Top 15 Extinct American Steam Locomotives

From famous speed demons to underrated heavy haulers, this list chronicles my Top 15 picks for extinct classes of American Steam Locomotives!
If I have forgotten a class that you would've liked to have seen on this list, please mention it in the comments section. I might include it in a "Viewer's Choice" list, if there's enough to work with!
Hope you enjoy this video and Thanks For Watching!
TIMESTAMPS FOR ENTRIES:
15 - 01:42
14 - 03:24
13 - 05:24
12 - 07:46
11 - 09:11
10 - 11:16
9 - 12:30
8 - 14:02
7 - 15:15
6 - 16:40
5 - 18:40
4 - 20:29
3 - 22:36
2 - 24:43
Honorable Mentions - 26:05
1 - 27:08
(A majority of the images used in this video are from www.railrarchive.net - please visit this site for more great images from steam railroading's glorious past!)
PS: For the horsepower rating between the Y6a and Y6b, the real stats are as follows: 4,400hp for the Y6a and 5,600 for the Y6b.

[@euclideszoto997]

Watching this makes me appreciate the restoration of the Big boy even more.

[@TechnoYacy]

Well big boy is fully out though

[@josephfrye8750]

I wonder if CSX Is finally lifting the ban of Steam?

[@euclideszoto997]

@@josephfrye8750 well there are 2 Allegheny's left. 1 in Baltimore which is in poor shape and the other in Michigan Ford museum which is in very good shape. So if CSX wants to they can restore the Allegheny and have a " friendly " debate on which is the mightiest steam engine with union Pacific's bigboy.

[@erichahn7104]

We have a big boy in the st louis transportation musem and have loved it since I was a kid.

[@crocowithaglocko5876]

Yeah I’ve seen 4006

[@gunnarthefeisty]

Good news on the T-1! One is being built from SCRATCH and is currently 35% done!

[@Matsu281]

That’s definitely good news!

[@vannsand597]

EPIC :D

[@nstrainfanyt]

43.3% as of 2024. A frame is currently being constructed (should be finished by spring 2024) and will push it past the 50% mark!

[@daanvos194]

They found an pensylvania coal tender behind an old factory or someplace

[@glentaybow]

When I was a youngster living in Island, KY,, circa 1955, my dad would take us to town occasionally to get haircuts for me and my younger brother. A highlight of the trip would be to hear a freight train's whistle signalling it's approach. Even if we were in the seat getting clipped by barber, G.E. Hughes, we were allowed to run out back to a spot just above the tracks to see the behemoth steam engines race by, belching ash and smoke. What a spectacle it was! It made such an impression on me as a 6 year old kid. I never forgot those trains and how they made the ground vibrate beneath our feet.

[@12oclockmayhem]

That was the Morgan and North fork #12 Alcoa 2-6-2. There were 4 baldwin rs-12 diesels that ran the same line as well. They all sat at Armstrong lumber mill in Morehead until 2010. The baldwins were scrapped that year and as far as I know #12 is still there rusting away. I was working with Jim wrinn (editor of trains magazine) and the Spencer transportation museum to get them purchased and restored to working order. They were hauling the last load away the day we showed up with a check.

[@09JDCTrainMan]

The CofG actually wanted to save one of their Big Apples, number 451, but the railroad couldn't find a city to accept it and sadly had to cut it up. Still breaks my heart today.

[@harrisonofcolorado8886]

There are many more examples of steam locomotives that a railroad wanted to preserve, but a city or museum wouldn't accept it. There's Wabash 700, B&O 7609, IC 2613, and more. Still upsetting sometimes.

[@shuttheheckupkarl6153]

I swear, If I ever become filthy rich, I'm going to rebuild these locomotives and have them run on tourist lines. I SWEAR.

[@reneastle8447]

I think I can help you with that. I'm planning to put together a Retro Decade Revival Project. Our goal is to bring real entertainment, true talent, pure originality and diversity, old school and more back into the public mainstream, starting with the 1980s. The project is full of 100% authentic restoration and complete preservation. I'm also concocting a new idea for an invention called the past restorer. It will restored anything that existed in the past to its original condition and former glory. Steam trains will be the first to be brought back into the public mainstream. Yes, I will help you rebuild these locomotives and bring them back to the mainstream, pulling freight and passenger trains once again.

