DULUTH, Georgia — The Southeastern Railway Museum celebrated the public return of its beloved locomotive, Southern Railway 6901, after a 14-month restoration in the Museum’s shop.
The 75-year-old locomotive was reintroduced during a private event on Friday, May 1. The locomotive returned to public display on Saturday, May 2.
Held at the museum, Southern 6901 was joined by Norfolk Southern Landmark Series SD70IACS 1231, the Atlanta, and SW-7 Southern Railway 8202. The 14-month restoration of Southern 6901 was partially funded by grants from Norfolk Southern Railroad, the Pace Family Foundation, and the Fast Track to the Future campaign.
Restoration was guided by shop manager Randy Minter, with support from Andrew Durden and Allen Rider. 20 museum volunteers invested well over 1000 hours during Saturday repair sessions.
Built in 1951 by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors, 6901 routinely powered the Atlanta to Washington, D.C. portion of the Southern Crescent passenger train. It was selected for donation by the Southern Railway in 1979 as it was the last Southern Railway locomotive to lead the Southern Crescent from Atlanta to Washington, D.C., before the train became part of Amtrak’s nationwide passenger network.
Southern 6901 is one of four existing Southern E8a units. With gratitude, the museum notes the generous work Norfolk Southern performed on the 6901 during its tenure at the museum.
6901 is the Museum’s crowning restoration effort, though work will continue. On deck for repairs is US Army railroad crane C-271, a Southern Railway baggage car for event rentals, ongoing work on the railway post office car Grand Junction, and Southern passenger coach Charlottesville.
For more information or to make a gift, please visit www.train-museum.org.
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