The mechanical overhaul of Nickel Plate Road diesel locomotive no. 358 has entered a dramatic new phase as Progress Rail has transformed it to its as-built 1957 appearance. After six years of work, the volunteers and donors of the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society will soon return this 50’s-era icon to the rails again.
Donated by Norfolk Southern to the Fort Wayne Railroad in 2010, the 358 has undergone an extensive restoration. It will soon become an operating rail attraction, complementing the non-profit’s preservation efforts and expanding tourism events in the Northeast Indiana region. Donations to help complete the restoration can be made at fortwaynerailroad.org/donate.
Progress Rail continues the tradition of EMD® locomotive manufacturing and maintains an assembly plant in central Indiana, where company employees consulted the original diagrams and restored the locomotive to its original Nickel Plate Road livery.
No. 358 was one of twenty diesel locomotives built to replace the Nickel Plate Road’s steam engine fleet, which included Nickel Plate Road Berkshire-type steam locomotive no. 765, which the Fort Wayne Railroad has restored, owned, and operated since the 1970s. Designated as “Special Duty” locomotives, the SD9-type locomotive helped end the era of steam power thanks to their reduced maintenance costs. The 358 went on to serve Norfolk & Western and Norfolk Southern for decades before it was retired. The 358 will be the only operational Nickel Plate SD9 to look as it did when new and the only one to operate in rail tourism service.
More than 12,000 volunteer hours went into the 358’s restoration. The work was also supported by over $100,000 in financial and in-kind contributions. In addition to Progress Rail and its employees, supporters have included Steel Dynamics, Wheeling & Lake Erie Railway, Nickel Plate Railroad Historical & Technical Society, Mad River & NKP Railroad Museum, Illinois Railway Museum, Crown Battery, Horizon Rail, and numerous private individuals with locomotive expertise. Upon its departure from Progress Rail, the 358 will be shipped to the Indiana Northeastern Railroad Company’s locomotive shop in Hudson, Indiana, where final restoration work will be completed.
-via Press Release