ALCO MRS-1
Encyclopedia
The ALCO MRS-1 is a type of diesel-electric locomotive built by the American Locomotive Company
(ALCO) for the United States Army Transportation Corps
(USATC). They were built with multigauge
trucks and to a narrow loading gauge
for service anywhere in the world in the event of war.
and the intensification of the Cold War
at the beginning of the 1950s caused the USATC to consider what it might need for a new land war in Europe.
They came up with a requirement for a locomotive capable of running on the existing tracks of a wide variety of railway systems. Key parts of the specification included adjustable-gauge
trucks
, compact bodywork to fit restrictive loading gauge
s, and replaceable coupler
s to fit a variety of systems. The trucks' wheelsets adjusted between standard gauge
and 5 in 6 in (1,676.4 mm), which encompasses the vast majority of the broad gauge
s in use worldwide, including those of the then Soviet Union (1520 millimetre) and the Iberian peninsula
(1668 millimetre).
The specification was put out to tender, and two companies responded; GM and GE
. Both companies were contracted produced a batch of thirteen locomotives which would be evaluated by the USATC; the vendor providing the better locomotive would then produce the rest of the required locomotives.
Both manufacturers delivered their sample batch in 1952, and after testing the GE locomotives, which were actually produced by Alco as a subcontractor, were declared the winner, and a further batch of 70 ALCO MRS-1 locomotives were ordered.
As delivered, they were painted in gloss black with white numbering and lettering. Fifty had steam generators. The locomotives were numbered by the Army from 2041-2123.
facility at Marietta, Pennsylvania
awaiting a war to use them in; they had not been purchased for peacetime use. These brand-new locomotives, with at most a couple of weeks' actual use, sat preserved until approximately 1970, when the Pentagon concluded that their plans for a future, large-scale land war no longer included the capture and use of the enemy's railway system.
Thus the 96 locomotives were redundant for their original purpose. Many of the units were taken out of storage and assigned to various military installations around the country, where locomotives of that size and power were required.
The Army eventually decided to transfer the units to the United States Navy
. Five units stationed in Concord, California
were the last to be used by the armed forces.
--six in 1974, and seven in 1975. Alaska retired its last ALCO MRS-1s in 1984.
Two locomotives were sold to the Administración de Ferrocarriles del Estado
. They suffered a fire in 1994, and one was scrapped, while the other is stored inoperable.
While many locomotives were ultimately scrapped, several still exist, in various states of preservation. Examples exist at the Bluegrass Railroad and Museum
, the Western Railway Museum
, the Museum of Transportation
, the Northern Pacific Railway Museum
, the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum
, the Western Pacific Railroad Museum
(one MRS-1 from Portola Railroad Museum was transferred to Yreka Western Railroad where it operates now as YWRR #244), the California State Railroad Museum
, and Railtown 1897. In addition, the Eastern Shore Railroad
(now Bay Coast Railroad
) stores two for possible future use. Cass Scenic Railroad also stored 2 examples, which were sold as surplus and later scrapped in 2010.
Being produced to the same specification, both GE/ALCO and EMD MRS-1s are very similar in appearance and can easily be mistaken; they are both C-C road-switchers that are very low in profile in order to fit within European loading gauges. The major exterior differences are the peaked cab roof and long hood
roof on the EMD locomotives, and the radiator intakes on the sides of the long hood end, which have outside shutters on the Alco locomotives. In addition, the short hood
is visibly lower than the long hood, thanks to the long hood's peaked roof; on the ALCO units, the two are the same height. The frame side sills are also different; the Alco's are straight from front to rear, while the EMD's step down towards each end of the locomotive.
American Locomotive Company
The American Locomotive Company, often shortened to ALCO or Alco , was a builder of railroad locomotives in the United States.-Early history:...
(ALCO) for the United States Army Transportation Corps
United States Army Transportation Corps
The Transportation Corps was established 31 July 1942 by Executive Order 9082. The Transportation Corps is a combat service support branch of the U.S. Army, and was headquartered at Fort Eustis, Virginia, but has now moved to Fort Lee, Virginia. The Transportation Corps is responsible for the...
