Santa Fe SD45-2 5704, recently restored to its Bicentennial glory, sits at Kansas City's Union Station, where throngs of railfans have gathered to take night photos of this fifth of Santa Fe's five Bicentennial SD45-2s. Built in May 1973 as ATSF 5704 and delivered in Yellow Warbonnet, it was repainted into the railway's Bicentennial scheme, rolling out of San Bernardino’s paint shop on January 13, 1976. As it as the last of the five units to get painted, it was also, fittingly, the last to get repainted back into Yellow Warbonnet (June 15, 1978), nearly a year after the other four. Following a rebuild in September 1986 it wore the number ATSF 5834. The merger with Burlington Northern gave it another number: BNSF 6484. When deemed surplus, GN reporting marks were assigned, per BNSF practice, indicating the GN 6484 would likely never turn a wheel in revenue service for BNSF again. A sharp-eyed BNSF employee spotted this in a group of locomotives headed to the scrapper's torch, and was able to get management to act, donating it to the Southern California Railway Museum in Perris, California. But on this evening, it is still in Kansas City, not far from where Mid America Car painstakingly rebuilt it cosmetically and reapplied the popular red, white and blue colors once again. (Kansas City, Missouri - June 17, 2022)
Displays of American pride, and spirit! Equipment painted Red, White, and Blue! With an honored salute and tribute to our veterans and troops added too! Patriots can still be found to join this gathering of Patriotic Pride!