[@plushnpuppetshenanigans5948]

you will also need luck on the turbines

[@jackhollandcsxnsandawvrfan3800]

Don't forget to rebuild the y6b and the prr j1

[@chingyuileung7057]

Yes you should. I’m so happy for your determination

[@Shinyarc]

Game Tastic I would essentially fund everything that T1 rebuilding organization needs

[@B-and-O-Operator-Fairmont]

As a small correction, the B&O EM-1's were purchased during WWII. B&O wanted diesels, but they could not get them due to war time allocations (Santa Fe got diesels because hauling tank trains of water to desert stations was a big tie-up in resources) and had to wait until after 1945. Indeed, without WWII, the curtain would have fallen on steam much earlier - perhaps as much as ten years earlier. The B&O HS "Sentinel" had an article some time ago citing that post about the supposed "saved" EM-1. It was pointed out that the B&O Museum as we know it today did not exist at the time and Mount Clare was still a working facility; there was no place to keep an engine that large and B&O was in poor financial condition (it would "affiliate" with C&O around 1962 or 1963). Truly a beautiful engine, but it was already obsolete when it rolled out of Eddystone. My late grandfather was a trainman in Fairmont and got to see them first hand. He said that deep whistle was unlike anything he ever heard. In those days they ran "coal drags" straight through from Fairmont to Keyser and, although he was occasionally called to work a "Keyser Turn", he never got to ride a 7600 over the mountains. BTW I think in railfan lore Sand Patch and Seventeen Mile are more "famous" than "infamous", although those grades (including Cranberry, Cheat, and Newburg) were true tests of man and his machines.

[@josephtoomey6634]

it's awesome that UP has restored their Big Boy.....

[@Gdayhomie]

USA 🇺🇸 4014 rules

[@ph11p3540]

Sure is. I never thought it would ever come back to life. Little did I know.

[@ftgphantom621]

Joseph Toomey yes

[@youneverknow111]

and fun fuct is that big boy wasnt biggest ever made steam loco there was one bigger but was torn and made in two locos because steam comsuption was big and they could produce enough it,sorry for bad english its not my native language

[@mikepeacock4609]

youneverknow111 what

[@KITLEVEY]

An "O" scale EM=1, 2-8-8-4 and a Hudson J2, 4-6-4 by Lionel run the rails around my home. The realistic sounds from speakers in the tenders and the exquisite detail in their construction gives us all a wonderful look back into the past century. Reading the history and manufacturing techniques that created these great beasts gives amazing insight into how we evolved into the industrial age.

[@StaelTek]

i am not into trains and locomtovies at all, but i actually enjoyed this piece of content and learned a little about these old beasts.

[@trainmaster844]

Thanks for watching and glad I could help you learn a little more about these machines.

[@appleincafan1227]

Christopher Kovacs whitch is your favorite

[@jeremyasher297]

Christopher Kovacs these mighty machines Are powerful locomotives on the US rails

[@FranzFerdinandVIII]

*19:42* I have this picture as the lock screen on my computer

[@kashmerlangston545]

Same case

[@Feathercrest1]

My father was a steamfitter for the DL&W (Delaware, Lackawanna & Western RR in Scranton, PA. I would lie in bed and listen to the steam engines pulling long lines of coal cars out of the yards starting out slowly and at times wheel slippage would occur necessitating starting over again. In many cases a pusher engine would be employed to help the pulling engine get moving. Most of the coal fired engines were converted to oil which was a bit cleaner. Since my father was an employee of the railroad, he and his immediate family had free passage on the passenger trains. As a youngster I traveled many times to NYC, arriving in Penn Station, to see the circus , B'way shows (which were very affordable a the time) eat at my favorite place (the automat) see the displays at Macy's & Gimbal's, the Easter parade etc. Wonderful times that are now inaccessible to many low income people (of which I was one). This was a time when Scranton still had horse drawn cart vendors, the peripatetic sharpener with his grinding wheel pack on his back, coal deliveries to the houses, a bar on EVERY corner, etc. I only ever rode a diesel powered train once out of Lackawanna (Scranton) station in my first year of college. After dad died the free train service stopped and the route to NYC had been discontinued. My father took me when I was still a young boy, to the RR yard in South Scranton where repairs to the engines were made at the "Roundhouse". A locomotive was being sent to be repaired and the engineer whom my father knew Pulled me up and put my hand on the throttle saying "push it forward very slowly" and let me move the locomotive about 20 feet while he kept his hand over mine. A big thrill for a liltle boy.

[@northeastrailway.]

That is a nice story. I can only imagine the incredible feelings you had being up in the locomotive, hand on the throttle lever. Must've been something spectacular to see an entire train yard of steam engines moving about. Thank you for the story!.

[@neilpuckett359]

I love the America you've described.

