The E9 is a , A1A-A1A

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, ...

-hauling

diesel locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover (locomotive), power source is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is con ...

built by

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 ...

Electro-Motive Division 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-Motiv ...

La Grange, Illinois La Grange ( ; often spelled LaGrange) is a village (United States)#Illinois, village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a suburb of Chicago. The population was 16,321 at the 2020 census. History The area around La Grange was first s ...

, between April 1954 and January 1964. 100 cab-equipped

A unit An A-unit, in railroad terminology, is a diesel locomotive (or more rarely an electric locomotive) equipped with a driving cab and a control system to control other locomotives in a multiple unit, and therefore able to be the lead unit in a c ...

s were produced and 44 cabless booster

B unit A B-unit, in railroad terminology, is a locomotive unit (generally a diesel locomotive) which does not have a control cab or crew compartment, and must therefore be operated in tandem with another coupled locomotive with a cab (an A-unit) ...

s, all for service in the United States. The E9 was the tenth and last model of

EMD E-unit EMD E-units were a line of passenger train streamliner diesel locomotives built by the Electro-Motive Diesel, General Motors Electro-Motive Division (EMD) and its predecessor the Electro-Motive Corporation (EMC). Final assembly for all E-units ...

and differed from the earlier E8 as built only by the newer engines and a different, flusher-fitting mounting for the headlight glass, the latter being the only visible difference. Since some E8s were fitted with this, it is not a reliable way to distinguish the two. The E9 has two , V12 model 567C engines, each engine driving one generator to power two

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 ...

Engine and powertrain

The E9 uses twin 12 cylinder 567C engines developing a total of at 800

rpm Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or r⋅min−1) is a unit of rotational speed (or rotational frequency) for rotating machines. One revolution per minute is equivalent to hertz. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 def ...

. Designed specifically for railroad locomotives, this Roots-blown, mechanically aspirated 2-stroke 45-degree V-type, with an , bore by

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

, giving displacement per cylinder, remained in production until 1966. Two DC generators, one per engine, provide power to four motors, two on each truck, in an A1A-A1A arrangement. This truck design was used on all E units and on MP 7100 and CB&Q 9908 power cars. EMD has built all of its major components since 1939.

Operation

The E9 powered American passenger and mail trains from the 1950s into the late 1970s. Many of America's finest trains — such as

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, 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 Stat ...

's "City" fleet, Burlington's "Zephyr" fleet and

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Railroad classes#Class I, Class I Rail transport, railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was oper ...

's ''

Coast Daylight The ''Coast Daylight'', originally known as the ''Daylight Limited'', was a passenger train on the Southern Pacific Railroad (SP) between Los Angeles and San Francisco, California, via SP's Coast Line. It was advertised as the "most beautifu ...

'' and ''

Sunset Limited The ''Sunset Limited'' is a long-distance passenger train run by Amtrak, operating on a route between New Orleans and Los Angeles. Major stops include Houston, San Antonio and El Paso in Texas, as well as Tucson, Arizona. Opening in 1894 thr ...

'' — had E9s pulling them. E9s and their E7 and E8 kin ran throughout the country on lesser-known passenger trains,

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

's network of commuter trains and many mail and express trains. As America's passenger train network shrank due to unprofitability, Union Pacific, Rock Island and

Illinois Central The Illinois Central Railroad , sometimes called the Main Line of Mid-America, is a railroad in the Central United States. Its primary routes connected Chicago, Illinois, with New Orleans, Louisiana, and Mobile, Alabama, and thus, the Great Lak ...

began using E9s on freight trains while

Burlington Northern The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States–based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1995. Its historical lineage begins in the earliest days of railroad ...

began upgrading their fleets of E9s with

Head-end power In rail transport, head-end power (HEP), also known as electric train supply (ETS), is the electrical power distribution system on a passenger train. The power source, usually a locomotive (or a generator car) at the front or 'head' of a train, ...

and

EMD 645 The EMD 645 is a family of two-stroke diesel engines that was designed and manufactured by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors. While the 645 series was intended primarily for locomotive, marine and stationary engine use, one 16-cy ...

power assemblies for commuter operations in the

Chicago metropolitan area The Chicago metropolitan area, also referred to as Chicagoland, is the largest metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. state of Illinois, and the Midwest, containing the City of Chicago along with its surrounding suburbs and satellite cities. ...

into the early 1990s.

