Canadian Pacific No. 1278 is a G5d class 4-6-2 "Pacific" type steam locomotive. It was built by the Canadian Locomotive Company in April 1948 for the Canadian Pacific Railway.
1278 worked most of its career hauling freight and passenger trains throughout the Canadian Pacific Railway until it was retired from revenue service in 1961.
In May 1965, 1278 was purchased by F. Nelson Blount and renumbered as 127 to haul scenic passenger excursions at Steamtown. The new number remained on the locomotive from 1966 until 1973 when its former number was restored.
The Gettysburg railroad 1278 explosion
1278 was leased to the Cadillac and Lake City Railroad in Michigan from 1970 to 1971. Then, after some repair work, the locomotive returned to Steamtown, USA in Bellows Falls, VT where it served on excursion runs.
After Steamtown moved to Scranton, PA in 1984, 1278 was later traded to the Gettysburg Steam Railroad in Gettysburg, PA in 1987 in exchange for Canadian National No. 3254. On June 16, 1995, during its service with the Gettysburg Railroad, 1278 suffered a crown sheet failure, resulting in a boiler backdraft explosion in the firebox that severely injured the engineer and both firemen, with the engineer suffering the worst, as he had third-degree burns over 65% of his body.
Following an investigation of the backdraft explosion, it was quickly determined that the crown sheet overheated and caved in due to a low water level. It was also later discovered that 1278 was found to be poorly maintained by the Gettysburg Railroad, with problems ranging from an air compressor that sounded like an asthmatic cow to exterior rust on the driving wheels. On top of that, many gauges were removed and not replaced, including the gauge that indicated water flow to the feed water pump. The engineer told the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) that he had removed the original feed pump gauge after it had failed and the replacement gauge also failed, so he didn't even bother replacing it with a third gauge. Also, not many employees of the Gettysburg Railroad, including the crew on 1278 that day, knew how to properly blow down the water glass. Only the owner of the Gettysburg Railroad at the time, the engineer's father, demonstrated the correct method of blowing the water glass down. Thankfully though, the design of 1278's boiler and crown sheet was a factor that helped prevent both serious injuries to the passengers and deaths of the crew, as the crown sheet only bulged downwards, but didn't result in the whole boiler exploding. Had the boiler itself did indeed explode instead of suffering a backdraft, the crew would have been instantly killed by the explosion and flying debris could have injured or killed passengers and bystanders.
As a result of these factors and others, including an unclean boiler and the lack of a proper water treatment program by the Gettysburg Railroad, the NTSB recommended stricter inspection procedures on all operational steam locomotives in the United States to ensure safe operations. 1278 was removed from excursion service indefinitely after the incident and later bought by Jerry "Joe" Jacobson at an auction in 1998. 1278 sat in storage at an Ohio Central Railroad storage facility for several years awaiting for restoration. As of today, 1278 currently resides inside the Age of Steam Roundhouse in Sugarcreek, OH safely out of the weather. It has had a partial cosmetic restoration in 2016 to improve its overall appearance as a static display, but it is very unlikely to ever run under steam again anytime soon.
Trivia[]
- Blount had planned to renumber all three of the 1200-series CPR locomotives in his collection from 1278, 1246, and 1293 to 124, 127, and 129 respectively, but 1278 was the only one of the three that underwent the change.
- The locomotive was relettered and renumbered as "Delaware & Hudson" 4-6-2 653 to celebrate its 150th birthday in 1973, it also doubleheaded with Reading No. 2102 while masqueraded as Delaware and Hudson 4-8-4 302.
- In the 1960s, the locomotive operated on an excursion on several railroads in the North East for the High Iron Company.
- This locomotive is F. Nelson Blount's favorite steam locomotive.
- In 1968, it doubleheaded with former Great Western Railroad No. 90 to help out with Ross Rowland's excursions along the steep grades.
- After the locomotive's accident in 1995, The National Transportation Safety Board conducted an investigation into the accident, and concluded that the engine crew had allowed the water level in the boiler to drop too low, causing the crown sheet to overheat and fail.
- The NTSB also concluded improper maintenance of the locomotive and improper training of the crew were contributing factors to the accident, adding that specially-designed firebox likely reduced the severity of the accident.
- The NTSB also found that the locomotive's water glass was severely blocked with scale, which caused it to give inaccurate readings and make it appear as though the water level in the boiler was sufficient for safe operation.
- The serial number of the locomotive is 2435.
- When she operates at Steamtown her tender was relettered twice.
- She is one of 10 surviving Canadian Pacific 4-6-2 "Pacific" types and one of 49 surviving CPR steam locomotives.