Florida Steam Locomotives
There are over 50 steam locomotives in Florida. Most are of the smaller four to six driver variety. The largest steam in Florida would be the 4-6-2 Pacifics at the Gold Coast Railroad Museum. The most well-known steam in Florida would be the operating steam locomotives at Walt Disney World locations.
The Florida "Panhandle"
Blountstown
Marianna & Blountstown number 444, a 4-6-0 is on display at the "M&B Train Park" in Blountstown. Steam locomotive number 444 was built in 1911 at the Baldwin Locomotive Works for the Brinson Railway. It was subsequently owned by Savannah & Albany Railroad Co. before acquisition and renovation by the M&B. It operated as late as 1947 as a "stand-by" locomotive after the first M&B diesel locomotives had arrived. The M&B Railroad operated for 63 years (1909 - 1972) between Marianna and Blountstown. It provided passenger service until 1929. After that, the M&B shipped agricultural products and lumber. During its operation, the 29-mile line was Florida's shortest railroad.
Before the M&B Railroad was abandoned, engine 444 was sold (late 1960s - early 1970s) to Dr. Albert Folds of Marianna, who for a number of years, "displayed" it on the dairy farm of his father-in-law, Victor S. Bevis, along State Road 71 just south of Malone, FL. Subsequently, the locomotive was sold and moved to the George Ranch in Richmond, TX. During late 1980s, an effort was launched by a group in Blountstown to re-acquire the locomotive and return it to Blountstown as the centerpiece for an historical display of the M&B Railroad. It was restored and placed on display (along with a caboose) at its current location in the M&B Train Park.
- 444 (Photo courtesy Laurie Mulligan)
Marianna
Number 1 is an 0-4-2 tank locomotive. However, as you can see, the tank has been removed and now looks like a turtle without its shell. It was once owned by Coronet Phosphate. It was stored in Mount Dora for several years before being moved to its current location. It is currently on display along highway 166 (Caverns Rd) and was owned (or still is owned) by Dr. Albert Folds. This is one of five surviving Coronet Phosphate steam locomotives. The 0-4-0T at the Gramling Locomotive Works (previously at the Gold Coast Railroad Museum) is a sister locomotive to this one and is being restored.
Port St. Joe
This little prairie (2-6-2) is on display in front of the Centennial Building in Port St. Joe. It was once employed by St. Joe Lumber & Export Co.
Tallahassee
This may be the oldest locomotive in Florida. It is a 4-4-0 built around 1850 by either Danforth Cooke & Company or by New Jersey Locomotive & Machine. It was sold to the Basche & Hagen Lumber Company (Suwanee River Railroad) in Live Oak, FL. Around 1906 it was moved to Luraville, FL and when the railroad line was abandoned, the locomotive and several log cars were rolled off of a barge into the Suwanee River!
In 1968, divers confirmed the location of this locomotive. It wasn't until January of 1979 that James Lancaster of Luraville salvaged her. In 1984 she was sold to the state of Florida and in 1986 she was placed on display at the State Agriculture Department Offices in Tallahassee. Additional information on this locomotive may be found in the 7/79 (page 14), 11/79 (page 52), 12/99 (page 116) issues of TRAINS.
Northern Florida
Archer
This small 2-4-0 is displayed near the Maddox Foundry in Archer. The cab had a Seaboard Air Line logo on it but this locomotive never worked for the SAL.
History:
- Built for the Charleston Lumber Co. of Wiggins, SC
- Sold in March 1909 to the Westmoreland Lumber Co.
- Sold in 1914 to Colleton Mercantile Co. of Ritter, NC
- Sold in 1928 to Hittup Maddox
- Restored in 1960 by the Maddox Foundry & Machine Works of Archer
- Undergoing restoration in 2018
- Maddox Foundry & Machine Works 3 (Photo courtesy Dennis Zaccardi)
Jacksonville
This is a class P-5-A Atlantic Coast Line Pacific (4-6-2). It is located at the Prime Osborn Convention Center (former Jacksonville Union Terminal). 1504 was built by ALCO (Richmond) in March, 1919 and retired on December 31, 1953.
From 1960 to 1986, 1504 was displayed in front of the ACL office building which later became part of CSX. In 1989, after being donated to the city of Jacksonville, 1504 was refurbished by the Great Atlantic Boiler Service of Jacksonville. It was later repainted by the city of Jacksonville.
More photos:
Jacksonville Beach
This standard gauge 2-6-0 was built by Porter in 1911. This locomotive was once Cummer Sons Cypress No. 7. Until sometime in the 1980s it was displayed in St. Augustine as St. Johns Railway No. 7. It is currently displayed along US 90 / Beach Blvd. It is pictured here with Don Griffin, whose firm (Great Atlantic Boiler) restored the locomotive in 1993-94.
