LOCOMOTIVES

"Moshassuck" - First Number 1

First number one was a 2-4-2 type tank engine constructed by the Rhode Island Locomotive Works in January 1877, construction number 688. The locomotive had 12x24 cylinders, 48inch drivers, a four foot deep firebox with a three by five foot grate area, a boiler 38 inches in diameter at the front and 42 3/4 inches at the rear, and 120 boiler tubes 1 3/4 inches in diameter and 10 feet 10 1/4 inches long. It weighed 24 tons and cost $7,000. It was the only engine for about five years and was used for both freight and passenger service. The engine was apparently retired when second Number 1 arrived in 1889.

MOSHASSUCK VALLEY NUMBER 1 "MOSHASSUCK" - from the catalog of the Rhode Island Locomotive Company

"Lorraine" - Number 2

The 4-4-0 was constructed by the Taunton Locomotive Works in 1860 for the Providence, Warren & Bristol railroad. It was named "Mount Hope", numbered 1, and was Taunton's construction number 280. Since the PW&B was operated by the Boston & Providence, the "Mount Hope" was typical of the designs of its Master Mechanic George S. Griggs, particularly its large forward steam dome and cylinders inside the frame connected to cranks between the front drivers. It was probably acquired around 1882-83 to support "Moshassuck" and was at the time an obsolete design and at the end of its useful life though probably adequate for light, low mileage work. It was the second MVRR locomotive and probably scrapped after Number 3 arrived in 1893.

BOSTON & PROVIDENCE "DEDHAM" NUMBER 16 - This engine is very similar to MVRR "Lorraine" .

Both were built in 1860 to a Griggs design.

Number 1 (Second 1, Second "Moshassuck")

The 0-4-0 was constructed by the Rhode Island Locomotive Works in September 1889, construction number 2259. On delivery, the name "Moshassuck" was on the cab and M.V.R.R. on the tender. It had 16x22 inch cylinders, 48 inch drivers and probably weighed about 30 tons. The engine was joined by a more powerful 0-6-0 type four years later but the 0-4-0 was still equal to the needs of the MVRR and served for forty years or so. The purchase of a second 0-6-0 in 1916 reduced the need for Number 1 but the 1920's were prosperous and a third locomotive was useful until the Depression of the 1930's. The engine was sold around the early 1930's to the Smith Granite Company of Westerly, Rhode Island where she worked at the quarry.

Second Number 1 was photographed at the Smith Granite Company around 1935

Number 3

The 0-6-0 was constructed by the Rhode Island Locomotive Works in October 1893, construction number 2989. It had 18x24 cylinders and 50 inch drivers, specifications that were similar to 0-6-0's built by Rhode Island that year for the Old Colony, New Haven and Boston & Maine. It is possible that the financial panic that year offered the MVRR an opporunity to purchase at a bargain price a locomotive intended for a major road or one more substantial than the MVRR might otherwise have purchased. The engine seems to have been well-liked since it was probably not discarded until Numbers 6 and 7 were purchased in 1944. By that time Number 3 had served for fifty-one years and most likely was scrapped for the war effort.

NUMBER 3 IS NEARING WEEDEN STREET HEADING FOR THE WOODLAWN INTERCHANGE

Central Falls and Pawtucket are in the background

"Sayelsville" - Number 4

The 0-4-0T was a steam powered streetcar built by Baldwin in January 1878, construction number 4232. The steamcar had been Brooklyn City Transit Number 2 and was acquired by the MVRR in 1896 probably when the transit company was electrifying service. A self-propelled coach was an economical means of providing MVRR passenger service and due to its age the car was probably inexpensive. Baldwin began building this type of car in 1876 to supplement horsecars and they were said to be virtually free of smoke and noise. They were known as steam motors or called dummies. "Saylesville" had an upright boiler in its front and two outside 8x10 inch cylinders at its rear which connected to the closest of the four 30 inch wheels. The steamcar was not considered a locomotive since it was unsuitable for pulling more than the light trailer that increased its limited seating capacity. It was retired by 1916, around the time a third locomotive was obtained.