(USATC). They were built with multigauge
Rail gauge
Track gauge or rail gauge is the distance between the inner sides of the heads of the two load bearing rails that make up a single railway line. Sixty percent of the world's railways use a standard gauge of . Wider gauges are called broad gauge; smaller gauges, narrow gauge. Break-of-gauge refers...
trucks and to a narrow loading gauge
Loading gauge
A loading gauge defines the maximum height and width for railway vehicles and their loads to ensure safe passage through bridges, tunnels and other structures...
for service anywhere in the world in the event of war.
Development
The Korean WarKorean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
and the intensification of the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
at the beginning of the 1950s caused the USATC to consider what it might need for a new land war in Europe.
They came up with a requirement for a locomotive capable of running on the existing tracks of a wide variety of railway systems. Key parts of the specification included adjustable-gauge
Rail gauge
Track gauge or rail gauge is the distance between the inner sides of the heads of the two load bearing rails that make up a single railway line. Sixty percent of the world's railways use a standard gauge of . Wider gauges are called broad gauge; smaller gauges, narrow gauge. Break-of-gauge refers...
trucks
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
, compact bodywork to fit restrictive loading gauge
Loading gauge
A loading gauge defines the maximum height and width for railway vehicles and their loads to ensure safe passage through bridges, tunnels and other structures...
s, and replaceable coupler
Coupling (railway)
A coupling is a mechanism for connecting rolling stock in a train. The design of the coupler is standard, and is almost as important as the railway gauge, since flexibility and convenience are maximised if all rolling stock can be coupled together.The equipment that connects the couplings to the...
s to fit a variety of systems. The trucks' wheelsets adjusted between standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
and 5 in 6 in (1,676.4 mm), which encompasses the vast majority of the broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
s in use worldwide, including those of the then Soviet Union (1520 millimetre) and the Iberian peninsula
Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula , sometimes called Iberia, is located in the extreme southwest of Europe and includes the modern-day sovereign states of Spain, Portugal and Andorra, as well as the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar...
(1668 millimetre).
The specification was put out to tender, and two companies responded; GM and GE
Gê
Gê are the people who spoke Ge languages of the northern South American Caribbean coast and Brazil. In Brazil the Gê were found in Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais, Bahia, Piaui, Mato Grosso, Goias, Tocantins, Maranhão, and as far south as Paraguay....
. Both companies were contracted produced a batch of thirteen locomotives which would be evaluated by the USATC; the vendor providing the better locomotive would then produce the rest of the required locomotives.
Both manufacturers delivered their sample batch in 1952, and after testing the GE locomotives, which were actually produced by Alco as a subcontractor, were declared the winner, and a further batch of 70 ALCO MRS-1 locomotives were ordered.
As delivered, they were painted in gloss black with white numbering and lettering. Fifty had steam generators. The locomotives were numbered by the Army from 2041-2123.
Military service
The initial fate of most of the MRS-1 locomotives was to be placed in storage at the USATC's Transportation Materiel CommandTransportation Materiel Command
The Transportation Materiel Command was a unit of the US Army, originally headquartered in Marietta, Pennsylvania. In March 1955, it merged with the Transportation Corps Army Aviation Field Service Office to form the Transportation Supply and Maintenance Command headquartered in St...
facility at Marietta, Pennsylvania
Marietta, Pennsylvania
Marietta is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,689 at the 2000 census. It is located on the east bank of the Susquehanna River just north of Columbia.-Geography:Marietta is located at ....
awaiting a war to use them in; they had not been purchased for peacetime use. These brand-new locomotives, with at most a couple of weeks' actual use, sat preserved until approximately 1970, when the Pentagon concluded that their plans for a future, large-scale land war no longer included the capture and use of the enemy's railway system.
Thus the 96 locomotives were redundant for their original purpose. Many of the units were taken out of storage and assigned to various military installations around the country, where locomotives of that size and power were required.
The Army eventually decided to transfer the units to the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
. Five units stationed in Concord, California
Concord, California
Concord is the largest city in Contra Costa County, California, USA. At the 2010 census, the city had a population of 122,067. Originally founded in 1869 as the community of Todos Santos by Salvio Pacheco, the name was changed to Concord within months...
were the last to be used by the armed forces.