More photos:
Central Florida
Bradenton
This prairie (2-6-2) locomotive has been "lettered" for the city of Bradenton. Judging from the smokestack I would say that it might be a wood burner.
History:
- Built in 1913 for the Taylor County Lumber Co.
- Sold to Brooks-Scanlon Corp in Foley, FL
- Sold to Manatee Crate & Co. in Bradenton, FL
- Sold to the city of Bradenton, FL
- Moved to the Manatee Historical Village in August, 2002
More photos
Dade City
Number 3 is a ten-wheeler (4-6-0) that was once owned by Cummer Sons Cypress Co. It is currently on display at the Pioneer Florida Museum.
Gulf Hammock
Number 3 is a Patterson & McInnis 2-8-0. Patterson & McInnis was the largest saw mill in the area. The "Pat & Mac" operated during the 1940s and 1950s. A nearby informational sign states that the locomotive was originally a wood burner but was converted to "steam" [SIC]. It is currently on display in a park along highway 19.
More photos
- P&M 3 (Photo courtesy Paul Harley)
- P&M 3 (Photo courtesy Paul Harley)
- P&M 3 (Photo courtesy Paul Harley)
Bay Lake (Magic Kingdom / Animal Kingdom)
The Magic Kingdom operates four narrow-gauge steam locomotives around the perimeter of its theme park. Normally, two of the four are in operation at a time. All of these steam locomotives came from the United Railroad of Yucatan, Mexico. They have been converted to burn bio-fuel with 1% diesel.
One other locomotive (a 1927 Davenport built for N&S Coal at Pittsburg, Nova Scotia as an 0-4-0T, now a 2-4-4RT) was added to the roster and named Ward Kimball. However, it was found too light for the trains. In 1999 it was traded to the Cedar Point & Lake Erie Railroad in Sandusky, OH in exchange for their former Barker Lapine 2-4-4 named "Maud L". Maud L. was then sent to Disneyland in Anaheim, CA where it will be completely rebuilt and converted from burning coal to burning oil.
More photos
Lakeland
Number 50 is a standard gauge mogul (2-6-0) that was built by ALCO in 1922. It was used for many years by the Virginia-Carolina Chemical Corporation to haul phosphate rock. The slope-back tender aided in visibility during switching operations. It was taken out of service in 1958 and donated to the city of Lakeland in 1961. The city of Lakeland placed it here in Adair Park. Notice the 5-chime whistle. In 2011 the locomotive was sold and moved to the Southeastern Narrow Gauge and Shortline Museum in Newton, NC.
More photos
Leesburg
Number 104 is a 2-6-2 Prairie that was also owned by Cummer Sons Cypress Co
(see number 3 in Dade City). It was on display under a shelter in Herlong Park
in Leesburg for many years. Since then it has been moved to the Florida Gulf
Coast Railroad Museum in Willow for restoration.
Orlando
St. Louis & San Francisco 3749 was one of a group of 40 (3713-3752) 0-6-0s built by Baldwin between 1907 and 1913. They had high-mounted boilers, piston valves, stephenson valve gear, and weighed 154,500 lbs. 3749 last operated at a scrapyard in Pensacola.
Sometime after 1977 it was acquired by the owners of Church Street Station in Orlando. It was displayed there for around 30 years. A number of cosmetic modifications had been made to 3749 (presumably to make 3749 more visually appealing). The two builder plates did not match and neither were from this locomotive. The one on the left side said: "Baldwin, 1913, CN: 39696" (which is from BEDT #10). The one on the right side says: "Baldwin, 1925, CN: 58489" (which is from the Rockton-Rion 2-8-0, No. 203 in Knoxville, TN). The number plate attached to the front of the smokebox had a "1" on it. The "cow-catcher" was bogus. 3749 was also lettered "Seaboard Airline 223" (the real Seaboard #223 was an M-1 class 4-8-2 which pulled the Orange Blossom Special and other passenger trains).
In 2012 3749 was acquired by and moved to the Florida Railroad Museum in Parrish.
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This Raritan River 0-4-0 once operated at the International Toy Train Museum in Orlando pulling a short tourist train around the grounds. Both the museum and the locomotive are now gone. Number 3 is currently at the Agrirama in Tifton, GA. The Agrirama is a Georgia state park showing agricultural history in South Georgia.
