Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis 576

Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis 576 is a 4-8-4 "Dixie" (Northern) type steam locomotive built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) in August 1942 for the Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway (NC&StL) as a member of the J-3 class. Designed with some of the latest locomotive technological features of the time, the J3 class was used to handle heavy freight and express trains to aid the American war effort during World War II.[1]

Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis 576
NC&StL No. 576 on static display at the Centennial Park in 2005
Type and origin
References:[1][2]
Power typeSteam
BuilderAmerican Locomotive Company (ALCO)
Serial number69786
Build dateAugust 1942
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 • Whyte4-8-4
Gauge4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Driver dia.70 in (1,778 mm)
Length86.31 ft
Axle load57,000 lb (26,000 kilograms; 26 metric tons)
Adhesive weight228,000 lb (103,000 kg)
Loco weight400,500 lb (181,700 kg)
Tender weight285,000 lb (129,000 kg)
Total weight685,500 lb (310,900 kg)
Fuel typeCoal
Fuel capacity36,000 lb (16.3 tonnes)
Water cap15,000 US gal (57,000 l; 12,000 imp gal)
Firebox:
 • Firegrate area		77.30 sq ft (7.2 m2)
Boiler pressure250 psi (1.72 MPa)
CylindersTwo
Cylinder size25 in × 30 in (635 mm × 762 mm)
Valve gearWalschaerts
Performance figures
Tractive effort56,920 lbf (253.2 kN)
Factor of adh.4.01
Career
Operators
Class
  • NCSt&L J3-57
Number in class7 of 20
Numbers
  • NCSt&L 576
Nicknames
  • "Yellow Jackets"
  • "The Stripe"
  • "Gliders"
LocaleTennessee
RetiredSeptember 2nd, 1952
PreservedSeptember 1953
Current owner
DispositionUndergoing restoration to operating condition, based in Nashville, Tennessee

Faced with dwindling traffic and the onset of dieselization, all of the J3s were withdrawn from service and scrapped by September 2, 1952 with the exception of No. 576. In September 1953, the locomotive was donated to the City of Nashville, TN and placed on display in Centennial Park in Nashville as the sole surviving steam locomotive of the NC&StL Railway. Today, the locomotive is being restored to operating condition for use in excursion service on the Nashville and Eastern Railroad.

Design and appearance

Referred to as "Dixies" by their crews as opposed to "Northerns", the "up to date" J3 class locomotives were utilized heavily in handling of critical war-time material, armament and troop train movements during the rabid buildup and mobilization of the American war effort during World War II. The first 10 of the J3 class engines were built with nose cones and skirting to give a semi streamlined appearance, similar to engines such as the N&W J class and the Canadian Pacific Royal Hudsons. The skirting was a bright yellow, and the engines were quickly nicknamed by the crews as “yellow jackets”. The second batch, also of 10, were built with nose cones, but without the skirting. The skirting and cones were later removed on all 20 due to ease of maintenance, but were re-nicknamed "stripes" due to their small yellow stripe along the side of the engine. All of the J3 class engines were taken out of service by 1953.[1]

History

Revenue service and retirement (1942-1952)

ALCO built No. 576 at a cost of US$166,500 and was delivered to the NC&StL Railway, where it was placed in revenue freight and passenger service on August 18, 1942.[2]

On September 30, 1953, No. 576 was chosen for preservation and subsequently donated to the City of Nashville, Tennessee for static display at the Centennial Park. To keep the locomotive and tender safe from the elements, a shelter was constructed over the engine in 2004 after 50+ years of being without cover.[3]

Restoration (2019-present)
No. 576 being repainted prior to the first Open House hosted by the Nashville Steam Preservation Society to promote and fundraise for the restoration of the locomotive to service

In April 2016, the newly-formed Nashville Steam Preservation Society (N.S.P.S) made plans to restore No. 576 to operating condition for excursion service.[2][4] In October 2018, the N.S.P.S. had successfully raised the necessary $500,000 to relocate and transport the locomotive out of the park and into a nearby restoration facility.[5] On January 13, 2019, the locomotive was moved out of Centennial Park and on to the Nashville and Western trackage, where it was prepared to move from the line to CSX and beyond to the Nashville and Eastern Railroad where it would be restored to operation.[6][7] The locomotive made a final public appearance at Nashville Union Station Hotel on March 9, 2019 and was currently undergoing its rebuild to operating condition at the Tennessee Central Railway Museum grounds.[8][9]

In March 2021, a storm struck the city of Nashville and the steam shop where No. 576 was stored became severely damaged as a result.[10] The locomotive was undamaged with the steam shop rebuilt shortly after and the restoration work has resumed.[11] On June 17, 2021, No. 576's boiler and frame have been lifted up from its wheels, so that its running gear would be taken off to be repaired.[12] The driving wheels were sent to be repaired by the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum in Chattanooga, Tennessee.[12]

References
  1. Morgan, David P. (1963). "Gliders, Yellow Jackets, and Stripes". Nashville Steam Preservation Society. Archived from the original on January 23, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  2. Ibata, David (April 26, 2016). "Team to restore a 'Dixie' 4-8-4". Trains. Kalmbach Publishing. Archived from the original on February 11, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  3. "RailPictures.Net Photo: NCStL 576 Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Steam 4-8-4 at Nashville, Tennessee by ke4aik". railpictures.net. Retrieved 2021-06-18.
  4. Wrinn, Jim (April 15, 2016). "NC&StL No. 576 Proposed Restoration Announcement". Nashville Steam Preservation Society. Archived from the original on November 26, 2020. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  5. Bryan, Joey (October 11, 2018). "NSPS Steam Reaches Initial Fundraising Goal". Nashville Steam Preservation Society. Archived from the original on January 23, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  6. Bryan, Joey (December 13, 2018). "No. 576 to Leave Centennial Park on January 13th!". Nashville Steam Preservation Society. Archived from the original on January 23, 2021. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
  7. Koehn, Alexandra (January 13, 2019). "A steam train built in the 40's is on its way to restoration". WTVF. Archived from the original on December 2, 2020. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  8. Hilt, Eric (January 13, 2019). "Locomotive No. 576 moves to old home". WTVF. Archived from the original on June 21, 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  9. "Historic steam train arrives at Nashville museum for restoration". WKRN-TV. March 11, 2019. Archived from the original on March 3, 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  10. Overdeep, Meghan (March 30, 2021). "Steam Shop Restoring Historic Nashville Train Suffers Serious Damage in Storm". Southern Living. Archived from the original on March 31, 2021. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
  11. Nolan, Davis (April 21, 2021). "Restoration of Old Locomotive 576 resumes after March storm damage". WKRN-TV. Archived from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved June 21, 2021.
  12. Bryan, Joey (June 17, 2021). "NSPS Completes Engine Lift and Wheel Removal". Nashville Steam Preservation Society. Archived from the original on June 20, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
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