Southern Railway Ps-4 class
The Southern Railway Ps-4 was a class of "Pacific" type steam locomotives built for the Southern Railway, as well as its subsidiaries, the Alabama Great Southern and the Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific. They were designed to be the primary mainline locomotives pulling SOU's heavy passenger trains between Washington, D.C. and Atlanta, Georgia, including the CNO&TP trains between Cincinnati, Ohio and Jacksonville, Florida, as well as the AGS trains between Chattanooga, Tennessee and Meridian, Mississippi, via Birmingham, Alabama.
The first batch were built between 1923 and 1924 by American Locomotive Company's Schenectady Works in Schenectady, New York. These locomotives were originally painted black with gold linings and lettering until 1926, when they were all repainted in a brand-new Virginian green and gold paint scheme. This would include the next batch of Ps-4s, which were built at ALCO's Richmond Works in Richmond, Virginia, and signified as the First Ladies of the Pacifics around the SOU system. In 1928, the last batch of Ps-4s were built by Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They were all later repainted in a lighter Sylvan green paint in the early 1930s.
In the 1940s, the Ps-4s were relegated to haul local mainline passenger trains and mail trains as their duties were taken over by SOU's new Electro-Motive Diesel E6 diesel locomotives. Despite this, the Ps-4s were used in motive power pool service, where they were called in to pull the mainline passenger trains again whenever one of the diesel locomotives was unavailable. By 1949, their retirement began and all but one were scrapped in 1953.
No. 1401 was spared from scrap and was donated to Smithsonian Institution, where it was put on permanent display at the National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C., around late 1961 as the sole survivor of the Southern Railway Ps-4 class, which have been regarded by Smithsonian curator John H. White Jr. as being "among the most celebrated passenger locomotives operated in the United States...."
History
Development and origins
During the 1920s, the Southern Railway's roster consisted of smaller Ps-2 class 4-6-2 Pacifics that could not handle the longer and heavier mainline passenger trains between Washington, D.C., and Atlanta. Although there were Ts and Ts-1 class 4-8-2 locomotives valid enough to handle this work, they could not be relocated to some of SOU's routes over and over. The SOU decided to order the more powerful Ps-4 Heavy Pacific class with the first batches built in 1923 by American Locomotive Company's Schenectady Works in Schenectady, New York, with 12 of them, Nos. 1375-1386, delivered to SOU; and four of them, Nos. 6684-6687, for the SOU's Alabama Great Southern subsidiary.The Ps-4s were derived from the standard USRA Heavy Pacific design, but had notable differences based on the SOU's standards. They had a more spacious cab, smaller 73 in driving wheels, a slightly shorter boiler, an additional firebox combustion chamber, and a Worthington 3-B feedwater heater mounted on the running board of the fireman's side. These arrangements made the locomotives produce of tractive effort, allowing them to pull 14 passenger cars at on the Piedmont terrains between Washington, D.C., and Atlanta. Salisbury, North Carolina was also the place where each Ps-4 locomotives were swapped out every or, depending on the stops for refuel. They were originally painted black with gold leaf lining and lettering.
The Ps-4 locomotives were designed to pull SOU's most famous mainline passenger trains, including the Piedmont Limited, the Aiken-Augusta Special, the Peach Queen, and the Birmingham Special on flat terrains. They also pulled the Birmingham Special and Memphis Special passenger trains between Washington, D.C. and Monroe, Virginia. The SOU officials, impressed with the Ps-4s' excellent performance, ordered 15 more locomotives from ALCO in 1924, while the other five were assigned to the Cincinnati, New Orleans and Texas Pacific subsidiary. The first nine SOU locomotives were numbered 1366-1374, while the remaining six were numbered 1387-1392, filling in on either sides of the 1923 group. The CNO&TP Ps-4s were numbered 6471-6475 and were assigned to pull the Royal Palm, Ponce de Leon, Queen & Crescent Limited, and Florida Sunbeam trains, among others.
