PRR #460: "The Lindbergh Engine." If you look down through history at railroad locomotives that have become famous, most gained their fame not from an entire working life, but from one day, one hour or one run. Such was the case with this high-stepping beauty. This is Pennsylvania Railroad E6 Atlantic #460, built in 1914 at the PRR's Altoona Shops. With 80" drivers, 31,275 lbs of tractive effort and capable of speeds over 100 mph, this engine was built to haul fast passenger trains on what is now the Northeast Corridor, between Washington, DC and New York....and that is indeed how she spent most of her working life. She gained her fame with a single, 2 hr. and 56 min. run on June 11, 1927, when she raced and beat several teams of film makers, the rest of which chartered airplanes.
Just a couple of weeks earlier, an American Air Mail Pilot named Charles Lindbergh had stunned the world, becoming the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, in just 33 1/2 hrs. Needless to say, when Lindbergh returned to the US (by boat!), he was hailed as an American Hero. A reception was held in Washington, DC, at which President Calvin Coolidge promoted him to Colonel, and awarded him the Distinguished Flying Cross. This was a major event, covered by all of the media of the day. Unfortunately, back in 1927, there was no television (no!!!) and kids, there weren't any cell phones either (OMG!!). Americans got to SEE their news in movie theaters in the form of newsreels, and just like today, the media prided themselves on being FIRST to break a story. Well, once the Lindbergh reception was over, there was a race royale to get the newsreel footage to the theaters in New York. Most of the media chartered airplanes, but the International Newsreel Corporation placed their bet on the Pennsylvania Railroad. The PRR GM had personally selected this locomotive and a hand-picked crew to do the job. The film was driven to Washington's Union Station, and placed aboard a short train, consisting of just the locomotive, a baggage express car and a single coach. The train left Washington at 1:14 PM and arrived in New York just 2 hrs and 56 minutes later. No stops were planned and the locomotive was to take water from track pans on the fly, although a malfunction of that system did result in an unscheduled, 3-minute water stop. The final leg of the journey through the tunnels in New York was hauled by an electric locomotive. Average speed on the 225 mile trip was 82.7 mph, and at one point the speed topped out at 115 mph. During the journey, the train crew actually saw one of the aircraft fly overhead, wagging its wings and taunting the crew. The first of the aircraft made it to New York before the train BUT, the film on board still needed to be processed. The film on the train was ready to be driven direct to the theaters, because the PRR had placed a mobile film processing lab in the baggage car, so all of the processing and editing was done while en route. The film carried by the train was shown over an hour before the films that went by air.
Once the race was over, the 460 went back to her regular job, her 3 hours of fame over and done. She served on the corridor until 1937, and then was used on other routes by the PRR and under lease to other railroads until her final retirement in 1955. Because of her moment of fame, she was added to the PRRs collection of historic locomotives and stored at Northumberland, PA until 1969, when she was moved to the newly organized Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania. For many years, she was displayed in rather rough shape, but in 2010, the museum began a 6-year, cosmetic restoration effort, which resulted in the beautiful piece you see here. She went on display indoors in 2016 and you can go see her today. When the planned roundhouse is built in the next few years, expect this locomotive to be part of the featured display.