Post-military careers
Thirteen of the locomotives were sold to the Alaska RailroadAlaska Railroad
The Alaska Railroad is a Class II railroad which extends from Seward and Whittier, in the south of the state of Alaska, in the United States, to Fairbanks , and beyond to Eielson Air Force Base and Fort Wainwright in the interior of that state...
--six in 1974, and seven in 1975. Alaska retired its last ALCO MRS-1s in 1984.
Two locomotives were sold to the Administración de Ferrocarriles del Estado
Administración de Ferrocarriles del Estado
The Administración de Ferrocarriles del Estado , known by its acronym AFE, is the autonomous agency of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay in charge of rail transport and the maintenance of Uruguayan railway.-History:...
. They suffered a fire in 1994, and one was scrapped, while the other is stored inoperable.
While many locomotives were ultimately scrapped, several still exist, in various states of preservation. Examples exist at the Bluegrass Railroad and Museum
Bluegrass Railroad and Museum
The Bluegrass Railroad and Museum is a railroad museum and heritage railroad in Versailles, Kentucky, United States.Operating out of the Woodford County Park, the Railroad offers six mile round excursions through the horse farms of Kentucky....
, the Western Railway Museum
Western Railway Museum
The Western Railway Museum, in Solano County, California is located on Highway 12 between Rio Vista and Suisun. The museum is built along the former mainline of theSacramento Northern Railway...
, the Museum of Transportation
Museum of Transportation
The Museum of Transportation of the St. Louis County, Missouri, United States Parks Department is a museum located in the Greater St. Louis area. It was first founded in 1944 by a group of individuals dedicated to preserving the past and has a wide variety of vehicles from American history...
, the Northern Pacific Railway Museum
Northern Pacific Railway Museum
The Northern Pacific Railway Museum is a railroad museum in Toppenish, Washington.In 1990 the ex-Northern Pacific Railway depot in Toppenish, WA, was leased and subsequently purchased from the Burlington Northern Railroad in 1993 for the museum....
, the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum
Pacific Southwest Railway Museum
The Pacific Southwest Railway Museum, located at the corner of State Route 94 and Forrest Gate Road near Campo, California, is a railroad museum dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of railroads as they existed in the Pacific Southwest....
, the Western Pacific Railroad Museum
Western Pacific Railroad Museum
The Western Pacific Railroad Museum in Portola, California, formerly known as the Portola Railroad Museum before , is a heritage railroad that preserves and operates historic American railroad equipment. The museum's mission is to preserve the history of the Western Pacific Railroad and is...
(one MRS-1 from Portola Railroad Museum was transferred to Yreka Western Railroad where it operates now as YWRR #244), the California State Railroad Museum
California State Railroad Museum
The California State Railroad Museum is a museum in the state park system of California, USA, interpreting the role of the "iron horse" in connecting California to the rest of the nation. It is located in Old Sacramento at 111 I Street....
, and Railtown 1897. In addition, the Eastern Shore Railroad
Eastern Shore Railroad
The Eastern Shore Railroad, Inc. was a Class III short-line railroad that began operations in October 1981 on the 96 mile former Virginia and Maryland Railroad line on the Delmarva Peninsula...
(now Bay Coast Railroad
Bay Coast Railroad
The Bay Coast Railroad operates the former Eastern Shore Railroad line from Pocomoke City, Maryland, to Norfolk, Virginia. The Bay Coast Railroad interchanges with the Norfolk Southern Railway at both Norfolk, Virginia and Pocomoke City, Maryland.-History:...
) stores two for possible future use. Cass Scenic Railroad also stored 2 examples, which were sold as surplus and later scrapped in 2010.
Spotting features
Long hood
The long hood of a hood unit-style diesel locomotive is, as the name implies, the longer of the two hoods on a locomotive.-Equipment:...
roof on the EMD locomotives, and the radiator intakes on the sides of the long hood end, which have outside shutters on the Alco locomotives. In addition, the short hood
Short hood
The short hood of a hood unit-style diesel locomotive is, as the name implies, the shorter of the two hoods on a locomotive...
is visibly lower than the long hood, thanks to the long hood's peaked roof; on the ALCO units, the two are the same height. The frame side sills are also different; the Alco's are straight from front to rear, while the EMD's step down towards each end of the locomotive.