The first ladies of the pacifics
In 1925, SOU president Fairfax Harrison traveled to the United Kingdom, where he admired the country's London and North Eastern Railway's apple green passenger steam locomotives. Harrison's trip had inspired the appearance of the second order of Ps-4s built in the summer of 1926 by ALCO's Richmond Works by having them painted in Virginian green with gold leaf lining and lettering. This would include the original first batches. The second order consisted of twelve locomotives numbered 1393-1404 for SOU, seven numbered 6476-6482 for the CNO&TP, and four numbered 6688-6691 for the AGS.Aside from the paint scheme, which would soon be applied to all of Southern's other passenger locomotive classes, the second order had other notable differences. They featured an Elesco feedwater heater mounted on top of the smokebox between the stack and bell instead of under the running boards. In comparison with the two-axle bogie, standard USRA tender design used on the first order, the 1926 Ps-4s were equipped with a larger three-axle bogie tender with a water capacity of designed for long-distance passenger runs and eliminating multiple water stops, excluding Monroe, Virginia and Greenville, South Carolina. The larger tenders' trucks were manufactured from General Steel Castings. The 1926 locomotives were affectionally nicknamed the Harrison Engines. They were also the last passenger steam locomotives that ALCO have built at their Richmond Works before its closure in 1927.
The first four Ps-4s, Nos. 1393-1396, were lettered for the new Washington, D.C.-Atlanta Crescent Limited passenger train on both sides of their tenders with the word "SOUTHERN" appeared on sides of the raised tender coal bunkers. The letter "C" was shaped to look like a Crescent moon. Nos. 1393-1396 also sported the Crescent moon decals on their cylinders and the front cab panels beside the engineer and fireman's windows. Nos. 1393 and 1394 were based in Atlanta, where they operated between there and Salisbury, pulling the Crescent Limited. Nos. 1395 and 1396 were situated at Salisbury's neighboring Spencer, North Carolina to handle the Crescent Limited's run between Salisbury and Washington, D.C. The other Ps-4s, Nos. 1397-1404, were assigned to regular pool passenger service, pulling other Washington D.C.-Atlanta passenger trains and even the Crescent Limited. Nos. 1397-1400, and 1404 were assigned to run between Salisbury and Washington, D.C., while Nos. 1401-1403 do their passenger runs between Atlanta and Salisbury. Nos. 1393, 1394, 1401, 1402, and 1403 were maintained at SOU's South Shops in Atlanta, while Nos. 1395-1400 and No. 1404 were maintained at SOU's Spencer Shops in Spencer. AGS Nos. 6688-6690 were lettered for the Queen & Crescent Limited.
The final Ps-4s were built in April 1928 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works, consisting of only five locomotives for SOU, Nos. 1405-1409. These locomotives were equipped with smaller tenders unlike the second order, but still larger than those of the first order, featuring two-axle bogies and a capacity of 12,000-gallon of water. They were also built with Walschaerts valve gear as opposed to the previous orders which were equipped with Baker valve gear. The final locomotive of the series, No. 1409, featured an extended smokebox and a Coffin feedwater heater. All of the Baldwin Ps-4s were based in Atlanta, where they ran from there to Macon, Georgia and Chattanooga, Tennessee with their maintenance site at the Pegram Shops. They were also the last passenger steam locomotives that SOU have ordered.
The SOU had an optional equipment policy, where they allowed their engineers, firemen, and workshop employees to have the freedom to decorate the Ps-4s with two brass candlesticks flanked on their headlight, a brass spread eagle ornament mounted in front of their smokebox door above the headlight, and Masonic emblems. In the early 1930s, the Virginian green paint scheme on all of the Ps-4s and other passenger engines was replaced with a lighter shade of green also known as Sylvan green. Around 1934, the gold leaf paint for the lining and lettering was replaced with Dulux imitation gold paint since former was not visible in black and white photographs, especially at certain angles. Because of the Ps-4s' green and gold paint scheme, they were signified as the First Ladies of the Pacifics by Trains Magazine writer H.S. Bryant Jr.
