The 1981 Railfan Weekend ay Cass Scenic Railroad featured a Friday evening trip on the former C&O along the Greenbrier River north of Cass. Saturday’s events were a doubleheaded trip to Bald Knob (there’s not much of a view in the fog) and a night photo session. The feature event was the inaugural excursion with newly-acquired Western Maryland Shay 6, a round trip to Durbin along the Greenbrier River. Unlike most Shays, which were used in lumbering operations, WM 6 was a coal hauler. Seen here being assembled at Cass, the photo freight assembled featured several Western Maryland hoppers to replicate regular service. Only the WM “speed lettering” , introduced three years after the big Shay’s service life ended, gives away that this is a recreation of an earlier era.