[@jet4fun54]

As kids growing up on a farm in Canada, we used to count 60 or more box cars (grain) being pulled by steam locomotives. Sitting on the fence counting train cars was a daily activity. Then one day we heard a new sound. Diesel. Shortly after the news came from CNR that on said day the last steam locomotive would make its run on our branch line. They had the train decked out with ribbons, etc, and other farmers drove over from miles around to watch it go by...and so ended the era :-( Thanks to the original poster for putting together this video.

[@garthfairfield8357]

Wow great story

[@5x535]

Great story Joe! Thanks for posting. I too remember the days of steam but only because my GrandFather cared enough to haul his wee ones down to the yard to smash a few pennies and watch as they filled the tender with water. He always said over and over "remember this remember this, they will be gone soon" Great memories of a time long gone.

[@70053morayfirth]

We in the UK currently have about ten new steam locomotives under construction. Building the first one is the key - it seems that once the concept is proved then everyone gets on with their own project. I'd love to see one or two of these vast US engines recreated.

[@jackchen7003]

We have PRR T1 being built which is expected to be the fastest steam locomotive in the world. Other than that, no others are being built as of now

[@S.P.Q.Rrespublicas]

@@jackchen7003 very good. Hopefully it doesn’t go for a record breaking run even if it was (unlikely) permitted to, as of how long 4468 lner mallard has held the record for(3rd July 1938, 126.3mph) as of how long steams been gone in both nations.

[@daanvos194]

Im just happy steam tech is not lost

[@SyCoREAPER]

That jingle between each locomotive is going to haunt my dreams.

[@casperreininga3253]

it's called The Cannery by Kevin Macleod

[@paulnash6944]

19-year-old me: *doesn't know half of these trains existed* 4-year-old me, who know almost every train: [press Y to shame]

[@imdeadinside9848]

Paulfuss Entertainment same

[@tracycarifa5740]

Y

[@romeoalexandrovici]

Y

[@jjwood7607]

Y

[@pacificproductionsofficial]

Y

[@phyllishamilton165]

Sincere thanks! I'm so glad that I was able to travel, as a child, on several steam trains, from Chicago to several points in the Midwest. I will always remember the excitement of watching the locomotives approach, and the thrill of listening to the engines and feeling their sheer power -- almost like they were alive!

[@samiamtheman7379]

That S-1 and Milwaukee Road have a very 1920's futurism aesthetic to it that I find really cool to look at.

[@edwardgodec7079]

I was once a Head Brakeman on the Milwaukee Road and rode frequently on their 4-8-4 Northern S-2, and S-3 machines. I'm sure I served on S-3 261 which is restored and in frequent excursion service being billed as the largest coal fired steam locomotive in current service. I remember how exhilarating it was to go storming through the countryside and small towns at 60mph daring anyone to get in the way of that huge solid pilot.

[@harvey2465]

😊

[@richarda.spencer835]

.

[@georgeorwell4534]

Thank you Mr. Kovacs for this, you're helping to preserve our American railroad heritage.

[@raymondlowry8564]

Thank you very much for your effort on putting this together. I am totally enamored with the old steam locomotives. Both my Grandfathers worked for the railroads (one was an engineer and the other was a conductor). I am almost 70 years old and one of my very first memories in this life was sitting on my Grandfathers lap while he moved a steam engine around the railroad train yard. All I recall is the heat from the firebox and the smell of burning coal ( One of my favorite smells)! I also went out two weeks ago and got to see the UP Big Boy under power on its way to Arizona. I followed it from Beaumont to Indio. What a thrill! Anyway, thank you very much again for your efforts! Nice job!!!

[@eburro96]

Delightful and informative. Particularly interesting was the No. 1 selection that displayed an innovative approach that was short-lived and economically unable to be further refined. Too bad the concept had not been explored earlier. Thumbs up for including it!

[@TurboTPI]

So glad I got to see the UP Big Boy 4014 in action. This vid makes me really appreciate the opportunity.

[@Foreversinging5]

Wow these are stunning locomotives!! Liked, thank you so much for sharing this wonderful part of history!! :D Have a great weekend!!

[@castlesandjazzers1534]

While I'm a bigger fan of British steamers than American ones, I sure appreciate the effort and great amount of passion that went into this video. You've earned yourself another subscriber! If I had the chance to save one class of American steam loco though, I would have gone with the T-38 "Camelback" locomotive. Those ugly ducklings have such a unique design, gotta love 'em, I guess..! As for British, I'm not sure. Either another LNER A3, or a LBSCR E2. Granted, the E2s were a technical failure, but they're so iconic being the basis for Thomas the Tank Engine (and I'm a big Thomas fan..!) And their con of water shortage was made up for in the later batch with extended side tanks. On the other hand, the A3s WERE a colossal success, with that enormous firebox of theirs, and the introduction to the new Pacific wheel arrangement. Before that class was drawn to, no engine was powerful enough to tackle the increasingly long and heavy trains from London to Edinburgh. Flying Scotsman simply deserves the company of a preserved sister. It's tough for me to decide!

