NC&StL 576
Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway 576 is a 4-8-4 "Dixie" (Northern) type steam locomotive built by the American Locomotive Company (ALCO) in August 1942 for the NC&StL (Better known as the Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway) as a member of the J-3 class. Designed with some of the latest locomotive technological features of the time, the J3 class was used to handle heavy freight and express trains to aid the American war effort during World War II.[1]
| Nashville Chattanooga & St. Louis Railway 576 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 NCSt&L 576 on display in Centennial Park | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Faced with dwindling traffic and the onset of dieselization, all of the NC&StL J3's were withdrawn from service and scrapped by September 2, 1952 with the exception of the 576. In September 1953, the locomotive was donated to the City of Nashville, TN and placed on display in Centennial Park in Nashville as the sole surviving steam locomotive of the NC&StL Railway. Today, the locomotive is undergoing restoration to operating condition for use in excursion service.
Service history
Referred to as "Dixies" by their crews as opposed to "Northerns", the "up to date" J3 class locomotives were utilized heavily in handling of critical war-time material, armament and troop train movements during the rabid buildup and mobilization of the American war effort during World War II. All 10 of the J3 class engines were built with nose cones and skirting to give a semi streamlined appearance, similar to engines such as the N&W J class and the Canadian Pacific Royal Hudsons. The skirting was a bright yellow, and the engines were quickly nicknamed by the crews as “yellow jackets”. The skirting and cones were later removed due to ease of maintenance, but were renicknamed “stripes” because of their small yellow stripe along the side of the engine. All 10 of the J3 class engines were out of service by 1953. [2]
Display
Locomotive 576 was chosen in 1953 for preservation and subsequently donated to the City of Nashville, Tennessee for display in Centennial Park. To keep the locomotive and tender safe from the elements, a shelter was constructed over the engine in 2004 after 50+ years of being without cover.
Restoration
A restoration to operational status as an excursion locomotive is underway by the Nashville Steam Preservation Society (N.S.P.S).[3] In October 2018, news was announced the N.S.P.S. had successfully raised the necessary $500,000 to relocate and transport the locomotive out of the park and into a nearby restoration facility. On January 13, 2019, the locomotive was moved out of Centennial Park and on to the Nashville and Western trackage, where it will be prepared to move from the line to CSX and eventually to the Nashville and Eastern Railroad where it will be restored to operation.[4][5] The engine made a final public appearance at Nashville's Union Station Hotel on March 9, 2019.