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4-8-4 Northern.

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4-8-4 Northern.
Posted by SPer on Saturday, December 24, 2022 1:31 PM

Name a railroad that also called their 4-8-4s Northern in addition to Northern Pacific.

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Posted by daveklepper on Monday, December 26, 2022 6:35 AM

Great Northern and the Spooane Portland and Seattle?

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Posted by Overmod on Tuesday, December 27, 2022 5:57 PM

Well, CB&Q, RI, D&H, and I believe C&NW... did Cotton Belt have a cute name for theirs?  I think SLSF used the number series for theirs, as ATSF did.

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Posted by SPer on Tuesday, December 27, 2022 7:38 PM

Frisco and Santa Fe called their 4-8-4s Northerns and so did Cotton Belt.

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Posted by wjstix on Wednesday, December 28, 2022 11:44 AM

SPer

Name a railroad that also called their 4-8-4s Northern in addition to Northern Pacific.

Only a few railroads called their 4-8-4s by another name (Niagaras, Dixies), all the rest called them Northerns...although most railroaders referred to their engines by the number series, not a nickname. 

Stix
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Posted by BaltACD on Thursday, December 29, 2022 9:11 PM

wjstix
 
SPer

Name a railroad that also called their 4-8-4s Northern in addition to Northern Pacific. 

Only a few railroads called their 4-8-4s by another name (Niagaras, Dixies), all the rest called them Northerns...although most railroaders referred to their engines by the number series, not a nickname. 

WM's 4-8-4's were referred to a Potomacs.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by Overmod on Friday, December 30, 2022 12:21 AM

BaltACD
wjstix
 
SPer

Name a railroad that also called their 4-8-4s Northern in addition to Northern Pacific. 

Only a few railroads called their 4-8-4s by another name (Niagaras, Dixies), all the rest called them Northerns...although most railroaders referred to their engines by the number series, not a nickname.

WM's 4-8-4's were referred to a Potomacs.

And DL&W's were Poconos.

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Posted by daveklepper on Friday, December 30, 2022 2:34 AM

I think RF&P also called theirs Patomacs.  If not, then some other name than Northerns.

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Posted by daveklepper on Friday, December 30, 2022 2:37 AM

C&O:  Greenbriars.    And not Birkshires, but Kiwanas.   

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Posted by rcdrye on Friday, December 30, 2022 6:45 AM

Some referred to them by class - Soo Line (WC) O-20.  By the same token 4-8-2s were N-20s.  Not as picky with smaller engines - 2-8-2s were "Mikes" and 4-6-2's were Pacifics.  Maybe due to having multiple classes (and both MStPSSM and WC classes) for the smaller engines.

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Posted by Overmod on Friday, December 30, 2022 4:49 PM

daveklepper
I think RF&P also called theirs Patomacs.

Oh hell no.

Generals.

Governors.

Statesmen.

Depending on series.  You'd be hard pressed to find more beautiful 4-8-4s.

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Posted by Overmod on Friday, December 30, 2022 4:50 PM

Mr. Klepper, Kiwanis is a fraternal organization.

The word you want is Kanawha.

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Posted by SD70Dude on Friday, December 30, 2022 7:34 PM

Canadian National initially called them Confederations, but switched to Northerns pretty early on. 

Canadian Pacific only had two, both of which are preserved, and didn't have any special name for them as far as I know. 

Greetings from Alberta

-an Articulate Malcontent

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Posted by Overmod on Sunday, January 1, 2023 2:02 PM

Incidentally, while the Canadian locomotives were still Confederations, Cantlie's excellent 4-8-4s for China were called that... with the Chinese class being KF -- in Roman letters!  (I'll let M636C tell the rest of the story (as I got most of my current understanding of it from him in the first place...)

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Posted by jeffhergert on Sunday, January 8, 2023 11:30 PM

I've read reference that RI employees referred to their northerns by their road numbers, "50 hundreds" for the 5000 to 5064 R67b class and "51 hundreds" for the 5100 to 5119 R67 class.

Jeff   

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Posted by daveklepper on Monday, January 9, 2023 3:49 AM

Overmod, thanhks.  And I agree they looked just terrific.  The connecting ACL's were almost as fine.  And the FEC.  But the SAL and Southern had none.

But the N&W J is my all-time favorite.

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Posted by TheFlyingScotsman on Saturday, February 18, 2023 3:57 AM

"Mr. Klepper, Kiwanis is a fraternal organization.

The word you want is Kanawha."

Making pedantic comments like this puts people off contributing to the forum.

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Posted by CSSHEGEWISCH on Saturday, February 18, 2023 10:11 AM

C&NW's H-class 4-8-4's were known as Zeppelins of the Rails.

The daily commute is part of everyday life but I get two rides a day out of it. Paul
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Posted by Overmod on Tuesday, February 21, 2023 10:35 AM

CSSHEGEWISCH
C&NW's H-class 4-8-4's were known as Zeppelins of the Rails.

In the days when Zeppelins were still exciting modern aircraft of the future...

A point to remember about the 'H of an engine' was that class members received modernizing rebuilding in the early '40s and again in 1948, and it might be argued that the latter produced some of the finest of all locomotives.  They got neither the fame nor the life they deserved...

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Posted by wjstix on Tuesday, February 21, 2023 4:03 PM

Just a follow-up to my earlier post - keep in mind we're talking about names used like in advertisements and such by the railroad. I believe virtually all working railroaders referred to the engines by their class (like a letter) or their number series ("4200's"), they may not have even known about all the various nicknames for the different types of engines. 

Stix
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Posted by challenger3980 on Wednesday, March 1, 2023 12:24 AM

TheFlyingScotsman

"Mr. Klepper, Kiwanis is a fraternal organization.

The word you want is Kanawha."

Making pedantic comments like this puts people off contributing to the forum.

 

 

I Respectfully Disagree, it was not the intent to criticize, but rather educate, and Dave being a long time member here, I believe would understand, and even appreciate that 

 

Doug

May your flanges always stay BETWEEN the rails

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Posted by BaltACD on Wednesday, March 1, 2023 12:52 PM

Overmod
Mr. Klepper, Kiwanis is a fraternal organization.

The word you want is Kanawha.

The northerner's ear, though trained on music, missed the intricacies of the West Virginia dialect.

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Posted by daveklepper on Thursday, March 2, 2023 8:33 AM

ALways happy to accept helpful critisism.  And cwithy a c91-[year-olds memory, it can be helpful.

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