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 ...

, founded in 1971, bought 36 E9As and 23 E9Bs from the Union Pacific, Milwaukee Road, B&O and SCL. Amtrak used the E9s until 1979 and converted some E9B units to

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 ...

and

head end power In rail transport, head-end power (HEP), also known as electric train supply (ETS), is the electrical power distribution system on a passenger train. The power source, usually a locomotive (or a generator car) at the front or 'head' of a train, ...

cars.

Original owners

Surviving examples

As of 1997, 42 E9 locomotives survived.According to Andrew Toppan's list of March 5, 1997, 42 survive. Many of these have been donated to several museums and tourist railroads. A number of railroads keep a small number in service for hauling inspection specials, charter passenger trains, investor tours and other special trains. *Five E9s are owned by the

Illinois Railway Museum The Illinois Railway Museum (IRM, reporting mark IRMX) is the largest railroad museum in the United States. It is located in the Chicago metropolitan area at 7000 Olson Road in Union, Illinois, northwest of downtown Chicago. Overview ...

, in

Union, Illinois Union is a village in McHenry County, Illinois, United States. The population was 551 at the 2020 census. History A post office called Union has been in operation since 1852. The village was named for the federal union of the United States. ...

. The operating units are often used pulling trains within museum grounds. *The

rosters three E9s: two A units, 951 and 949, and a B unit, 963B (built as UP E9B 970B), in their

heritage fleet Amtrak's Heritage Fleet consisted of the rolling stock provided to it when it assumed passenger service on commercial railroads. The name was applied to a 1977–1983 program that converted the older, mainly streamliner cars (rail), streamlined ...

. They were rebuilt in 1993 with a single 2000 hp EMD 16-645E engine and upgraded electrical and control equipment for compatibility with more modern locomotives. *

Southern Pacific The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the names ...

6051, the last surviving SP E9, is preserved at the

California State Railroad Museum The California State Railroad Museum is a museum in the California State Parks system that interprets the role of railroads in the Western U.S. It is located in Old Sacramento State Historic Park at 111 I Street, Sacramento, California. Featu ...

and operates excursions hosted by the museum. * CN previously owned ex-

Chicago, Burlington & Quincy The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwest, 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 ...

E9A 9986A, painted in CN's heritage livery and numbered 103. It was Delivered to the National Railway Museum in Green Bay Wisconsin on February 29, 2024. *

Milwaukee Road The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (CMStP&P), better known as the Milwaukee Road , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States, Midwest and Pacific Northwest, Northwest of the United States from 1847 ...

32A is owned and operated by the Friends of the 261, who acquired it in 2019. This unit was previously used on the

Wisconsin and Southern Railroad The Wisconsin and Southern Railroad is a Class II regional railroad in Southern Wisconsin and Northeastern Illinois currently operated by Watco. It operates former Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (Milwaukee Road) and ...

as their 101.

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * Reich, Sy (1973). ''Diesel Locomotive Rosters – The Railroad Magazine Series''. Wayner Publications. No Library of Congress or ISBN. * * * * * * * * * Extra 2200 South #43 November December 1973 Amtrak Roster by Dick Will p. 13 * Extra 2200 South #43 November December 1973 E8/E9 Roster and article by Dan Dover and Win Cuisinier (Preston Cook) pp. 14–24

External links

*
Illinois Railway Museum's Equipment roster
(type "E9" and search the collection)

The Union Pacific's trio of re-engined E9s
{{EMD cab and cowl A1A-A1A locomotives E9 Passenger locomotives Diesel locomotives of the United States Railway locomotives introduced in 1954 Locomotives with cabless variants Standard-gauge locomotives of the United States Streamlined diesel locomotives Baltimore and Ohio locomotives Chicago, Burlington and Quincy locomotives Illinois Central locomotives Milwaukee Road locomotives Southern Pacific Railroad locomotives Union Pacific Railroad locomotives