I received the latest New York Central Headlight last week and there is a good article by Rich Stoving about NYCS Mikes. I realized I had pretty much ignored them in the Vollrath collection negatives I had purchased, so scanned a few to go along with the Mikado parade. 1855, photographed in Geneva (NY?) and the file says 1905. Can't be, with the sans-serif lettering. Must be 1945 or 55. 1998, Photographed in Petersburg (what state?) in April 1954. Don't know if the third one will fit, a Lima Builders photo, numbered "1", probably the first H-10?
Jim, I agree, the Central's Mike is one of the most overlooked modern engines of "our" fleet. Of course "Geneva" has to be the queen of New York's Finger Lakes District. Also the station from where I was "shipped" from Samson AFB overlooking lovely Cayuga Lake to Keesler AFB in equally lovely Biloxi, MS overlooking the Gulf Of Mexico in 1956. I doubt if it was Petersburg, NY, as that was on the Rutland's Corkscrew Division. I suspect it probably was Petersburg, OH.
Hank, your mention of Samson AFB got my memory working. As an Explorer Boy Scout I attended a function there some time near the time you were "shipped." How could I have thought Geneva would be any other place than NY?
That picture of Mikado number 1 is a keeper and here is why. The authors of all the books I have about NYC steam power do not show this locomotive. They even say that number 1 existed but that they have never seen a picture of it. This unusual single-digit number on a NYC locomotive occurred when someone intended to introduce a system-wide locomotive numbering system. At the time, 1922, the H-10s were being delivered and they got the first numbers – 1-122 for those going to the NYC while those going to other system lines received subsequent numbers. This attempt at numbering made no sense for the long term and it didn’t last. Those H-10 numbers, though, lasted until eclipsed by the 1936 renumbering. Then number 1 became 2101. The very first H-10 (no a or b subclass) was actually number 8000, an experimental model developed by Lima. It was so successful that another 301 were ordered differing very little from the original. In all 302 H-10s were built, some by Lima and some by ALCO. The advancements introduced on the H-10 class paved the way for the super power Berkshires, Mohawks and Hudsons. Another interesting thing about that photo of number 1 is that it shows the original configuration of the H-10a sub-class with the external dry pipe over the boiler. This was a primitive method of getting steam from the dome to the superheater header. The H-10 and H-10as had this, but the H-10bs did not. Later all were converted and lost the external dry pipe.
Mike, thank you for the history. I never really thought about number 1 on that loco. I have a higher resolution version of that photo if you would like a copy I can email the larger one to you. Interesting that a builders photo was taken of the fireman's side, usually taken from the engineer's side. I took a look at Al Staufer's "Steam Power" book and it has that same photo, with number 1, and another from the other side, both Lima photos.
The 1998 was I believe at Petersburg, Indiana. They used many H-7e locomotives when coal was king. The H-10 # 1,2101 was leased to the big 4 in1922 and did keep the 2101 #. The B4 leased 20 H-10 locomotives in 1922 all keeping the NYC #. In Staufer vol. 1 pg. 19 # 1 is shown ,both sides. The 2111 was one of two,2268, was the other that were poor steamers. The 2268 was a B4 loco. MEL
Lew, thanks for your personal experience with these engines. I wish there were some still around that we could see.
