The saga of Frisco 2-8-2 #1352 continues.
Originally built as Frisco 2-8-0 #1321, it was part of a WWII-era rebuild program that converted seven older 2-8-0s into fairly modern 2-8-2s, with improvements like superheaters, a combustion chamber, Coffin feedwater heater, and Nicholson thermic syphons. Rebuilt in '44, it was "dismissed from service" by '52, and was donated to Kansas City, Missouri, where it was placed on display in Swopes Park. Lack of a roof over it, flooding, and vandalism took a toll on the #1352 and by the '70s, Kansas City was threatening to scrap the engine. Smoky Hill Railway & Historical Society put together a "Save Mike" campaign, and the engine was moved from Swope Park to Parkville, Missouri. Missouri Pacific refused to allow its rail to be cut for a temporary turnout, so the movers constructed a "vertical frog and vertical points" that basically worked as a ramp to lift the flanges over the rails and then onto the MoPac.
After its removal from Swope Park, the SHR&HS kept #1352 in an industrial park, where it again suffered flooding on at least one occasion. The owner of the property it was stored on wanted the #1352 removed, and the financially distressed SHR&HS, unable to fund another move, sold the locomotive again to Ted Lemen, who moved it to the Illinois & Midland enginehouse in Taylorville, Illinois for storage. There were several attempts to restore it, by various groups, although none got very far. In 2008, the engine was sold to American Steam Railroad Preservation Association, who planned to move it to Columbus, Ohio for restoration to operation, but they acquired Reading #2100 in 2015, after that engine's ill-fated trip to the PNW, and the #1352 was never moved and was permanently moved to the backburner.
A couple years back, Valley Railroad in Connecticut was looking for a fourth steam locomotive to add to their roster, and they originally attempted to acquire Bonhomie & Hattiesburg Southern 2-8-2 #300, on display in Hattiesburg, MI. That was a whole other saga, but despite being led to believe that the engine had been privately owned by Fred Kepner and was legally for sale by his estate, the city made a rather suspicious claim that they owned it, leading to a pretty spurious legal case that Valley Railroad lost. Regrouping, Valley Railroad then announced that they would instead purchase Frisco #1352 from American Steam Railroad Preservation Association, move it to Essex and restore it to operation. I remember that at the time there were a few eyebrows raised over the purchase, because the #1352 was markedly bigger and heavier than anything else they operate (for comparison, 2-8-0 #97 weighs 273,000lbs total, while #1352 is 530,100lbs total), and that line is pretty lightly railed. As it is, they only use GE 80-tonners for diesel power, because that's as big as they feel comfortable with.
Over the past year, there's been a bunch of people wondering when the #1352 will move to Connecticut. Well, now the answer is: never. Because it's already in North Carolina, with the boiler off the frame. According to a TrainOrders user, back before Christmas, he had cocktails with the owner of the Aberdeen Carolina & Western aboard his new bar venue, Engine Room 87 (an ex CSX GE AC6000CW turned into an open-to-the-public mobile bar, its wild!). He apparently casually mentioned that he may have lost his mind, as he had bought a steam locomotive, saying it was rough but rebuildable. That steam locomotive turns out to be Frisco #1352. He has already done something other owners have failed to do in past couple decades, move it out of the trees in Taylorville, which lends credence to his effort. The tender, cab, and other miscellaneous parts arrived in Candor, NC before Christmas, and the boiler and running gear showed up this week.
Hopefully this is finally the #1352's chance to shine.
