EMC E2
| EMC E2 | |
|---|---|
 Three locomotives-two jointly owned by the UP and the C&NW, with one owned by UP, C&NW and Southern Pacific. | |
| Specifications | |
| Power type | Diesel-electric |
| Builder | Electro-Motive Corporation (EMC) |
| Build date | 1937 |
| Total produced | 2 ABB sets |
| AAR wheel arr. | A1A-A1A |
| Gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
| Prime mover | Winton 201-A, 2 off |
| Power output | 1,800 hp (1,300 kW) |
| Career | |
| Railroad(s) | UP/C&NW/SP |
| Disposition | All scrapped |
The EMC E2 was an American passenger-train diesel locomotive which as a single unit developed 1,800 horsepower (1,300 kW). Typically operated as a unit set (A - B - B), the three unit lashup developed 5400 horsepower. The units were of the A1A-A1A wheel arrangement, and manufactured by Electro-Motive Corporation of La Grange, Illinois.
Two sets of three were produced in 1937 for named passenger trains; the first set (SF-1, SF-2, and SF-3) for the City of San Francisco, jointly owned and operated by the Union Pacific Railroad, the Chicago and North Western Railway, and the Southern Pacific Railroad, while the second set (LA-1, LA-2, and LA-3) was for the City of Los Angeles, jointly owned and operated by the UP and CNW only. Both sets were "ABB" sets; the first locomotive unit was a cab, or "A" unit, while the other two were cabless booster, or "B" units. The locomotives were diesel-electrics with two 900 hp Winton 201-A engines each, with each engine driving its own generator to power the traction motors. In addition the locomotives contained steam generators for passenger car heating. An independent auxiliary diesel powered electric generator was housed in the first car; a combination power/baggage/post office or crew dormitory car that provided electric power for train-line "hotel" power for their named train trainset(s). The E2 was the third model in a long line of passenger diesels of similar design known as EMD E-units.
The E2, along with the more-or-less simultaneous EA/EB units for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and the E1 units for the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, represented an important step in the evolution of the passenger diesel locomotive. While the EA, E1 and E2 were each built for a specific railroad and train, they were largely identical mechanically and were a step further away from the concept of custom-built motive power, integrated into a particular streamliner; and towards mass-produced standardized locomotives. This transition was achieved with the E3, E4, E5, and E6, EMC's next models.
Profile
The E2's profile was more aggressive than the sloping snouts of previous EMC passenger power, so they gained a "bulldog nose" nickname. Subsequent blunt-snouted passenger units are sometimes also called this, but the E2's nose is by far the most bulbous. Seven porthole windows in the sides are also a unique feature of the E2 locomotives; others had four or less. One of the nicknames that these locomotives acquired, because of these portholes, was "Queen Mary," after the British Cunard liner that was put in service about the same time. The Union Pacific Railroad also referred to the schedule of the "City of San Francisco," a passenger train hauled by these locomotives as sailings. The units were painted to match the trains in Union Pacific's Armour Yellow with Leaf Brown roofs and undersides, the same colors as UP's previous streamliners. There was extensive stainless steel on the noses, upon which were displayed the owning railroads' heralds in color.
Replacement
The E2 locomotives were replaced by new E6 locomotives in 1940; the joint ownership was terminated at that point. All four "B" units (SF-2, SF-3, LA-2, LA-3) went to the Union Pacific; they were used until 1953, when they were "rebuilt" into E8 locomotives. These rebuilds utilised little of the previous locomotives and were effectively trade-ins. The driving "A" unit of the SF set, SF-1, (the "Queen Mary") went to the Southern Pacific; it was likewise "rebuilt" into EMD E7 #6017. The "A" unit of the LA set, LA-1, went to the Chicago and North Western (#5003A) and was scrapped in 1953 after it was destroyed in a head-on collision near Rhinelander, Wisconsin.
No E2 survives today. However the pair of Winton Model 201A V12 diesel engines from SF-1 (the lead unit of the City of San Francisco set, nicknamed "Queen Mary") were rescued from scrap and eventually became part of the collection of artifacts at the California State Railroad Museum at Sacramento. One of the engines has now (September 2009) been transferred to the Illinois Railway Museum at Union, Illinois.
See also
References
- Lamb, J. Parker (2007). Evolution of the American Diesel Locomotive. Railroads Past and Present. Bloomington, IN, USA: Indiana University Press. ISBN 9780253348630.
- Marre, Louis A. (1995). Diesel Locomotives: The First 50 Years: A Guide to Diesels Built Before 1972. Railroad Reference Series (Book 10). Waukesha, WI, USA: Kalmbach Publishing. ISBN 0890242585.
- Pinkepank, Jerry A. (1973). The Second Diesel Spotter’s Guide. Milwaukee, WI: Kalmbach Publishing Company. pp. EMD–118 to EMD–120. ISBN 0-89024-026-4.
- Reich, Sy (1973). Diesel Locomotive Rosters – The Railroad Magazine Series, pp. 113, 114. Wayner Publications. No Library of Congress or ISBN.
- Schafer, Mike (1998). Vintage Diesel Locomotives. Enthusiast Color Series. Osceola, WI, USA: MBI Publishing. ISBN 0760305072.
- Solomon, Brian (2000). The American Diesel Locomotive. Osceola, WI, USA: MBI Publishing. pp. 53–56, 63, 65, 67, 68, 70. ISBN 0760306664.
- Solomon, Brian (2006). EMD Locomotives. St. Paul, MN, USA: Voyageur Press. ISBN 9780760323960.
- Solomon, Brian (2010). Vintage Diesel Power. Minneapolis, MN, USA: MBI Publishing. ISBN 9780760337950.
- Solomon, Brian (2011). Electro-Motive E-Units and F-Units: The Illustrated History of North America's Favorite Locomotives. Minneapolis, MN, USA: Voyageur Press. ISBN 9780760340073.
- Solomon, Brian (2012). North American Locomotives: A Railroad-by-Railroad Photohistory. Minneapolis, MN, USA: Voyageur Press. ISBN 9780760343708.
- Strack, Don. Union Pacific Diesel Painting Guide. Retrieved from the Union Pacific Historical Society's site at http://www.uphs.org/Dieselpaint.htm on December 19, 2004.
- Wilson, Jeff (2002). E Units: Electro-Motive's Classic Streamliners. Classic Trains / Golden Years of Railroading series. Waukesha, WI, USA: Kalmbach Publishing. ISBN 0890246068.
External links
Media related to EMC E2 locomotives at Wikimedia Commons
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