stripe decor
   

Lindy No. 203
1925 Baldwin Steam Engine  

 

The Three Rivers Rambler is pulled by a Baldwin Steam engine which now uses recycled motor oil instead of coal. She weighs over 66 tons and heats water to an amazing 380°F. Our head engineer, Jeff Parrott, maintains Lindy with the help of volunteers who all have a deep passion for steam engines.
Learn how to be an engineer for the day or take a ride in the cab of No. 203
 
History of No. 203 
 
The 203, a 2-8-0 Consolidation type locomotive was built in 1925 by Baldwin Locomotive Company of Philadelphia. The locomotive was first purchased by a Georgia passenger shortline, the Washington & Lincolnton Railroad that went out of business in 1932. Number 203 was then sold to the Rockton & Rion, which served a quarry operation in South Carolina. The little engine was not suited for the strenuous labor, so she was placed in storage at Rockton for the next 44 years.
   
 
Number Plate

In 1977, 203 was taken out of storage and put to work in tourism in the southeast. In early 1983, the 2-8-0 was acquired from Birmingham  Rail & Locomotive by the Mississippi railway & Transportation Museum. Here are excepts from Railfan & Railroad Magazine about the #203 operations in Mississippi & South Carolina;

    

 

"The Mississippi Railway & Transportation Museum, Inc., got into the steam excursion business on June 16, 1984, with the dedication at Ansley, Miss., of a ex-Rockton & Rion 2-8-0 No. 203 (Baldwin, 1925). They plan weekend operations between Port Bienville Industrial Park and the Seaboard (L&N) connection at Ansley, just west of Bay St. Louis on the Gulf Coast."

"The locomotive was christened with a bottle of water by Hancock County Port & Harbor Director Jimmy DeBlanc. The 2-8-0 proved to be an excellent performer, and the cars are authentically painted." - Railnews, Louis Saillard, Nov. 1984

  
     
 
"Waccamaw Coast Line does hope to begin passenger operations on the 13 miles between Conway and the drawbridge. Once the drawbridge is repaired, WCL trains can operate to within two blocks of the ocean in Myrtle Beach. Also, re-flueing former- Rockton & Rion 2-8-0 203 (purchased from the Mississippi Transportation Museum in 1990) has been postponed due to track work, but WCL expects to have it running in time for the 1993 season." - Railnews, Oct 1992
 

During this time 203 saw limited duty, and it wasn’t long before she was returned again to storage. Due to her years of idleness, 203 has probably traveled fewer miles than any other operating steam engine in America.

In 1995, 203 again came to a shortline railroad when Gulf & Ohio Railways began the task of rebuilding her. The locomotive was restored by the employees of Knoxville Locomotive Works with the help of many volunteers.

203 has been affectionately nicknamed "Lindy."

Learn How a Steam Engine Works

Read the History of the Steam Engine

Q: Why does the engine have Washington & Lincolnton printed on the coal bunker?

A: The original railroad that used 203 was the Washington & Lincolnton Railroad in Georgia. During restoration, we decided to keep the original markings.

Q: What does the steam engine burn?
A: #4 fuel oil (recycled motor oil)

Q: How fast does the train go ?
A: Our speed limit is 15 mph

Q: How old is the steam engine?
A: 80 years old (June 1925)

Q: How hot does the fire in the firebox get?
A: 380°F

Q: How heavy is the locomotive ?
A: 66 tons

Q: Where is the fuel kept?
A: Inside the old coal bunker