B&O #5600

[Mile132]

I have an artist's postcard from Barnard, Roberts & CO, published 1973.  It shows a steam passenger train in hill country, about like the Alleghenies in MD, PA or WV.

A caption on the back side of the card reads, "The 5600, Class NI 4-4-4-4.  The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Co."

A wiki article describes this locomotive as the George H. Emerson, built 1937, retired 1943.   Does anyone know what service the engine was put into? 

There were at least three other cards in this series, all B&O trains.    Harlan Hiney was the artist on at least two of them, possibly others as well. 

Thanks.

[efftenxrfe]

Duplex design/machinery was an attempt to deliver lots of pulling power with less rotational force from the siderods. Less rotational weight meant higher rotational speed was possible before the rods hammered waves into the rail.

I suppose most of the reason that the Emerson was built was because it was possible to build a trial machine that would permit higher pulling power and speed than a conventional engine of that size, which would create waves, ie. damage track.

Plus power, and plus speed, minus DC-3s and 707s, equals passenger to me.

[rcdrye]

And of course the B&O's Duplex ran straight into the EA, also introduced in 1937, which was wildly successful in B&O service.

[daveklepper]

The particular experimental locomotive was intended for hgih speed heavy passenger service, somehing like what the  PRR attemmmpted with their 6-4-4-6 rxhibited at the 39-40 NYCWF, and which led to the T-1.

[BaltACD]

The following 3 pages from L W Sagle's 1952 'A Picture History of B&O Motive Power' identifies the 5600 and give some background about it.