Chessie's Famous Locomotives
Chessie had four famous diesel-electric locomotives in its fleet: B&O 1977 (an EMD GP40-2) was meant to celebrate the B&O's 150th anniversary (this locomotive became B&O 4100 and B&O 4163; for a short time there were two B&O locomotives numbered 1977), B&O GM50 (another EMD GP40-2) was painted gold to celebrate GM-EMD's 50th anniversary as a diesel locomotive manufacturer (GM50 got repainted in 1984 and became B&O 4164), B&O #3802: An EMD GP38 named the All American Locomotive by Trains in 1982, and B&O 4444 (3rd to last GP40-2 owned by Chessie, last unit was B&O 4447) was the locomotive that pulled Ronald Reagan's 1984 presidential train through Ohio.
The Chessie System operated and exhibited a former Reading Railroad 4-8-4 steam locomotive (#2101) on a national tour as the "Chessie Steam Special," beginning in 1977 in celebration of the B&O's 150th anniversary. The 4-8-4 had previously been used as one of three locomotives pulling the American Freedom Train. The train was painted in the Chessie System motif and consisted of the locomotive, two tenders, and eighteen to twenty passenger and baggage cars. The locomotive was severely damaged in a fire in March, 1979 while stored in a Chessie System roundhouse. It has since been cosmetically restored, and is on static display at the B&O Railroad Museum, in Baltimore, MD.
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