Whistle">steam whistle">Whistles
The Ps-4s were initially equipped with a standard Crosby 6 inch 3-chime whistle. Some of them were equipped with different types of whistles per the engineers' choices such as a Finley Shops three-chambered "town whistle" mounted right behind AGS No. 6691's stack. Nos. 1369 and 1407 were equipped with a single-tone air horn, mounted on next to their smokebox. Between 1938 and 1941, the Ps-4s were re-equipped with a deeper sounding long-bell 3-chime "steamboat" whistle, manufactured from SOU's Lenoir Car Works in Lenoir City, Tennessee.Locomotives roster
Alabama Great Southern
The AGS Ps-4s pulled the Queen & Crescent Limited on the Queen and Crescent Route between Chattanooga, Tennessee and Meridian, Mississippi. These locomotives were maintained at AGS' Finley Shops in Birmingham, Alabama. In 1949, Nos. 6689-6691 were deemed surplus and transferred over to SOU's Charlotte Division, where they were maintained at the Spencer Shops.| Road number | Feedwater heater type | Built date | Builder | Serial number | Disposal date | Notes |
| 6684 | Worthington | 1923 | ALCO Schenectady Works | 64864 | December 1949 | Scrapped at SOU's Hayne Shops in Spartanburg, South Carolina. |
| 6685 | Worthington | 1923 | ALCO Schenectady Works | 64865 | December 1949 | Scrapped at SOU's Hayne Shops in Spartanburg, South Carolina. |
| 6686 | Worthington | 1923 | ALCO Schenectady Works | 64866 | December 1949 | |
| 6687 | Worthington | 1923 | ALCO Schenectady Works | 64867 | July 29, 1953 | Sold for scrap to the Baltimore Steel Company in Baltimore, Maryland. |
| 6688 | Elsco | 1926 | ALCO Richmond Works | 66899 | December 1950 | |
| 6689 | Elsco | 1926 | ALCO Richmond Works | 66900 | November 1952 | |
| 6690 | Elsco | 1926 | ALCO Richmond Works | 66901 | August 1953 | During 1949, this locomotive was given another tender, which came from No. 1399 that was recently scrapped. No. 6690 was sold for scrap to the Baltimore Steel Company in Baltimore, Maryland. |
| 6691 | Elsco | 1926 | ALCO Richmond Works | 66902 | August 1953 | Sold for scrap to the Baltimore Steel Company in Baltimore, Maryland. |
Modernizing and retirement
In the mid-late 1930s, the 1923-1926 Ps-4s were re-equipped with Walschaerts valve gear because the SOU mechanical officers disliked the Baker type tended to reverse itself at high-speed, damaging the locomotives' running gear and the rails. Additionally, their original long, sharply pointed pilots were replaced with shorter "boiler tube" style pilots to accommodate themselves to couple front to front. Around the late 1930s, most of the Ps-4s had their sand pipes concealed into the boiler cladding. In 1941, SOU began to modernize their premier passenger trains with their new EMD E6 diesel locomotives to pull. The Ps-4s were relegated to haul the all-stops Washington, D.C. to Atlanta local passenger and mail train Nos. 135 and 136, along with the Danville, Virginia to Greenville, South Carolina local passenger train Nos. 11 and 12. Additionally, the Ps-4s were in motive power pool service, where they were called in to pull premier mainline passenger trains again to protect the passenger schedules whenever one of the diesel locomotives was unavailable to operate.Due to the outbreak of World War II and wartime restrictions placed on all of the railroads, SOU was unable to purchase more diesel locomotives, and opted to modify their steam locomotives, including the Ps-4s. As such, all of the Ps-4s were re-equipped with multiple-bearing crossheads to replace their original alligator crossheads. Some of the Ps-4s also have their tender coal bunkers expanded to hold up more coal. Nos. 1366-1409 were all rebuilt with the raised front running board valve ladders to allow more room around their cylinders and running gear for the crew to maintain the mechanical lubricating system. No. 1380 was given a bullet-nose streamlining design by Otto Kuhler for use on SOU's new Tennessean service, which operated between Washington, D.C., and Monroe, Virginia, connecting in the latter to the Norfolk and Western Railway, who had assigned its streamlined J class engines to its connecting lines. After the war ended, SOU resumed dieselization and by late 1949, the Ps-4s were beginning to retire from revenue service. In May 1952, the last Ps-4s to be retired from revenue service were Nos. 6472 and 6691 running on the Danville Division.