| El Paso & Southwestern Railroad No. 1 | |
|---|---|
| Power type | Steam |
| Builder | Breese, Kneeland, and Company |
| Serial number | 73 |
| Build date | 1857 |
| Configuration | 4-4-0 |
| Gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
| Driver diameter | 64 in (1.626 m) |
| Weight on drivers | 67,170 lb (30.47 tonnes) |
| Locomotive weight | 457,500 lb (207.5 tonnes) |
| Fuel type | Coal |
| Boiler pressure | 110 psi (0.76 MPa) |
| Cylinders | Two, outside |
| Cylinder size | 15 × 22 in (381 × 559 mm) |
| Valve gear | Stephenson |
| Tractive effort | 7,260 lbf (32.3 kN) |
| Career | Milwaukee & Mississippi Railroad, Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad, El Paso and Southwestern Railroad |
| Number | 40(M&M), 111(CM&StP), 1(EP&SW) |
| Retired | 1903 |
| Restored | 2003 |
| Current owner | Railroad and Transportation Museum of El Paso |
| Disposition | static display |
El Paso & Southwestern Railroad No. 1 is a 4-4-0 type steam locomotive, preserved in El Paso, Texas. The engine was built in 1857 by Breese, Kneeland, and Company of Jersey City, New Jersey, and is the only locomotive built by that firm still in existence.
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It was a wood burner built for the Milwaukee & Mississippi Railroad Company which later became the Milwaukee & Prairie du Chien Railway Company, and eventually, the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad. In 1889, it had been acquired by the Arizona and Southeastern Railroad Company, which later became the El Paso and Southwestern Railroad and was renamed Locomotive No 1. It is likely to have been converted to coal burning during this time, thus receiving its current appearance with a straight stack and extended smokebox. EP&SW No.1 was used to move mine and mill supplies and products when it arrived here in 1902. As El Paso became one of the great rail hubs of the west, timber was brought from Cloudcroft and coal from Dawson, New Mexico.
In 1903, it was retired, and around 1909, Locomotive No. 1 was overhauled, painted, and put on display in Downtown El Paso at the intersection of Stanton and Franklin streets. In 1939, the engine was used in the film Let Freedom Ring, starring Nelson Eddy and Virginia Bruce.
In 1960, Southern Pacific Railroad donated it to the University of Texas at El Paso who displayed it near the Centennial Museum. The bell clapper was removed because students would ring it to disturb the slumber of residents in nearby dorms. In 1968, El Paso Historical Society and the Junior Chamber of Commerce raised money to build a shelter to protect this important national treasure from the elements.
In October 1999, the engine was officially recognized as a National Trust for Historic Preservation Save America’s Treasures project. In 2001 more than 1.1 million dollars of Texas State Transportation Commission and local matching funds were allocated for the removal and restoration of the locomotive. The bell clapper was restored to the Museum's collection on June 20, 2002. In May 2007, H.R. 2638 celebrated the sesquicentennial of this national treasure.