Southern Railway 1509, Maud
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
BuilderBaldwin Locomotive Works
Serial number4909
Build date1879
Specifications
Configuration:
  Whyte0-4-4T Forney locomotive
  UICB2′ t
Gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm)
Driver dia.48 in (1.219 m)
Loco weight111,000 lb (50 tonnes)
Boiler pressure135 lbf/in2 (0.93 MPa)
CylindersTwo, outside
Cylinder size16 in × 24 in (406 mm × 610 mm)
Performance figures
Tractive effort14,688 lbf (65.34 kN)
Career
OperatorsAtlanta and Charlotte Air Line Railway, Richmond and Danville Railroad, Southern Railway
ClassA
Numbers27 (A&CAL), 1509 (SOU)
Official nameTalullah (original), Maud (1925)
NicknamesWhiskers
LocaleUnited States, South
Retired1949
Current ownerSoutheastern Railway Museum, Duluth, Georgia
DispositionIn storage, awaiting restoration

Southern Railway "Maud" 1509 is the oldest surviving steam locomotive of the Southern Railway. The engine was built by Baldwin in December 1879 for the Atlanta and Charlotte Air Line Railway, originally numbered 27 and named Talullah. The railroad was later absorbed by the Richmond and Danville Railroad which itself became the Southern Railway, and thus, Talullah ultimately became Southern #1509.

Very little is known about the engine's history prior to the 1903 renumbering and company records from that time are largely either missing, incomplete, and/or contain conflicting data. The 1509 was likely used for passenger service, particularly with suburban or commuter runs, and when renumbered, it received the A class designation, being a switcher engine used in yard service.

Southern rebuilt the engine in 1903, and from then until retirement, it served as a switcher for the railway's Pegram Shops in Atlanta. There, it was given the name, Maud by the shop employees. Maud was retired June 29, 1950, and moved to Inman, Georgia, where it was to be scrapped. However, the shop's workers had favored Maud, and wrote to then Southern Railway president E. E. Norris requesting the engine be preserved. Norris obliged, and Maud was placed on display outside of the shops until 1960. That year, the engine was donated to the Atlanta chapter of the National Railway Historical Society, who had placed it in their Southeastern Railway Museum in Duluth, Georgia.

Current status

As of November 2020, Southern Railway 1509 is stored, disassembled outside the Southeastern Railway Museum's shops, where it is awaiting restoration.

References

    • The "Hot Box" as edited by George Weber, April 1961 & May 1990
    • Atlanta History. Atlanta Historical Society. Winter 1994. {{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
    • Prince, Richard E. (1970). Southern Railway System Steam Locomotives and Boats.
    • Wiley, Autrey; Wallace, Conley (1983). Southern Railway Handbook.
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