4876, phoned ahead to the station master's office. 4876 negotiated several
switches In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can disconnect or connect the conducting path in an electrical circuit, interrupting the electric current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The most common type o ...
at speeds well over the safe limits and entered the station at around ."Accident at Union Station", p. 5. The train demolished the bumping post, continued through the station master's office and into the concourse, where it fell through the floor into the station's basement. Thanks to the evacuation of the concourse, no one died, either in the station or aboard the train. A temporary floor was erected over the engine, and the hole it created, for the inauguration of
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...
. 4876 was eventually dismantled, removed from the basement and reassembled with a new frame and superstructure in Altoona. The reconstructed 4876 survives at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore. The accident was determined to have been caused by a closed "angle cock", a valve on the front and rear of all locomotives and rail cars used in the train's airbrake system, on the rear of the third car in the train. The handle of the angle cock had been improperly placed and had contacted the bottom of the car. Once it was closed, the air brake pipe on all the cars behind the closed valve remained at full pressure, keeping the brakes released on those cars while the brakes on the locomotive and first three cars were applied in emergency. The only major electro-mechanical breakdown of the GG1 was caused by a February 1958 blizzard that swept across the northeastern United States and put nearly half of the GG1s out of commission. Exceptionally fine snow, caused by the extreme low temperatures, passed through the traction motors' air filters and into the electrical components. When the snow melted, it short-circuited the components. On about 40 units, the air intakes were later moved to a position under the pantographs.


Disposition

In 1968, the PRR, with its 119 surviving GG1s, merged with the
New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad was a railroad primarily operating in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The railroad primarily connected New York metropolitan area, gr ...
to form Penn Central. Penn Central went bankrupt in 1970 and its freight operations were later assumed by government-controlled Conrail, which used 68 GG1s in freight service until the end of electric freight traction in 1980. After its creation in 1971,
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
purchased 30 GG1s for $50,000 each and leased another 21, of which 11 were for use on New York and Long Branch commuter trains. Amtrak initially renumbered the purchased GG1s as Nos. 900 to 929; later the railroad added a prefixed "4". This replicated some of the numbers of the leased units, which were renumbered 4930 to 4939, except 4935, which kept its old PRR/PC number. Amtrak unsuccessfully attempted to replace the GG1s in 1975 with the General Electric E60. An E60 derailed during testing at , forcing an investigation (the E60 used the same trucks as the P30CH diesel then in service with Amtrak) that delayed acceptance. The hoped-for service speed was never achieved (timetable limit was 90 mph, then 80, then 90). A replacement was finally found after Amtrak imported and tested two lightweight European locomotives: X995, an Rc4a built by ASEA of
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
, and X996, a derivative of the French Alsthom-MTE CC 21000. The railroad picked the ASEA design, initially nicknamed the "Swedish swifty" or the "Mighty Mouse" and later often referred to as the "Swedish Meatball".
Electro-Motive Diesel Electro-Motive Diesel (abbreviated EMD) is a brand of diesel-electric locomotives, locomotive products and diesel engines for the rail industry. Formerly a division of General Motors, EMD has been owned by Progress Rail since 2010. Electro-Motive ...
, then a part of
General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...
, was licensed to build a derivative called the AEM-7. As AEM-7s arrived, Amtrak finally ended GG1 service on April 26, 1980. The last GG1s in use were some of the 13 assigned to New Jersey Transit (#4872–4884) for its
North Jersey Coast Line The North Jersey Coast Line is a Commuter rail in North America, commuter rail line running from Rahway, New Jersey, Rahway to Bay Head, New Jersey, traversing through the Jersey Shore region. Operated by New Jersey Transit, the line is electr ...
between New York and South Amboy (the former New York and Long Branch) that ran until October 29, 1983, thus retiring the locomotive after 49 years of service.