More Photos
- Raritan River 3 (2009 photo courtesy John Pennington)
Oviedo
This 0-4-0 tank locomotive was built by the Cooke Locomotive Works in 1927 (CN: 66305). It was sold new to the General Portland Cement Co. in Brooksville, FL. From Brooksville it was acquired by Dr. Albert Folds of Marianna, FL along with an 0-6-0T. Somewhere along the way I have been told that it was owned my Mammouth Sound, although I do not know this to be true. Both locomotives were stored in Green Cove Springs, FL for several years. The 0-4-0T was once displayed at the SR Depot in Apopka. The 0-6-0T was last known to be at North American Tank Car Co. in San Antonio, TX. Dick Perkins bought the 0-4-0T and moved it to Oviedo by truck where it was rebuilt to operating condition. It remained in operating condition for several years and was operated frequently. Its last significant operation under steam was to Winter Garden, FL and return via Sanford on the Seaboard System (CSX). The locomotive last ran in 1984. Dick donated the locomotive to the NRHS in Jacksonville along with the former Fruit Growers Express refrigerator cars. Through a mix-up of dates, the branch line track through Oviedo was cut and pulled prior to the equipment being moved out by rail. There is a sister locomotive located at the Age of Steam Roundhouse in Ohio. They are three numbers apart off the assembly line.
This 0-4-0T is currently owned by Arthur Evans and sits behind an art studio called Studio-G. The two former Fruit Growers Express refrigerator cars parked in front of it that have been converted into studios of some sort. Both cars are lettered: "Antigua Pool Co., Inc." Sometime in the mid-1990s the right-of-way next to this locomotive was converted into a bike trail. It looks like the 0-4-0T recently received a paint job. I have been told that the 0-4-0T in Jacksonville is also its sister. I have also been told that Arthur Evans wishes to display this locomotive at the old Nelson Packing House.
More photos
Zephyrhills
South of town on highway 301 is a place called Festival Park. In the park sits this 0-4-0T+T. This 1907 Vulcan was built as Florida Phosphate Mining #2, and in 1928 was sold to Dantzler Lumber (near Tampa) and renumbered 1147. After its career was over, it was placed on display in Lowery Park in Tampa. It was later moved to the Florida Gulf Coast Railroad Museum in Parrish. It was moved to its present location in 1998. I don't know if the tender was really part of this locomotive or not (it already has a tank). Also, the smoke stack is not authentic because it was built as a coal burner. Dantzler lumber converted it to burn wood and replaced the stack with what it has now. It is one of only a few yellow steam locomotives that I have seen.
More photos
- Dantzler Lumber 0-4-0T+T #1147 (2023 photo courtesy Robert Kinstrey)
- Dantzler Lumber 0-4-0T+T #1147
- Complete information
Zolfo Springs
This wood-burning locomotive was built by Baldwin in 1914. It is a 2-6-2 Prairie and was number 7 on the Brooks-Scanlon. It was a gift in March 1967 from Kervin D. Revell of Wauchula to the Pioneer Park Museum Zolfo Springs. I have heard that it may be going back to Wauchula.
More photos
- Brooks-Scanlon 7 (photo courtesy Andrew Lokken)
Southern Florida
Ft. Lauderdale
Number 1001 is a former Seaboard Airline tank locomotive. At the time this photo was taken, 1001 was on display as part of a playground in Holiday Park. Since that time, Holiday Park has undergone a complete rebuilding. 1001 now sits by itself a short distance from where it was.
More Photos
- 1001 (Photo courtesy Justin Mulligan)
- 1001 (Photo courtesy Justin Mulligan)
- 1001 (Photo courtesy Justin Mulligan)
Gold Coast Railway Museum, Miami
There are four steam locomotives at the GCRM. The GCRM was once located in Ft. Lauderdale where both FEC 113 and 153 operated.
FEC 113 was one of a group of 60 pacifics (77-136) built by ALCO between 1910 and 1917. It was used in regular revenue service over the entire Florida East Coast Railroad. 113 headed a one-time special in 1986 from the Miami Zoo to Homestead. In 2008 113 is undergoing cosmetic restoration.
Photos
- FEC 4-6-2 113 (Photo by Wes Barris)
FEC 153 was one of a group of 7 pacifics (151-157) built by ALCO in 1922. 153 was used in service to Key West and pulled the last train to leave Key West prior to the hurricane that destroyed "The Overseas Railroad" on Labor Day, 1935. 153 also had the honor of powering Calvin Coolidge's Presidential Train in 1926. 153 was sold to the U.S. Sugar Corporation in 1938 and donated to the GCRM in 1957. It operated every Sunday in Miami from March, 1957 until November, 1966, when the railroad was forced to move to Fort Lauderdale. The photo on the left shows 113 and 153 at the Gold Coast Railroad when it was still located north of the Hollywood International Airport. In 2001 153 received a cosmetic restoration.
Photos
- FEC 4-6-2 153 (Photo by Wes Barris)
- FEC 113 & 153 in Ft. Lauderdale
Number 7 is one of five surviving Coronet Phosphate steam locomotives. I don't know about the restoration efforts of this locomotive but obviously its cab had been removed and it seems to be getting some sort of attention. This 0-4-2T came from the Central Florida Chapter of the NRHS. They acquired it from the Coronet Phosphate Company at the Tenarock mine. It was stored on a siding near the SAL Apopka depot for several years before being moved to Fort Lauderdale via flat car.
