Old Smokey

Smokeford Joesph "Old Smokey" Hartford is the oldest locomotive on the Knoxville & Asheville Railroad.

* **Builder**: Baldwin Locomotive Works, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA
* **Build date**: April 3rd, 1905
* **Serial Number**: 25510
* **Locomotive Class**: Southern Railway Ms class (experimental)
* **Configuration**: 2-8-2 Mikado
* **Tractive Effort**: 53,900 lbs.
* **Arrived on the K&A**: April 7th, 1905
* **Previous Owner(s) and Number(s)**: None, purchased new
* **Track Gauge**: Standard, 4' 8 1/2" inches
* **Retired**: November 1982
* **Recommissioned**: January 1995
* **Status**: Operational
* **Traffic**: Mixed
* **Age**: 118

## Biography

Smokeford Joseph Hartford was built by Baldwin Locomotive Works of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA on April 3rd, 1905 for the Knoxville & Asheville Railroad Company as their first newly purchased locomotive as well as being an experimental locomotive for the Southern Railway. When he first arrived on the line a few days after his testing, he was a nervous wreck and didn't know much about stuff. He didn't even have a name yet, just being referred to by his number, 1. Luckily he had 2 mentors, Jeremiah and Emily, a pair of old 4-6-0 ten-wheelers who were like parents to him and they taught him the ins and outs of railroading.

After rescuing Emily from a forest fire, he received his name Smokfeford, but prefered "Smokey" for short. Ever since then, Smokey became the most reliable locomotive on the line. Even when the K&A dieselized in 1962, Old Smokey was still kept in service, hauling freight and excursion trains as part of the K&A's steam program.

However in November 1982, the Knoxville & Asheville Railroad shut down the program due to a large chunk of their budget going kaput when the bank holding the program's funds went under when the founder of the bank got arrested for Bank Fraud. The other steam locomotives in the program were sold off whilst Smokey was kept in storage in the roundhouse. For the next 10 years, Smokey stayed in the roundhouse rusting and collecting dust and cobwebs with only Derreck the crane and Snowy the snowplow for company.

In September 1992, Katy and her friends Luke and Avery where chasing Katy's dog Boscoe into the K&A yard and found Smokey in the roundhouse. Katy's father Lucas, who was the current president and CEO of the railroad, then came by and announced he was to re-open the K&A's Steam Program thanks to some successful investments he made and Smokey was sent to the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum in Chattanooga for restoration. In January 1995, Smokey was back in action and the Knoxville & Asheville Railroad's Steam Program was once again thriving.

## Appearance

At the start of the series, Smokey wore the K&A freight livery of black paint with white lining. His smokebox is painted white and his cab roof, tender deck, and cowcatcher are bright red.

When he was younger, fresh out of Baldwin Locomotive Works, he had a box headlight with red signs painted on the cab and tender.

In 1997, Smokey was fitted with a oil tank in place of his coal bunker when they converted him to burn recycled vegetable oil.

## Personality

Smokey is a friendly and wise old steam locomotive who is kind to everyone he meets, and know exactly what to do when something bad happens. Most of the youngsters usually go to him for advice. He's like a father figure to the younger steam locomotives and a grandfather figure to the diesels.

## Trivia

* *Smokey is based off of a Southern Railroad Ms class 2-8-2*
* *According to the K&A's records, Smokey was an experimental locomotive. Before the Smokey was built, the Southern and the K&A formed a partnership to design a bigger and powerful locomotive for heavy freight trains. They heard about the 2-8-2 types from the Northern Pacific, Santa Fe, and other railroads, so they designed a new 2-8-2 Mikado type steam locomotive. So the K&A ordered the locomotive from Baldwin and Smokey rolled out of the shops on April 3rd, 1905. He proved his worth and his tests and trials were successful. But a few other things had to be completed with the blueprints and production of the Ms class didn't began until October 1911.*
* *Even though the K&A dieselized on August 29th, 1962, Smokey was still kept in operating service until the K&A went bankrupt in August 1982. Making him one of the last steam locomotives in full revenue service in North America.*
* *Enos once mentioned that Smokey has a clean track record. Meaning he never wrecked, broke down, or even late during his 77 years of revenue service.*
* *One time in 1975 when he was leased to the Clinchfield Railroad, Smokey was briefly renumbered and relettered as Clinchfield #409.*
* S*mokey is voiced by Jim Cummings*
* *His whistle is a 6-inch Crosby 3 chime.*

## Gallery

Old Smokey's basis.Smokey in his younger years (1905 - 1917)