THE STEAMCAR "SAYLESVILLE" IN 1907. Photographed near Mineral Spring Ave.

Number 5

The 0-6-0 was built by Baldwin in November 1912, construction number 38796. Number 5 was purchased from the John Marsch Construction Company in 1916. The locomotive had been numbered 210 by Marsch and had 19x24 inch cylinders and 50 inch drivers. John Marsch was a contractor for the Grand Trunk's Southern New England Railway which was to be an extension of the Central Vermont from Palmer to Providence . Presumably the locomotive was one of several purchased for the aborted project. Construction began in May 1912 and was officially suspended on December 31, 1915. The relatively new but now surplus engine was sold to the MVRR whose line the SNE would have crossed. Number 5 was probably sold by the MVRR around the time Number 3 was sold during World War II.

NUMBER 5 WAS PHOTOGRAPHED ON THE PAWTUCKET RIVER EXTENSION WHICH BECAME THE NEW INTERCHANGE TRACK

Engineer was Henry Hanaway and Fireman was 73 year old Pat Kelley - March 19, 1932

Number 6

The 0-4-0 was built by the Pittsburg Locomotive Works in July 1906, construction number 40354. Number 6 was purchased in 1944. It had been Number 2 of the Manufacturers Junction Railway Company of Cicero, Illinois and had 18x24 cylinders and 51 inch drivers. Number 6 was larger than the MVRR's first 0-4-0 and given its sizable cylinders about as powerful as 0-6-0 Number 3 which it replaced. It was scrapped in 1951 after the MVRR's first diesel went into service.

Number 6 on the siding at the rear of Lorraine Mill. The main track is behind the mill.

NUMBER 6 AT THE SWITCHING YARD IN MARCH 1946 - The foreground tracks lead to the enginehouse.

Number 7

The 0-6-0 was built by Baldwin in February 1922, construction number 55779. Number 7 was purchased in 1944, having once been owned by the Ryan Car Company, Hegewisch, Illinois, a railroad car builder that went out of business in 1940. It had 18x24 inch cylinders and 51 inch drivers and, assuming it was operated with a higher boiler pressure than Number 5 which it replaced, Number 7 would have been equally as powerful despite its smaller cylinder bore. Since both Number 6 and 7 were from the Chicago area it can be assumed they were purchased from a dealer in used locomotives. Number 7 was the youngest of the MVRR locomotives and consequently was retained for a few years after the new diesel arrived in 1951 but was probably seldom used. The engine was believed scrapped at Fox Point in Providence where its tender could be seen sitting alone after the engine was gone.

NUMBER 7 AT THE SWITCHING YARD FACING SOUTH - The building is the enginehouse, freight facility and office complex.

Number 8

The MVRR's first diesel was built by General Electric in December 1950, construction number 30786. It was a 300 horsepower 50 ton industrial model which was purchased new and placed in service in January 1951. It worked alone until Number 9 arrived about ten years later. The MVRR's owner since 1981, the Providence & Worcester, sold Number 8 to W.R.Jones Enterprises and it departed early in 1988.

NUMBER 8 and LORRAINE MILL - MINERAL SPRING AVENUE CROSSING photo by Edward J. Ozog

Number 9

The MVRR's last locomotive was built by General Elecric in June 1943, construction number 17890. It had been Number 2 of the Copperweld Steel Company of Warren, Ohio and was acquired in 1962. It was a 400 horsepower 65 ton industrial model and therefore substantially more powerful than Number 8. After it purchased the MVRR, the Providence & Worcester had Number 8 repainted green for its Rhode Island subsidiary the Warwick Railway and renumbered it 106. It was sold to the Pennsylvania Power & Light Company and departed early in 1988.

NUMBER 9 and WATT TERMINAL BUILDINGS photo by Edward J. Ozog