[@trainmaster844]

Thank you very much for your feedback and for subscribing!

[@deandanielson8074]

Loved the Top 15 -- Sad to seem them go. Thanks for the video work and extensive editing. You provide a great service. Dean from Minnesota

[@burkevinell]

Interesting and educational. My preference would be the R1 and R2 2-8-8-2 Mallets of the Great Northern.

[@burkevinell]

My thoughts exactly.

[@Silver_Turtle]

A well researched and thought out video. I'm old enough to barely remember steam in service, so I really do appreciate someone taking the time to post something like this. And I will NOT argue with your choices -- you more than likely had more options and decided on these. Although it would be a hoot to see a Y6b, Big Boy, Challenger, EM-1, and some other 'big 'uns" pulling freight [together]...

[@char2c584]

As of 2017 Big boy 4014 is in Cheyenne, Wyoming, being restored to Working order using oil.

[@Silver_Turtle]

RN: Can't argue with the truth! I knew about the restoration, just didn't comment on it.

[@TheOnlyTYRE]

you know the Big Boy and Challenger are still here today

[@FuquarProductions]

4014 is alive again

[@whyiseverythingcake9488]

Yeah.

[@nssrrailfan6443]

She Came to the DMIR. I Saw her.

[@FuquarProductions]

@Abdul Zuher they have rebuilt 4014 completely

[@peteroehring695]

They are not retired, just waiting until we need them again.

[@mickcarson8504]

Yep, when the oil runs out and there is no diesel, steam wins again, but no coal this time, maybe nuclear powered.

[@Gearz-365]

@@mickcarson8504 they could use biomass for fuel. Torrified biomass is actually both renewable and burns cleaner than fossil fuel. It is also more efficient than coal, so adds to the efficiency of steam locomotives

[@world_reborn1990]

...but how is the locomotives parts going to stay lubricated?..

[@Gearz-365]

@@world_reborn1990 some steam locotives have "oil cups" that you fill with oil every once in a while to keep parts well lubricated

[@world_reborn1990]

@@Gearz-365 I see.

[@BBQDad463]

I have ridden the Amtrak rails from Pittsburgh, PA, to Whitefish, MT, a few times. I love rail travel and I wish I could ride on steam-powered trains for extended journeys. The few steam trains we have been able to ride have merely whetted our appetites. Thanks for this marvelous video and here's to steam! 😎

[@richardwilliams1451]

Watched 4014 steam through Dixon, Illinois on July 30th this year. A beautiful creature to behold.

[@BackshopRailProductions]

Fantastic video! My grandpa worked for the N&W during the steam era and he had a builders plate and a hooter whistle from a Y6b. I now have both items in my N&W collection.

[@nwrailfan2465]

That's badass i love the N&W!

[@derekstocker6661]

I sincerely hope you folks can restore more of these superb engines wherever possible, the build from the tracks up has been done in the UK and if they can do it so can you! All power to your elbow on this and keep steam alive in America, these are "living" engineering feats not just a railway engine! Excellent documentry.

[@chriskleckner1659]

Thank you for posting his well researched and informative video. I;ve lost track on the PRR T1 Trust project but my jaw dropped when learning completion expected around 2130! At 75 years old now I hope to see that thing fired up! I would have suggested on more than one mention of he Southern Pacific Cab Forward units, which were al oil fired and Mallet compound locomotives. Quite unique units indeed.

[@trainmaster844]

You're very welcome. Yes, the new-build T1 is expected to be completed by 2030 - only 11 more years, but great progress has been made so far!

[@Mike_Squires]

An old friend of mine(he's 95) told me a story not too long ago about how a friend of his from the army got the chance to ride behind a T1, and in eastern Ohio they did 131 MPH, but it was a "don't tell corporate" type of run

[@Thej611]

+Shelby fan jesus. thats nuts

[@howdoiputthecheeseintheove8437]

what a guy

[@traindude432]

ohio

[@ZeusMode]

@@traindude432 only in ohio

[@turbotwo1294]

That is a very cool list! I think you should do more of these, like the Top 15 Extinct Diesel Locomotives. I think you did leave out two great locos: Maybe the NP class EM-1s and the Streamlined Santa Fe Blue Goose Hudson

[@weirdunknownperson2916]

Big boy: heres a little lesson in trickery

[@virginiarailfannoah5415]

The Big Boy is the exact opposite of these. Like, HALF the Big Boys still survive to this day.

