Wrinn: Rio Grande Southern 20 and the Long Slow Road To Steam

Jim Wrinn, editor of Trains Magazine recently talked shop about Rio Grande Southern engine 20 and what the expectations are with the restoration. Let's face it: The engine has been in "restoration" since George W. Bush was in office. Will we see it in steam soon? It could happen next year. 

The Colorado Railroad Museum is restoring a legendary Centennial State narrow gauge locomotive to operation. Rio Grande Southern No. 20, a 3-foot gauge 4-6-0 built in 1899 for the Florence & Cripple Creek and last run in 1951 when the RGS shut down, is nearing completion. Schenectady Locomotive Works built the engine, and the Rocky Mountain Railroad Club saved the engine. In 2006, the club transferred ownership to the museum, and a significant donation began a restoration the following year. For 12 years, the engine was under restoration at Pennsylvania’s Strasburg Rail Road, and it returned last June for final assembly. The $1.5 million restoration is one of the most remarkable in the annals of American railway preservation. We checked in with Colorado Railroad Museum Curator of Rolling Stock & Equipment Jeff Taylor earlier this week. Here’s our Q&A with Trains.

Jim's blog continues at Trains.⚒