n scale
model railroads of michigan
m&ls 2-8-0 consolidation
Until the line was dieselized in 1952, the M&LS had a modest fleet of 2-6-0, 4-6-0, and 2-8-0 steam locomotives. Hugh Hornstein's book on the M&LS reveals that the 2-8-0 Consolidation type was one of the more common steam engines in use on the line. Because the M&LS was a subsidiary of the Ann Arbor and the Ann Arbor was under Wabash control during the time that the Ann Arbor controlled the M&LS, many of the locomotives that ended up on the M&LS had Ann Arbor and/or Wabash origins. Per the ownership records listed in Mr. Hornstein's book, one of the last steam engines to operate on the M&LS, prior to a roundhouse fire in 1952 that destroyed most of their steam motive power, was a 2-8-0 of Ann Arbor lineage (#140). It was further noted that this was a leased locomotive from the Wabash where it was adorned with Wabash #2375. The book claims that while the locomotive changed hands between the three different railroads, the #2375 wasn't ever changed.
The prototype photo shows an Ann Arbor 2-8-0 in the 2300 series number, which closely matches photos of Wabash 2-8-0 locomotives. As there are no known pictures of the M&LS #2375, I took faith in Mr. Hornstein's notes and in the pictures of the Ann Arbor and Wabash engines in the 2300 series. The model on the right is an N Scale Bachmann 2-8-0 with sound, stripped down and then re-lettered for the M&L with appropriate class designation beneath the road name on the side of the cab. M&LS #2375 operates on the lower deck of my layout during any session set in 1951 or earlier.