[@harrisonofcolorado8886]

@@virginiarailfannoah5415 yep, 8/25 big boy locomotives still survive today.

[@j.t.harrison3203]

I can definitely agree with your choice of #1. And the looks were incredible too!

[@terrywitkowski6937]

i'm 71. I wish was I was older to see these guys in action. I bearly remember Soo-Line steam in my hometown of Stevens Point, Wis.

[@Gun4Freedom]

My grandfather was born in 1922, died in 1996. He grew up in Garwood, NJ, just a kid during the Great Depression, and his father died in 1933. He spoke of how rough it was, but there was always one story he used to smile while he told. He used to tell me stories about the Blue Comet, and how he and his friends knew the schedule it ran by so they could watch it scream by at 70 or more. What an awesome sight that must have been. He always wanted to ride that train, but by the time he was old enough, he had gone into the Army Air Corps for ww2, and when he got back, it was no longer in service.

[@JBrandeis1]

He "bearly" remembers. Oh boy, they certainly get some yahoos commenting on the blogs.

[@evankoren5000]

@@Gun4Freedom OMG I love the Blue Comet! Your Grandfather was a very lucky man!

[@finnabeachyoazs]

Yall it would be cool to see some of these beasts in action

[@GiordanDiodato]

I wonder if my grandfather has any stories.

[@williampeterson9714]

I was born and raised in Altoona, PA (1943-1960). Both grandfathers were engineers on the PRR and uncles and cousins worked in the PRR Juanita Shops. And I visit the Horseshoe Curve as much as possible. These trains and their magical sounds are embedded in my soul. Thanks for a great presentation.

[@jeffhudson7569]

William, Where did you live?? I grew up on the 'high end' of 58th street. Kittnning Point Rd. Three miles from THE CURVE! I always considered it my back yard.

[@TheHairyHound]

Excellent! I'm neither a steam or train enthusiast but I thought this was a good insight to the world of steam trains and at the same time an interesting piece of history. How anyone could dislike this video or narration defies me.

[@taxijoe6927]

What a great video! I really appreciate you making this. I love history and this is good stuff.

[@wholeNwon]

From the long ago days of my youth, I remember the sound, the subtle vibration of the platform and most of all the smell of the steam locomotives that pulled the train that I often took to school. Then one day there was a diesel.

[@CoasterFan2105]

Very interesting list. Your research was clearly very thorough. The only locomotives that I think deserve to be mentioned (while they aren't an entire class) are the Jupiter and the 119, simply because they are arguably the 2 most famous locomotives in U.S. railroad history. Maybe also the SP GS-2's and 3's as well as some of the standard gauge DRGW locomotives. If you were to include logging engines, I'd also throw in the 4 truck shay.

[@trainmaster844]

+CoasterFan2105 Thank you very much for your compliments - and thanks for all the great videos you make as well! I may make more installments of this list, covering other classes that I have overlooked.

[@CoasterFan2105]

Thank you! Well, I certainly hope you do more of these videos. They are very interesting to watch. Maybe a countdown of top mainline steamers currently running or something like that.

[@torriferguson7224]

CoasterFan2105 I'm a fan

[@diamonddog257]

This is great stuff; I am from West Canada ....right where the Rockies meet our yuuge prairies ..... This is not a game here .... I have seen trains almost 2 miles long, 5 Engines in front and more behind ....... Canada wears out trucks , trains and automobiles ..- very quickly . But we would like to restore some of your engines, if possible .......................

[@wpierce57]

When I was growing up in the late '60's early 70's, my family were care takers, living at the Bay Area Electric Railroad Museum near Fairfield and Rio Vista, California. They had a 4 truck Shay (I believe it was #11) that was operational. I was lucky enough to be old enough to ride in the cab a time or two... They also had a static exhibit of a Mikado that was our daily "ride", no telling how many imaginative miles I was at the controls.

[@matthewpowell2429]

I really like your list Chris. I especially liked how you included the PRR S1, NYC Hudsons, Niagaras, WM Northerns or Potomacs, and the turbines. I would’ve like to have seen some engines from the Monon Railway and L&N Railway though, as well as many of the extinct Challengers. Other than that, you did great!

