RailPictures.Net Photo: SOU 6903 Southern Railway Alco PA-2 at Bristol, Tennessee by Collection of Ron Flanary

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» Southern Railway (more..)
» Alco PA-2 (more..)

» Bristol State Street Crossing
» Bristol, Tennessee, USA (more..)
» 1954

Locomotive No./Train ID

Photographer

» SOU 6903 (more..)
» SOU 46 (more..)

» Collection of Ron Flanary (more..)
» Contact Photographer · Photographer Profile

Remarks & Notes

My friend David W. DeVault was standing in Virginia and photographing a train in Tennessee when Southern PA-2 6903 arrived from Memphis with the morning eastbound Tennessean for Roanoke, Lynchburg, Washington and New York. The Southern purchased six classy PAs in 1953 for this service (plus Chattanooga-Memphis day locals 35 and 36, connections for the Birmingham Special), replacing six DL109s/DL110s. Locomotive rivet counters mistakenly call the six units "PA-3s," but in fact they were just upgraded PA-2s---and the last of the famed PAs to be built by Alco. They cranked out 2,250 horsepower each with their single 244 prime movers (vs. two prime movers for EMD E-units). The green and gold beauties cycled between Memphis and Bristol in pairs on the Tennessean until the end of 1957, when N&W ceased steam passenger operations into Bristol. Southern diesel power ran through after that date, but apparently the PAs were not in that plan, as no one seems to recall them running over the N&W. Instead, they were relocated to Atlanta where they handled locals, plus the Ponce de Leon between Atlanta and Jacksonville. They were out of service by the early '60s and officially retired in 1965. The "heritage" paint scheme for NS 8099 (the Southern unit) was patterned after the PA paint charts. Notice the elevated crossing shanty on State Street---a feature that was replaced by automatic gates a few years after this scene. The caboose of a short freight destined for Knoxville is on the left. It was waiting on 46 to clear before departing westbound. Notice the 6903's headlight (bottom) or Mars light (top) aren't on---which was standard practice for daylight running at the time.

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