Reading 1251 is a preserved class "B-4a"

0-6-0 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of no leading wheels, six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles and no trailing wheels. This was the most common wheel arrangement ...

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful e ...

locomotive built by the

Reading Company The Reading Company ( ) was a Philadelphia-headquartered railroad that provided passenger and commercial rail transport in eastern Pennsylvania and neighboring states that operated from 1924 until its 1976 acquisition by Conrail. Commonly calle ...

's own locomotive shops in

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

in 1918 as the only tank locomotive to be rostered by the Reading after World War I. It served as a shop switcher to pull and push locomotives in and out of the Reading's shops, until it was taken off of the Reading's active list in early 1963. It subsequently spent the next eight years being sold to various owners until becoming fully owned by the

Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania The Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania is a railroad museum in Strasburg, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The museum is located on the east side of Strasburg along Pennsylvania Route 741. It is administered by the Pennsylvania Historical and Muse ...

in Strasburg for static display. As of 2023, the locomotive remains on indoor display inside the museum and isn't likely to run again anytime soon.

History

Original service life

During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, the Reading Company constructed various designs of

switcher A switcher, shunter, yard pilot, switch engine, yard goat, or shifter is a small railroad locomotive used for manoeuvring railroad cars inside a rail yard in a process known as ''switching'' (US) or ''shunting'' (UK). Switchers are not inte ...

locomotives A locomotive or engine is a rail transport vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. If a locomotive is capable of carrying a payload, it is usually rather referred to as a multiple unit, motor coach, railcar or power car; th ...

from their own shops in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

to serve their various

yards The yard (symbol: yd) is an English unit of length in both the British imperial and US customary systems of measurement equalling 3 feet or 36 inches. Since 1959 it has been by international agreement standardized as exactly ...

and roundhouses across their system. In September 1918, a unique saddle tank locomotive rolled out of the Reading shops after being constructed from parts of an I-2a class

2-8-0 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, usually in a leading truck, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and no trailing wheels ...

. That locomotive was B-4a No. 1251, which ended up being the only tank locomotive to be rostered by the Reading after the end of the War. The locomotive was never meant to be used as a road locomotive, rather a shop switcher, or 'goat' as they were often nicknamed, to tow locomotives in and out of the Reading's locomotive facility. Multiple brand new locomotives were still rolling out of the facility, and others were continuously in need of repairs, so No. 1251 was kept busy shoving locomotives in and out. It was still maintained and cleaned well to stay operable, and since it was easy to operate and maintain, it was well liked by crews. As the 1950s progressed, even the Reading was in the process of dieselizing their locomotive fleet, and although No. 1251 remained on the active list the longest, the only thing forcing it into retirement was age. Its last revenue switching assignment occurred on February 8, 1963.

Preservation

George M. Hart was a steam locomotive historian who formerly worked with Reading Company for years. As the famed Iron Horse Rambles excursions were coming to an end, Hart decided to operate his own steam excursions in various parts of the Northeastern United States, and he founded his own private company Rail Tours Incorporated. In early 1964, Hart purchased No. 1251 from the Reading, and after some repair work was completed, No. 1251 was put into excursion service over the

Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad The Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad , familiarly known as the "Ma and Pa", was an American short-line railroad between York and Hanover, Pennsylvania, formerly operating passenger and freight trains on its original line between York and Baltim ...

in York County. Owing to its low fuel capacity, No. 1251 was also fitted with an Ex-Reading tender to decrease the amount of stops it would require. RR72

In October 1966, No. 1251 was formerly retired from excursion service after its flue time expired, and it was subsequently replaced by larger locomotives from the

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canad ...

, including

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 absenc ...

No. 972. Two years later, No. 1251 was sold to the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission with the hopes of putting it on static display at Hart's future museum ground at Strasburg. No. 1251 was moved across the

Strasburg Rail Road The Strasburg Rail Road is a heritage railroad and the oldest continuously operating standard-gauge railroad in the western hemisphere, as well as the oldest public utility in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Chartered in 1832, the Strasburg Ra ...

and was put in the yard of the new Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania for storage. As construction of the museum's building was almost completed in 1972, the No. 1251 was outright donated to the museum as a permanent addition to their locomotive collection. In 1982, museum volunteers worked to cosmetically restore No. 1251 to make it look nicer for public view, and when it was completed, No. 1251 was moved inside the museum's main building, surrounded by a few

Pennsylvania Railroad The Pennsylvania Railroad (reporting mark PRR), legal name 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. It was named ...

locomotives. As of 2023, the locomotive remains inside the museum, safely out of the elements and vandals. Despite being indoors, there are no plans of restoring No. 1251 back to operating condition anytime soon.

Historical significance

No. 1251 is a one of a kind locomotive design, as no identical copies of the B-4as were ever made. It is also the only one out of over 830 steam locomotives ever built brand new by the Reading's own locomotive shops to ever escape the

scrap Scrap consists of recyclable materials, usually metals, left over from product manufacturing and consumption, such as parts of vehicles, building supplies, and surplus materials. Unlike waste, scrap has monetary value, especially recovered m ...

per's

torch A torch is a stick with combustible material at one end, which is ignited and used as a light source. Torches have been used throughout history, and are still used in processions, symbolic and religious events, and in juggling entertainment. In ...

. The locomotive also holds the distinction of being the last standard gauge steam locomotive to ever daily operate for a

class 1 railroad In the United States, railroad carriers are designated as Class I, II, or III, according to annual revenue criteria originally set by the Surface Transportation Board in 1992. With annual adjustments for inflation, the 2019 thresholds were US ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

References

{{reflist

External links

Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania official website
Individual locomotives of the United States 0-6-0 locomotives Baldwin locomotives Philadelphia and Reading Railroad locomotives Shunting locomotives

1251 Year 1251 ( MCCLI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * April – The first Shepherds' Crusade, a domestic French uprising in response to events i ...