[@traindude432]

yes

[@edinmiami5909]

Fascinating video! my personal favorite is to Dreyfuss Hudson used by the New York Central Railroad. I would love to see a new one built just to be a museum piece. It was a beautiful locomotive!

[@aldisbrozovskis9770]

Very interesting of some known and unusual Steam Locomotives, especially the ones in category No.1 !

[@norftrain]

The T1 and M1 locos are my absolute favorite steam engines ever made, the streamlining and overall design are just astounding. Though the Southern Pacific Daylight is another favorite of mine, you can't beat the strangness of the M1.

[@gregmilliken9659]

Your explanation for each was just right, not too technical, but easy to understand.

[@grophers1189]

My favorite extinct steam locomotive is the Wabash P1 class. They were rebuilt mikados and just beautiful transformation into Hudson’s

[@thomas1140]

Excellent video, Most entertaining and educational - Yes sad that so many in the US were not preserved but it's a mega expensive venture just to preserve, then maintain even the smallest locomotive let alone some of these giants of the rails. I often complain that some of my favourite British steam locomotive weren't rescued and preserved but we have got a great number of survivors operating and earning their keep on lots of heritage railways together with some working the main network rail routes across the UK, not forgetting also the many narrow gauge steam locos in service.

[@gwenmolfetas8908]

Love the music in the beginning!! Lol Great Trains. & video!! Thanks

[@robertkline2744]

Great video! Thank you for taking the time to put together such a good educational vid!

[@Gearz-365]

I find it unique that the T1 duplex is the only locomotive on this list that is being rebuilt. There's one I saw for the 4-4-0 Claud Hamilton locomotives of Great Britain. All of the Clauds were scrapped when the diesels took over, but I heard that a group will do another rebuild project, just like what they did for that one Pacific class locomotive. They intend on building a brand new Claud Hamilton locomotive. I don't remember what they are numbering it, but they are gonna name it "Phoenix"

[@howardthickman5271]

Your #1 PRR 6-8-6 was done by Lionel in the early 1950 & I have one that I use on my great grandson's train setup. Nice to know it was preserved by Lionel.

[@Highballer-500X]

RIP Pennsylvania Railroad S1, N&W Y6B, Erie & Virgin Triplexes,Southern Pacific AC-9s, Prr & c&o 2-10-4s, New Haven I5s 4-6-4,Milwaukee Road F7 and Class A, Florida East Coast Mountain Types, Western Maryland 4-8-4s,

[@greghvazda7048]

an excellent documentary! I'm a PRR lover (K4 and L1), but I always love to see RR history!

[@DennisMurphey]

With 3D printing we could make any of these engines if we wanted to. Like the streamliners for sure.

[@spitfiremanfred2685]

Great Video! One locomotive (in my opinion) that I think should have been added to the list is the Union Pacific's 9000 class 4-12-2's. Although number 9000 is still in existence, 88 of these beautiful locomotives were made and the first one made was the only one that managed escape the scrape yard, traveling on its own power to the RailGiants museum in Pomona, California in 1956...

[@steam4eva]

+SpitfireManfred A shame none of the last built ones were not saved as they had sixty foot long one piece cast steel frames that included the three cylinders! They were my favourite US steam locos.

[@QTelectric2012]

You really jumped the gun with this video, dude. This is pretty amazing, the top 15 American steam loco classes that were forgotten, cut up by mistake or were in cases of "close but no cigar" is something I was not expecting from you. 1,000,000,000/10 for something completely different in steam engine tributes which are the forgotten American railroad legends.

[@trainmaster844]

Quang Tran Thank you for your support!

[@masoudahmed9960]

Quang Tran

[@masoudahmed9960]

Good morning Trang

[@lennyhendricks4628]

Thank you for including the RDG G class 4-6-2's and the CNJ Pacifics and camelback 4-6-0's.

[@ca294]

The S1 from Pennsylvania Railroad was a huge monster made of metal

[@trainlover658]

The funny thing is, that the Swedish were able to develop the steam turbine locomotive to the point where it actually worked well. Heck, so well in fact that 2 have been preserved! There's footage of one of them working with a timber train, so we'd have an idea on what steam turbine locomotives would've sounded like had they been running.

[@GiordanDiodato]

three of them are actually preserved.

[@JerryDoesThings_1604]

A part 2 please? i LOVE this video and it would make my day (and probably some others) if you were to make a part two. Basically what i am saying is “PLEASE MAKE A PART 2!!!!!!”

[@Jaymehkook]

YEAH

[@nssrrailfan6443]

DMIR!

[@nssrrailfan6443]

WE NEED ANOTHER VID!

