The Finest Steam Passenger Locomotive

The Finest Steam Passenger Locomotive (HM9YO)

Location: Roanoke, VA 24011
Buy Virginia State flags at Flagstore.com!
Country: United States of America
Buy United States of America flags at Flagstore.com!

N 37° 16.387', W 79° 56.339'

  • 0 likes
  • 0 check ins
  • 0 favorites
  • 459 views
Inscription

The David R. and Susan S. Goode Railwalk

Passenger Locomotive: Class J

The world-renowned Class J 4-8-4 passenger locomotives was completely designed and built in Roanoke. By the mid 1930s, Norfolk and Western was facing heavier passenger traffic due to increased military operations, heavier trains needed to cross the system at increasingly faster schedules. The Motive Power department designed a powerful locomotive specifically for their needs. For many roads, streamlining was the order of the day. The N&W opted for a refined design and rolled the first bullet nosed Class J out of the shops just 40 days before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

The sleek Class J was an immediate hit with the public and operating men. Fast, easy to run and powerful. The N&W did not need passenger power to run at 100 mph, most of its territory was mountains and curves. The J needed to start a heavy train on grade, and accelerate rapidly and maintain schedule, to this, they were superlative.

Again in 1950, war loomed, and passenger traffic seemed on the rise, Roanoke Shops produced three more Class J locomotives, bringing the total to fourteen. Minor changes were made in the design, but the locomotives were virtually perfect as is. These would be the last steam passenger locomotives built in the US.

The Class J fate was sealed, and on October 24, 1959, Class J, No. 611 closed N&W's steam passenger train service with a last excursion to Williamson, West Virginia.

Luckily, due to the interest of Roanoke-born brothers Graham and Robert Claytor, both who would rise to become Presidents of the Southern and the N&W. The last Class J, No. 611 survived the scrap heap and was preserved to run again from 1982 through 1994, it was retired for the second time as the sole survivor of the fourteen locomotives at the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke.

[Table in lower center of marker]
Class J, built 1941-1950, Roanoke Shops
Tractive Effort: 80,000 pounds
Cylinders: 27 inch diameter x 32 inch stroke
Boiler pressure: 300 lbs.
Driving Wheels: Four pairs, 70 inch diameter
Overall length (engine and tender): 109 foot, 2 ? inches
Firebox area: 12' 2" x 8' 10 ?"
Weight on driving wheels: 288,000 lbs.
Total weight of engine and tender: 872,600 lbs.
Coal Capacity of tender: 35 tons
Water Capacity of tender: 20,000 gallons
Details
HM NumberHM9YO
Tags
Year Placed2007
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Sunday, October 19th, 2014 at 5:02am PDT -07:00
Pictures
Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.
Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)17S E 594067 N 4125698
Decimal Degrees37.27311667, -79.93898333
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 37° 16.387', W 79° 56.339'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds37° 16' 23.22" N, 79° 56' 20.34" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)540
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 5921-5991 Norfolk Ave SE, Roanoke VA 24011, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

Is this marker missing? Are the coordinates wrong? Do you have additional information that you would like to share with us? If so, check in.

Check Ins  check in   |    all

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.

Comments 0 comments

Maintenance Issues
  1. Is this marker part of a series?
  2. What historical period does the marker represent?
  3. What historical place does the marker represent?
  4. What type of marker is it?
  5. What class is the marker?
  6. What style is the marker?
  7. Does the marker have a number?
  8. Who or what organization placed the marker?
  9. This marker needs at least one picture.
  10. Can this marker be seen from the road?
  11. Is the marker in the median?