Preservation

Fifteen production locomotives and the prototype were preserved in museums. None are operational; their main transformers were removed because of the PCBs in the insulating oil. * PRR/PC/CR 4800
Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to ro ...
,
Strasburg, Pennsylvania Strasburg is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. It developed as a linear village stretching approximately along the Great Conestoga Road, later known as the Strasburg Road.Susan M. Zacher, NRHP Nomination Form Stra ...
(nicknamed "Old Rivets" due to it being the only GG1 to have been built with a riveted body) * PRR/PC/CR 4859Transportation Center,
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg ( ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,099 as of 2020, Harrisburg is the ninth-most populous city in Pennsylvania. It is the larger of the two pr ...
(designated Pennsylvania State electric locomotive in 1987) * PRR/PC/CR/NJT 4876B&O Railroad Museum,
Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...
, Maryland (reconstructed with new frame and superstructure as well as reusable components from the original 4876 following the 1953 Washington Union Station wreck) * PRR/PC/CR/NJT 4877
United Railroad Historical Society of New Jersey The United Railroad Historical Society of New Jersey, Inc. (or URHS of NJ) is a non-profit educational organization directed at supporting the preservation of New Jersey's historical railroad equipment and artifacts for the proposed New Jersey Tra ...
, Boonton, New Jersey (nicknamed "Big Red") * PRR/PC/CR/NJT 4879 — United Railroad Historical Society of New Jersey, Boonton, New Jersey * PRR/PC/CR/NJT 4882 — National New York Central Railroad Museum,
Elkhart, Indiana Elkhart ( ) is a city in Elkhart County, Indiana, United States. The population was 53,923 at the 2020 census. The city is located east of South Bend, Indiana. It is the most populous city in the Elkhart–Goshen metropolitan area, which in tu ...
(currently painted in Penn Central colors) * PRR/Amtrak 4890 — National Railroad Museum,
Green Bay, Wisconsin Green Bay is a city in Brown County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the head of Green Bay (Lake Michigan), Green Bay (known locally as "the bay of Green Bay"), a sub-basin of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the F ...
* PRR 4903/Amtrak (4)906 — Museum of the American Railroad,
Frisco, Texas Frisco is a city in the U.S. state of Texas, located in Collin County, Texas, Collin and Denton County, Texas, Denton counties. It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex (DFW) and about from both Dallas Love Field and Dallas/Fort Worth In ...
(hauled Robert F. Kennedy's funeral train with GG1 4901 from New York to Washington on June 8, 1968). * PRR 4909/Amtrak 4932 — Leatherstocking Railway Museum, Cooperstown Junction, New York * PRR 4913/Amtrak (4)913 — Railroaders Memorial Museum,
Altoona, Pennsylvania Altoona ( ) is a city in Blair County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 43,963 at the time of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Altoona Metropolitan statistical area, metropolitan area, w ...
* PRR 4917/Amtrak 4934 — Leatherstocking Railway Museum, Cooperstown Junction, New York * PRR 4918/Amtrak (4)916 — National Museum of Transportation,
St Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...
, Missouri * PRR 4919/Amtrak (4)917 — Virginia Museum of Transportation,
Roanoke, Virginia Roanoke ( ) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia, United States. It lies in Southwest Virginia, along the Roanoke River, in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Blue Ridge range of the greater Appalachian Mountains. Roanok ...
* PRR 4927/Amtrak 4939 — Illinois Railway Museum, Union, Illinois * PRR 4933/Amtrak (4)926 — Central New York Chapter of the National Railroad Historical Society,
Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States. With a population of 148,620 and a Syracuse metropolitan area, metropolitan area of 662,057, it is the fifth-most populated city and 13 ...
. It has been cosmetically restored and is on display at the NYS Fairgrounds Historic Train Exhibit. * PRR 4935 / Amtrak 4935
Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to ro ...
,
Strasburg, Pennsylvania Strasburg is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. It developed as a linear village stretching approximately along the Great Conestoga Road, later known as the Strasburg Road.Susan M. Zacher, NRHP Nomination Form Stra ...
(nicknamed "Blackjack" because the numerals in 4935 add up to 21, the winning number in the card game of the same name)


In popular culture

During the mid-1930s, many railroads
streamlined Streamlines, streaklines and pathlines are field lines in a fluid flow. They differ only when the flow changes with time, that is, when the flow is not steady flow, steady. Considering a velocity vector field in three-dimensional space in the f ...
locomotives and passenger cars to convey a fashionable sense of speed. While the
Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad is a Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United States after BNSF, ...
had the M-10000 and the
Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, CB&Q, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of Colorado ...
the ''
Zephyr In European tradition, a zephyr is a light wind or a west wind, named after Zephyrus, the Greek god or personification of the west wind. Zephyr may also refer to: Arts and media Fictional characters * Zephyr (comics), in the Marvel Comics univers ...
'', the PRR had the GG1. The GG1 has "shown up over the years in more advertisements and movie clips than any other locomotive." It was also featured in art calendars provided by PRR, which were used to "promote its reputation in the public eye." PRR-painted GG1s appear in the films '' Broadway Limited'' in 1941, '' The Clock'' in 1945, '' Blast of Silence'' in 1961, the 1962 version of '' The Manchurian Candidate'', and '' Avalon'' in 1990. Two GG1s appear in the 1973 film '' The Seven-Ups''—a black Penn Central locomotive and a silver, red and blue Amtrak locomotive. A Penn Central GG1 also appears in another 1973 film '' The Last Detail''. PRR GG1 4821 appears briefly in the 1952 film '' The Greatest Show on Earth'', hauling the Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus into Philadelphia's Greenwich Yard, as the movie's director Cecil B. DeMille narrates the scene of its arrival. Near the end of the 1951 film ''
Bright Victory ''Bright Victory'' is a 1951 American drama romance war film directed by Mark Robson, and starring Arthur Kennedy and Peggy Dow. Plot During World War II, American sergeant Larry Nevins is blinded by a German sniper while fighting in North ...
,'' GG1 #4849 is shown pulling into the station. A GG1 and the ''Congressional'' were featured on a
postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail). Then the stamp is affixed to the f ...
as part of the
United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or simply the Postal Service, is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the executive branch of the federal governmen ...
's All Aboard! 20th Century American Trains set in 1999."All Aboard!" The PC games '' Railroad Tycoon II'', '' Railroad Tycoon 3'', '' Train Fever'', '' Transport Fever'' and '' Transport Fever 2'' allow players to purchase and operate GG1 locomotive engines on their train routes. The GG1 is also available with the default Trainz Simulator Games in recent years, and is available as add-ons for Railworks, Train Simulator by Dovetail Games and Microsoft Train Simulator. A GG1 in a fictional Soviet color scheme appears as an environmental prop in the 2023 first-person-shooter '' Atomic Heart''. Model GG1s have been produced in G, O, S, HO, N and Z scales by Rivarossi, Bachmann, Tyco, Lionel, MTH, USA Trains, Kato, Astor, Fine Art Models, Märklin and other manufacturers.


References


Sources

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Further reading

* *


External links


GG1: An American Classic
1984 documentary on the last run of the GG1 at
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General Electric locomotives 2-C+C-2 locomotives 11 kV AC locomotives GG1 North American streamliner trains Passenger locomotives Electric locomotives of the United States Railway locomotives introduced in 1934 Conrail locomotives Amtrak locomotives Standard-gauge locomotives of the United States Raymond Loewy Streamlined electric locomotives 4-6-0+0-6-4 locomotives {{DEFAULTSORT:Pennsylvania Railroad class GG1