Chesapeake and Ohio 1309
Chesapeake & Ohio Railway 1309 is a steam locomotive built in 1949 for the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway (C&O) where it pulled coal trains until retirement in 1956. It was the last steam engine built by Baldwin Locomotive Works for the North American market. In 1976, it was moved to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum for static display. The engine was purchased in 2014 by the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad which began restoration with the intention of returning it to service as the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad 1309.
Chesapeake and Ohio 1309
Chesapeake & Ohio Railway 1309 was built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1949. It was the last Class 1 mainline locomotive built by Baldwin, closing out more than 100 years of production, a total of more than 70,000 locomotives. It was ordered by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway to pull heavy coal trains in the mountainous terrain of West Virginia and Kentucky which it did from 1949 until 1956, after which it was stored for twenty years at their roundhouse at Peach Creek, West Virginia. The engine, along with several others, all considered impractical to restore to working condition, were moved to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum in Baltimore, Maryland in 1976 for cosmetic restoration and static display. It remained there until 2014 when it was purchased by the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad for restoration. When returned to service, it will be the largest steam engine in regular scheduled service in the United States. The Western Maryland intends to use the locomotive on excursion trains between Cumberland and Frostburg in Maryland.