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Walkersville Southern Reactivates a 1942 Davenport
http://rypn.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=42441
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Author:  Alexander D. Mitchell IV [ Tue Sep 04, 2018 10:51 am ]
Post subject:  Walkersville Southern Reactivates a 1942 Davenport

The Walkersville Southern near Frederick, Md. adds to its stable of operable "critters" with this 1941 Davenport, which supposedly originally started its career at nearby Holabird Ordnance Depot (later Fort Holabird) in southeast Baltimore before being transferred to Arkansas, later ending up at the Hardin Southern in Kentucky before being acquired by private owners for Walkersville Southern.

From Facebook:

Quote:
Another critter is resurrected in Walkersville! Saturday the engine was started for the first time in this 1941 Davenport Locomotive. This is the 2nd locomotive that has received an engine swap and a new life at Walkersville. Tons of credit goes to Jimmy Baird and Al Leyh for saving this one from the scrappers torch!


Image

Author:  Climax1551 [ Tue Sep 04, 2018 11:25 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Walkersville Southern Reactivates a 1942 Davenport

Excellent! I knew they were getting close, but not this close! Should be their number 3 and painted a nice red.
Jimmy Baird is an excellent man who really needs more credit for all that he’s done. He was the one who really helped me get back into preservation after the let down of a previous project I was involved in and has helped me out of a sticky situation at the MoESL. Fantastic man.

Author:  John T [ Tue Sep 04, 2018 2:09 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Walkersville Southern Reactivates a 1942 Davenport

For some reason many people who post here have an aversion to mentioning exactly which locomotive they are talking about.

2360 8/1941 B 26” Std GM20 LeRoi 40000#
US Army #7707 Quartermaster Corps #2056, Ft Holabird, Baltimore, Md
Lion Oil #1422, El Dorado, Ark
Rebuilt – B 26” Std D/TC Cum H
Rebuilt – B 26” Std D/TC Cum L
Malvern Brick & Tile #1422, Malvern, Ark
Hardin Southern , Hardin, Ky
Walkersville & Southern #3, Walkersville, Md

Author:  Alexander D. Mitchell IV [ Tue Sep 04, 2018 2:52 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Walkersville Southern Reactivates a 1942 Davenport

John T wrote:
For some reason many people who post here have an aversion to mentioning exactly which locomotive they are talking about.

More like not having the time to go hunting down the details you obviously had at hand. I went with the info provided by the Walkersville Southern, and even THEY had some of the details inaccurate at first!

When I do Facebook or forum posts that include detail to that level, on average it takes me a half-hour or more of research and fact-checking to be sure I have the details right. I ain't getting paid either hourly or per word; don't have the time today; be glad I found time just to share the good news, okay????

Author:  Tim Moriarty [ Tue Sep 04, 2018 2:57 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Walkersville Southern Reactivates a 1942 Davenport

Other than a test run, don't look for this locomotive to be operated over the WS. It was acquired over a decade ago when the WS was short on motive power and there were dreams of double-heading it with the other Davenport, No. 2, but this is no longer the case. The WS now has stronger locomotives to handle its longer trains, and when it's ready No. 3 will depart for Maine.

The WS's former track foreman, Howard Betts, retired from his federal service job a few years ago and returned to his native Maine where he's involved with a similar operation. (I don't know its name or location.) Howard needs a good little locomotive for MoW trains, and when No. 3 is finished it's going to be trucked north.

For years No. 3 has languished in in pieces in the back of the enginehouse, but thanks to the recent efforts of Al Leyh, a former locomotive shop employee of the now-gone Patapsco & Back Rivers Railroad, the day is coming when No. 3 will be ready to pull Howard Betts' MoW trains way up north.

Author:  Brian Wise [ Thu Sep 06, 2018 10:00 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Walkersville Southern Reactivates a 1942 Davenport

John T wrote:
For some reason many people who post here have an aversion to mentioning exactly which locomotive they are talking about.

2360 8/1941 B 26” Std GM20 LeRoi 40000#
US Army #7707 Quartermaster Corps #2056, Ft Holabird, Baltimore, Md
Lion Oil #1422, El Dorado, Ark
Rebuilt – B 26” Std D/TC Cum H
Rebuilt – B 26” Std D/TC Cum L
Malvern Brick & Tile #1422, Malvern, Ark
Hardin Southern , Hardin, Ky
Walkersville & Southern #3, Walkersville, Md


...And for the sake of historical accuracy, this locomotive was not owned by the Hardin Southern, rather stored there by a private party who also volunteered at the HS.

Author:  Tim Moriarty [ Thu Sep 06, 2018 3:46 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Walkersville Southern Reactivates a 1942 Davenport

And to that I add that it's not the Walkersville & Southern, but rather the Walkersville Southern.

Author:  Tim Moriarty [ Thu Sep 10, 2020 6:18 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Walkersville Southern Reactivates a 1942 Davenport

An update on the little No. 3: A couple of years ago there were hopes of restoring this locomotive to operation but that never happened, and it remained in the rear of the enginehouse, competing with other pieces of equipment for maintenance and restoration time. In an earlier post I wrote that it was being restored to be sent to Howard Betts, a former WS volunteer now volunteering on the B&ML in Maine. I'm told that Howard was eventually able to acquire another locomotive, so it's no longer needed there.

When it was originally acquired the WS was short on motive power but that's no longer the case, and even if No. 3 were now fully operational its utility would be very limited, given the current length of trains on the WS.

This is a dilemma faced by most such organizations. There's a limited amount of storage space, maintenance money, in-house skill, time, etc., so companies must decide which pieces have priority in keeping operations going.

Recently No. 3 was moved out of the back of enginehouse to make room for the newly-acquired former American Car & Foundry No. 9, a GE 45-ton in excellent condition. Now No. 101, the rare Model 40, sits in the rear, in need of a lot of work before it can run again. Yesterday I and another volunteer placed plywood over No. 3's glass-free window spaces so it can be stored just south of the depot on Tucker Siding. The word I've received is that it could be used as a parts source for No. 2 (another Davenport) or possibly excessed.

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