Santa Fe 2926

Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe 2926 is a class "2900" 4-8-4 type steam locomotive built in May 1944 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway (ATSF). It was used to pull passenger and fast freight trains, mostly throughout New Mexico, until it was retired from revenue service in 1953. Three years later, it was donated to Coronado Park in Albuquerque for static display.

In 1999, it was purchased by the New Mexico Steam Locomotive and Railroad Historical Society to be rebuilt for operational purposes. After over twenty years of restoration work, No. 2926 was steamed up again on July 24, 2021, becoming the world's heaviest operational 4-8-4 and the sole operating 2900 locomotive among the remaining six in existence. It will eventually be used for mainline excursion service between Albuquerque and Las Vegas, New Mexico.

History

Revenue service
No. 2926 was among the last group of steam passenger locomotives built in 1944 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Eddystone (Philadelphia), Pennsylvania for the Santa Fe Railway. This class of locomotives comprised the heaviest 4-8-4's built in the United States, and among the largest. The railroad used the locomotive in both fast freight and passenger service, and it accumulated over one million miles of usage before its last revenue run on December 24, 1953. Equipped with the latest Timken roller-bearing tandem side-rods between 1946-1948, it was then approved for 110-mph speeds with the Santa Fe's crack passenger trains: up from 100-mph when delivered with its original side-rods.

Preservation

The locomotive and a caboose were donated to the City of Albuquerque, New Mexico in July, 1956 in recognition of the city's 250th anniversary, and placed in Coronado Park. The city displayed the locomotive as a static exhibit in the park until it was sold for $1.00 to the New Mexico Steam Locomotive and Railroad Historical Society (NMSL & RHS) on July 26, 1999. On June 23, 2000, the locomotive was moved by Messer Construction Company to a BNSF Railway rail siding just south of Menaul Boulevard.

Restoration
In May 2002 the locomotive was moved by the railroad to its current location near the intersection of 8th Street and Haines Avenue, where it underwent a complete restoration to operating condition by the Society. When the restoration was completed in July 2021, No. 2926 became the largest operating 4-8-4 steam locomotive in the United States.

On February 11, 2016, House Memorial Bill 100, introduced by Don L. Tripp and adopted by the New Mexico Legislature, recognized the Santa Fe No. 2926 steam locomotive as "New Mexico's steam locomotive and a representative of the railroads' contributions to the economic and cultural growth and stature of New Mexico".

Excursion service
In January, 2018, it was reported that the restoration was nearing completion and that the locomotive could be operational by the end of the year. As of that date, NMSL&RHS members had put in 166,000 hours of volunteer labor and spent over $2.8 million on the project.

On August 20, 2018, the boiler of ATSF No. 2926 was fired up for the first time in sixty-five years. The locomotive was scheduled for a test run on March 20, 2020, when it would move under its own power for the first time since 1953. However, that event and most other restoration efforts were suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New Mexico. On July 24, 2021, the No. 2926 locomotive moved under its own power for the first time in sixty-eight years. On May 6, 2023, No. 2926 visited a nearby brewing company for a fundraiser, a distance of about four blocks. The same visit happened again on August 26, 2023. On September 30, 2023, No. 2926 returned to the mainline Albuquerque Rail Yards to attend the New Mexico Railroad Days event.

The locomotive has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since October 1, 2007.

Surviving sister engines
 3751 moved from Viaduct Park in San Bernardino, California in 1986 for restoration to operating condition, which was completed in 1991.
 3759 is displayed at Locomotive Park in Kingman, Arizona.
 3768 is displayed at Great Plains Transportation Museum in Wichita, Kansas.
 2903 is displayed at the Illinois Railway Museum in Union, Illinois. 
 2912 is displayed at the Pueblo Railway Museum in Pueblo, Colorado.
 2913 is displayed at Riverview Park in Fort Madison, Iowa.
 2921 is displayed at the Modesto Amtrak Station in Modesto, California.
 2925 is displayed at the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, California.

Historic designations 
 National Register of Historic Places #NPS–#07000388

See also
 Santa Fe 3415
 Grand Canyon Railway 4960
 Spokane, Portland & Seattle 700
 Southern Pacific 4449
 Union Pacific 844
 Milwaukee Road 261

References

Further reading

External links 
 National Register of Historic Places Weekly Update
 New Mexico Steam Locomotive and Railroad Historical Society: Website • YouTube Page • Facebook Page • Instagram
 

2926
4-8-4 locomotives
Landmarks in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Baldwin locomotives
Individual locomotives of the United States
National Register of Historic Places in New Mexico
Railway locomotives on the National Register of Historic Places
Railway locomotives introduced in 1944
History of Bernalillo County, New Mexico
Tourist attractions in Albuquerque, New Mexico
New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties
National Register of Historic Places in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Rail transportation on the National Register of Historic Places in New Mexico
Standard gauge locomotives of the United States
Preserved steam locomotives of New Mexico