Virginian Class SA #4

Virginian Railway Class SA #4, also known as Four Spot, was an eight-wheel switcher built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in August 1910 for the Virginian Railway. It was one of five locomotives of this class built for the railroad between 1909 and 1910, and it is the only surviving Virginian steam locomotive. The engine had a 0-8-0 wheel arrangement, 51-inch drivers, 22-inch by 28-inch cylinders, a tractive effort of 45,200 pounds-force, a boiler pressure of 200 pounds per square inch, a length of 64 feet, a weight of 182,300 pounds, and a speed of 10 miles per hour. Its tender held 5,000 gallons of water and 10 tons of coal, and when fully loaded the tender alone weighed 111,400 pounds. This class of heavy switcher operated in a wide range of settings, from Class I railroads to industrial yards. After retiring from service in 1957, No. 4 was given to the City of Princeton, West Virginia, and placed on display in front of the Mercer County Court House. Exposure to weather and vandalism caused severe deterioration, and in 1960 the locomotive was traded to N&W for a caboose. N&W Shops refurbished it, and it was placed in the museum in 1963.

Roanoke, Virginia · United States