[@georgeorwell4534]

I so enjoy this. I come watch often. So interesting and a really GREAT video!

[@_Synthesize_Me_]

This was such a great watch thank you!

[@tpobrienjr]

My Grandfather, L. T. Weeks, drove that train and others for NW until 1959. I have a photo of him posing the train at Crewe VA.

[@ToyotaCorolla-qs7ml]

Thats epic

[@coachhannah2403]

Thomas O'Brien - “That train” is kind of ambiguous when there are 15 units on the list...

[@DanzigFan-vq3zf]

I think he means 2174

[@amtrakisveryepic4169]

God. I wished they still kept the 4 6 4 Hiawathas. They were beautiful engines.

[@motormouth2472]

They should have kept at least one of every single scrapped steam locomotive classes, including ones that werent on this list.

[@harrisonofcolorado8886]

I wish the Union Pacific MT-2 and Southern Pacific MT-4 locomotives were preserved. Man, most of the mountain class locomotives in the U.S. and Canada were so unlucky.

[@thomasthetankengine1767]

@Squidward Tentacles Huh? Squidward? How did you get here?

[@anasiacameronelijahedcpndc4324]

They could've preserved 2 Hiawathas, and 2 Class As. And one of them would've been running today. And America Should've Preserved a lot of streamliners so it would've had the most sueving streamliners.

[@thereallincolntakanashi]

I mean we could have also had the T1 but whatever works for everyone. (i know the T1 Trust is making a complete rebuild of one)

[@leekit6099]

Awesome view! America's past and Wyoming environment. Thanks for sharing💕👏🤗

[@NaYawkr]

The New York Central " NIAGARA's" were the most powerful of their kind, and they had the largest boilers and drive wheels, so I would like to see a new Niagara more than any of the others. Fortunately the Model Trains do have excellent model versions of the Niagara's to fire the Nostalgia and imaginations of generations yet to come. The water pans and scoops that made water stops unnecessary for The Niagara's would have been awesome to witness at full throttle on The New York Central.

[@longwingdetrain3183]

…

[@NW2174Fan]

There is a 1/5 Scale replica of a Niagara somewhere in Britain (I can try to find a video of it operating)

[@jtveg]

I never knew about steam turbine train engines. Thanks so much for sharing. 😉👌

[@robertmiller5217]

Yeah, I love these SP AC-9 Yellowstones. But that skyline casing wasn't there for just for steam-lining, albeit it adds immensely to the overall look of nice lines, but rather it was a great smoke deflector, especially when drifting.

[@DavidBeckerSr]

Chris, EXCELLENT PRODUCTION! Totally enjoyed it with my morning Java. Earned a subscribe❤

[@robertgift]

Well done, informative video. Thank you. Triplex seems like best idea because almost all weight was on drive wheels. My Great Uncle complained about his huge 4-8-4 freight locomotive wheelslipping.

[@tomschiff230]

That was terrific....I didn't realize the Hudson Engines were extinct

[@Albert_Lecter03]

R.I.P these trains they will be remembered as classics and legends throughout train history. And may the tracks be their grave till the end.

[@Ca_Railfan]

I have never stopped watching this video I have been watching it for over 7 years

[@gregmilliken9659]

Great video, thank you for your work!

[@larryvaughn2567]

I remember as a small child seeing the big steamers moving in and out of the round house on Navigation Street in Houston Texas.

[@DOLRED]

Well done!!! Proved how little I knew of the steam era because I was born too late!!

[@awizardalso]

I'm a fan of steam locomotives. When I was 3 years old in 1957, I remember we took a train headed by a steam locomotive from NYC (I was born in upper Manhattan on May 3rd, 1954) to Cleveland Ohio where my dad's parents lived on W 114th St a few houses north of the Nickel Plate railroad. I remember waiting at the crossing while a steam loco passed pulling a freight train.

[@bernardcarman]

Excellent presentation. Very informative. Thank you!

[@f1matt]

Some really beautiful locomotives on his list

[@davidallen7943]

Three cheers for this great series!!! I can only hope for more in my nineties..... (two years to go😼)

[@mathewveljkovic6861]

BEST STEAM DOCUMENTARY EVER!! love this!!

[@SuperiorWhiteKing]

Thank you for this, I literally cried.

[@gregsmith1719]

Good history lesson! I'll look forward to your next one.

[@billwilliams7566]

Regarding the Y6 A and the Y6 B, I think you mean 166,-000 pounds of tractive Effort or draw-bar pull, not horsepower.