Photos
FEC 253 is not owned by the GCRM but was temporarily stored on their property. This is a photo of FEC(KCS, L&A) 0-8-0 #253 before its move to Florida. This photo was taken when it was still at a tank car facility in Nash, TX. 253 had been undergoing restoration efforts by a private party. That restoration effort began while the locomotive was stored at the Gold Coast Railroad Museum. In March, 2002, 253 was moved (along with an FEC steam crane, a passenger car, a tank car, and a caboose) from the Gold Coast Museum to FEC's Hialeah yard. The equipment was moved in 2009 to Ft. Pierce, FL and later to Clewistown, FL where it is currently in storage.
Photos
Florida Railroad Museum, Parrish / Willow
This Porter 0-6-0T was built for the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 1916. Eventually, it was owned by the Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal RR and was retired in 1962. This is a small switching locomotive and was used to move freight cars on the docks around Brooklyn, NY. It is now owned by the Florida Railroad Museum in Parrish, FL and is on static display at the museum's site. Hopes are to someday return it to full operating condition.
Photos
- BEDT 12 (Photo courtesy Glenn Miley)
- BEDT 12 (Photo courtesy Glenn Miley)
South Ft. Myers
Baldwin Locomotive Works of Philadelphia, PA built class E-4 0-6-0 #143 in 1905. #143 was a part of a large order of locomotives placed by the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad. The locomotive was used at various locations on the ACL system in the southeastern U.S. In 1944, the #143 was sold to the American Agricultural and Chemical Company of Pierce, FL. There the locomotive was put to use in the phosphate mine industry hauling trains from the mines to the main line railroads.
143 finished its operational career in 1959. It was subsequently put on display outside the Company's office in Pierce. From there it went to a short-lived tourist line (in Trilby, FL?). In 1974, the locomotive was donated to the Tampa Bay Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society and moved to San Antonio, FL. In 1979, it was donated to a private citizen and moved to Tampa. The #143 was then acquired by the Florida Railroad Museum. In 1992, the Florida Railroad Museum was told to move the derelict locomotive from the storage site in Tampa. Lacking funds to move the #143, the FGCR offered the #143 to the newly established Railroad Museum of South Florida located in Ft. Myers. At a cost of $16,000, the #143 was loaded on to a truck trailer and hauled to Ft. Myers. For over two years the #143 was stored under roof at Dean Steel Buildings. It was relocated to the Railroad Museum of South Florida at the Lakes Park and Gulf Railroad Train Village in 1995.
In 2001 Lee County Parks and Recreation in conjunction with the Railroad Museum of South Florida announced the completion of the cosmetic restoration of historic locomotive #143. Restoration work was performed by Great Atlantic Boiler Services of Jacksonville, FL. To facilitate the project, the work was done in phases, as funds were available. Phase one restored the tender car, phase two refurbished the rest of the locomotive excepting the cab and phase three work replaced the rusted out cab with a new one. Total cost was about $84,000. Work on the tender car started June of 1999. It was finished in November of 1999. Phase two & three work started January of 2001 and work was completed on April 28th. The locomotive resides at Lakes Regional Park in South Ft. Myers.
The project was financed in part with Historic Preservation Grant Assistance provided by the Bureau of Historic Preservation, Division of Historical Resources, Florida Dept. of State, assisted by the Historic Preservation Council. Two grants from Lee County's historic preservation program, two grants from the Southwest Florida Community Foundation, funds from the Rotary Club of Ft. Myers and many small contributors.
More photos
- 143's restored tender (Photo courtesy Michael Mulligan)
- Tender re-attached to 143 (Photo courtesy Michael Mulligan)
- photo showing pre-restoration condition (Photo courtesy Michael Mulligan)
- Restoration progress: April 2001 (Photo courtesy Michael Mulligan)
- Restoration progress: April 2001 (Photo courtesy Don Chandler)
- Restoration progress: April 2001 (Photo courtesy Michael Mulligan)
- Restoration progress: April 2001 (Photo courtesy Michael Mulligan)
- Restoration progress: May 2001 (Photo courtesy Michael Mulligan)
- Restoration progress: May 2001 (Photo courtesy Michael Mulligan)
- 2007 photo (Photo courtesy Michael Mulligan)
- 2008 photo (Photo courtesy Jerome Ladner)
- 2008 photo (Photo courtesy Jerome Ladner)
- 2008 photo (Photo courtesy Jerome Ladner)
Other Florida Web Pages
- Tips to Bake and Grow Potatoes:
- How Long to Bake a Potato at 325
- Cultivating Potatoes in Florida
- How Long to Bake a Potato