Norfolk and Western No. 2143

Norfolk and Western No. 2143 was a class Y6 2-8-8-2 articulated compound, or "Mallet", steam locomotive built on December 20, 1939 at the Roanoke Shops, and used on all types of freight service. It was withdrawn in 1959, after which it was sold and despatched to the Virginia Scrap Iron & Metal of Roanoke Virginia. During its first few years there, it resided with its fellow Y6b class cousins, numbers 2174 and 2189, along with an S1a class 0-8-0 switcher. 
After steam on the N&W ended in 1960, it became the sole surviving original Y6 (the only other Y6 Survivors were Y6a 2156, Y6b 2174 and Y6b 2189.) By the late 1960 after a few years at the scrapyard, 2143's tender was scrapped, along with the 2189 and the S1a Switcher. From the Mid '60s onwards, the pair of Mallets languished in the scrapyard. By the 1970s, the pair of Mallets had become known amongst local railfans, and a rescue attempt from the Roanoke Chapter of the NRHS, later the VMT, aimed to make money to preserve the pair of engines. This fundraising attempt had been supported by the original owner of the scrapyard, who by this time was getting up in age. This proved detrimental to the preservation of the engines when the cooperative owner passed away and the scrapyard's ownership was sold to a British Group. The new owners of the site wanted both locomotives gone in less than a month, and with little to no time to preserve the pair, they were scrapped in 1976. Some parts from the locomotives were salvaged by Bill Purdy for the Southern Steam Program. No Y6 or Y6b subclasses survive to this day.
Category:Norfolk and Western locomotives
Category:Steam locomotives
Category:Tender locomotives
Category:American locomotives
Category:2-8-8-2 locomotives
Category:2-8-8-2 steam locomotives
Category:Eight-coupled locomotives
Category:Articulated locomotives
Category:Scrapped locomotives
Category:Built in 1939
Category:Compound locomotives
Category:Standard gauge locomotives
Category:Standard gauge locomotives of the United States
Category:4 foot 8 1⁄2 inch gauge
Category:Locomotives
Category:Scrapped steam locomotives
Category:Scrapped in 1976