Soo Line 353

Soo Line 353 is a restored 0-6-0 type steam locomotive of the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway (“Soo Line”) B-4 class. It is now owned & operated by WMSTR (Western Minnesota Steam Threshers Reunion) every Labor Day weekend.[1]

Soo Line 353
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
BuilderAmerican Locomotive Company
Serial number61760
Build dateAugust 1920
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 • Whyte0-6-0
 • UICC h2
Gauge4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Driver dia.51 in (1,295 mm)
Wheelbase11 ft 6 in (3.51 m)
Length58 ft 10 3⁄8 in (17.94 m) (engine and tender)
Width10 ft 0 in (3.05 m)
Height15 ft 3 1⁄2 in (4.66 m)
Loco weight151,000 lb (68.5 tonnes)
Total weight253,900 lb (115.2 tonnes)
Fuel typeCoal
Fuel capacity16,000 lb (7.3 tonnes)
Water cap5,000 US gal (19,000 l; 4,200 imp gal)
Firebox:
 • Firegrate area		30.97 sq ft (2.877 m2)
Boiler pressure180 lbf/in2 (1.24 MPa)
Heating surface1,644 sq ft (152.7 m2)
 • Flues1,382 sq ft (128.4 m2)
 • Firebox167 sq ft (15.5 m2)
Superheater:
​
 • Heating area295 sq ft (27.4 m2)
CylindersTwo, outside
Cylinder size20 in × 26 in (508 mm × 660 mm)
Valve gearWalschaerts
Performance figures
Tractive effort31,200 lbf (138.78 kN)
Factor of adh.4.8
Career
OperatorsMinneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway (“Soo Line”)
Koppers Coke and Gas Company
ClassB-4
Number in class10 of 11
Numbers353
LocaleWisconsin & Minnesota
DeliveredAugust 1920
RetiredMarch 1964
Current ownerWMSTR (Western Minnesota Steam Threshers Reunion)
DispositionOperational

History

The locomotive was built by the American Locomotive Company's Brooks Works in 1920 for the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway. It and its other class B-4 locomotives were the last, and largest design of purpose-built switch engines that the Soo Line owned, any heavier switching duties were performed by down-graded 2-8-0 freight engines. By 1954, No. 353 was off the active roster and put on the deadline. In 1955, it and fellow classmate #346 (built by ALCO-Schenectady in 1915) were sold to the Koppers Coke and Gas Company to switch coal hoppers around the coke plant. In March 1964, both the 346 and the 353 were retired from service when the plant bought a second hand Whitcomb 65-ton diesel (formerly owned by the Oliver Iron Mining Company).

In 1965, it was donated to the Minnesota Transportation Museum, where it was stored until 1972 when it was sold to the Western Minnesota Steam Thresher's Reunion, whose volunteers restored it to operation in 1978 for use during their threshing show at Rollag, Minnesota.

References
  1. "Soo Line 353 information". Trains magazine.
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