This locomotive is
unique on the Chessie roster. It is the oldest, the only
battery powered and the only locomotive with a five digit
number. It is also the only C&O paint scheme with a
safety slogan. Finally, it is the only Chessie
locomotive with the Ches-C on both ends. It is also the
only locomotive to not have the owning road's letters near the
road number. Typically, "C&O" would be on the side
on the C&O blue scheme, and it wasn't on this
locomotive. Curiously, "C&O" wasn't on top of the
road number in the Chessie scheme either. Finally,
keeping the streak up, "CSXT" was not under the road number in
that scheme.
Built by General Electric in October 1917, it is a 15 ton Type
LSB-2E12 Storage Battery Locomotive. It was briefly used
by GE at the shops in Erie, before being sold to Newport News
Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company in 1918. It served
them as their E-6. The locomotive was in service with
them through the end of World War II. Sometime in the
1950's it was acquired by the C&O and numbered
X-5000. It was renumbered 18742 in the 1950's or
60's. It is unknown why this number was chosen, as it is
not the serial number of the unit. This locomotive
served primarily in the Huntington, WV shop complex for the
remainder of the C&O era. It wore standard C&O
Enchantment Blue paint, but had a safety slogan on the nose,
"BE CAREFUL". It was painted into Chessie paint rather
early in the Chessie era. I have 1977 photos of it
showing worn paint. It got CSXs colors, in their Stealth
scheme, shortly after the CSX era began. I did a CSX
version, to satisfy the NMRA Master Model Railroader Motive
Power Certificate requirement to build three
locomotives. I was already doing C&O and Chessie, so
doing one more wasn't that much more work.
18742 still exists today. CSX donated
it to the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore after it was
retired. It is not operable and not on display, but at
least it is preserved.
Below is the prototype photo of #18742.
Below are shots of the finished models.
Family shot:
