Article #86: Norfolk Southern Railway AS-416 #1616 w/ Bay Window Caboose NC Transportation Museum (May 17, 2025)

 

In this new article we will be taking a look at Norfolk Southern Railway AS-416 #1616 along with matching bay window caboose #387 at the North Carolina Transportation Museum back on May 15th of this year. 

Before getting into the loconmotive, lets do into the railroads history a little bit. 

This locomotive was built in December of 1955 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works. It was built right before Baldwin discontinued locomotive manufacturing. This locomotive, like the other AS-416's on the railroads roster ran until 1974 when the Southern Railway absorbed the Norfolk Southern Railway.

It ran for nineteen years (1955-1974) and was sold to Peabody Coal in  Lentzburg, Illinois after Norfolk Southern was absorbed by Southern Railway. In 1981, they donated the locomotive to the state of North Carolina. It was restored to its current appearance thereafter.

Caboose #387 was rebuilt from a boxcar in 1969 by the Southern Iron and Equipment Company. It arrived at Spencer in 1987. 

Both of these pieces represent the original Norfolk Southern very well.