[@gokceralp]

I wrote the same thing right now. It's not HP. The most powerfull steam loco was rated at 8000 HP.

[@TempoDrift1480]

Yeah I was gonna say, that is unbelievable.

[@union_4014]

@Gökçer'in Sesi not 8000, but it was 7468

[@NW-gi1cp]

They were powerful

[@johnmichaels2495]

Was looking for this- there is quite a big difference. In this case, tractive effort is what really counts, but a lot of people don't understand that force and power are completely different things.

[@RaisedLetter]

Seeing all the videos that other channels produce, it makes me appreciate these videos more. Reminds me of a simpler time when everyone WASN'T just making videos about historic steam locomotive rankings.

[@trainmaster844]

I’m sad to say that I might’ve been the catalyst of that trend 😔 But I’m hoping to make some more videos similar to this style sometime soon.

[@RaisedLetter]

@@trainmaster844 yeah but this was just trying your best. Everyone else is trying too much. Maybe attempting to be more funny and opinionated over factual.

[@trainmaster844]

@@RaisedLetter I suppose that's one way of looking at it. I'm glad that you still enjoy it, despite its inconsistencies and slight datedness.

[@RaisedLetter]

​​@@trainmaster844 I mean looking at it in a professional eye (in terms of how it was made) doesn't seem fair. This was the top software of the time. Obviously despite those few instances, the nostalgia continues to rise.

[@CarmenFiala]

the fact that tests of the T1 before production showed that they functioned fantastically, with the C&O reporting NO issues whatsoever even starting on grades, just further gives credence to the thoery that the T1's wheelslip issues were mostly from heavy-handed PRR engineers just not used to locomotives of that size. articles were published in i think 2008 or sometime in the late 2000s that seem to back this claim up a bit. imagine being the builders of those locos and knowing you made them perfectly and then just hearing people can't operate them right.

[@followthefleet1]

Very informative; very well done! Congratulations.

[@ThomasZoey3000]

That's quite an interesting video, it's sad alot of those steam engines are no more, but I was surprised to hear that a new PRR T1 is going to be built. I wish the steam trust good luck with their work, cause truth be told, I've always wanted to see one with my own two eyes.

[@suprememeowmix9613]

It's going nowhere, weeb.

[@chrisbruce5711]

Brock Regnier Have you look at the website the T1 trust has they have 2 wheels casted and the fronts of it built. It is going some were

[@packr72]

Suprememeowmix o They already cast several drivers, the prowl, and built the cab. Plus they acquired the last Pennsy long distance tender. This is looking more likely that it will get built.

[@froztytrainfilms9148]

Suprememeowmix Co. you just don’t believe don’t you

[@682charlie]

Watching this video almost brings a tear to your eye. Thank God for the UP.

[@eragonunderhill5545]

Im impressed by how well these engines are documented.

[@maxnikolenko2302]

Great presentation brother. In Russia they have a whole graveyard of steam engines. I still remember the one steam train in Moldova (previously Moldavia in former USSR) as a museum piece sitting in front of the train station in city called Benderi. Still there today just as I remembered it from 1989 when I was 8 years old

[@thomasdupee1440]

At 4:09 the term "horsepower" is used when it should be "pounds of tractive effort". No locomotive of any form of propulsion ever generated anything close to those horsepower ratings.

[@mkay1957]

Western Pacific had 10 Baldwin Chesapeake 2-8-8-2 locomotives running the Feather River route. They were cut up for scrap in the early 50s.

[@markknister6272]

Breaks my heart! Thank you.

[@justjestin9749]

The fact the triplexes could come to a hard stop on a grade and still continue after rebuilding steam, should speak to their pure pulling power.

[@realkirt]

Honestly that T1 group has the right idea What it comes down to is we need to Build "Reproduction" verisons of these extinct locos if not a working running version for excursion service then at least as Static display pieces for museums just to represent their classes place in history I know for a fact i would love to see the Hiawathas make a come back

[@wademonn7724]

Kirt Gartner A national centralize group to build multiple locomotives would be a start. An old steel mill with rolling and forging ability, a heavy duty bridge crane and a large assembly floor. Then just line the projects up and build !

[@tylerzorn6152]

my grandfather and my uncle worked at the juniata gap train yard and when I went to school I walk past the yard every day so beautiful and so sad to see it gone.GOD BLESS MODEL RAILROAD, h.o. SCALE MY FAVORITE !!!!! VERY INFORMATIVE !!!

[@KKEM641]

There was the 0-6-6-0 Mallets on the B&O and KCS which used as road locomotives, KCS also reportedly had the largest Shays at 150 tons.