Trains Magazine goes behind the scenes with Nashville Steam and its President Shane Meador and Communications Manager Joey Bryan for an update on the restoration on 576, background on how the locomotive was selected for rebuilding, and more! Learn more in this exclusive interview and send your tax-deductible donation to help us meet our matching grant goal for the end of 2021! Donate here: https://www.nashvillesteam.org/donate/
Behind-the-scenes with Nashville Steam
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We join our friends across Tennessee, the South and the world as we mourn the loss of one our region’s most influential people, Miss Dolly Parton. Her achievements both professionally and in the community are numerous, but we are especially thankful for her commitment to bring the joy of steam to new generations in the mountains of East Tennessee. Our hearts are with the Parton family and all of those whose lives were made better by the actions of this incredible individual. We will always love you, Dolly. 🦋“As we roll along the mainline, there'll be storms and there'll be night,There'll be sidetracks unexpected, on the left and on the right,But with the straight always before us, and our hearts upon the prize,There'll be no disembarkation until we reach paradise.”
Thump, thump. Thump, thump. We were thrilled to hear that steady pulse after 74 years of silence!In addition to firing up No. 576 last month, our crew started testing the various appliances that have been fully serviced and reinstalled on the locomotive. The original cross compound air compressor (the NC&StL J-3 class only had one) was completely rebuilt thanks to a grant from the Emery Rail Heritage Trust with work completed by FMW Solutions. The air compressor creates the air needed to operate the train’s braking system as well as the air powered appliances on the engine, like the power reverser. The air pump is one of the most notable sounds on a steam locomotive. Many have likened it to a heart beat, it’s easy to hear why!🫀🚂
We're still shaking the cinders out of our hair and dreaming of No. 576's first successful fire up in more than 74 years! To put that number into perspective, that is the longest time period between retirement and revival of any American mainline steam locomotive. While we are extremely proud of this major accomplishment, there is still much more work to be done. Help us finish the job by making a contribution at 👉www.nashvillesteam.org/donate. Your help will get No. 576 to the long anticipated encore performance that much sooner!
