Draft:New York, Susquehanna and Western 142

New York, Susquehanna and Western 142 is a China Railways SY class 2-8-2 "Mikado" type steam locomotive. It was built by the Tangshan Locomotive and Rolling Stock Works in 1989 as SY1647M, in response to the Connecticut Valley Railroad's (CVRR) needs for another steam locomotive. During construction, the locomotive underwent some mechanical changes to be legally operable on North American soil. SY1647M was shipped overseas from Dalian in China and unloaded at the Port of Camden in New Jersey, and it subsequently made its inaugural run for the CVRR in the spring of 1990.

In 1992, the locomotive was sold to the New York, Susquehanna and Western (NYS&W) Railway, and it was renumbered to 142. The NYS&W used the locomotive to pull their mainline excursion trains throughout New York state and New Jersey. Since 2003, the locomotive has been owned by the New York, Susquehanna and Western Technical and Historical Society (NYS&WT&HS), and since 2004, it has been operated by the Belvidere and Delaware River Railway (BDRV). As of 2024, the locomotive is undergoing an FRA-mandated overhaul.

Background
In 1985, the Connecticut Valley Railroad's (CVRR) steam locomotives, began to undergo some maintenance work, and this led to the railroad to consider acquiring another steam locomotive. The following year, the CVRR decided that they would purchase a brand new steam locomotive that would be built in China, since Chinese steam locomotives were still being manufactured at that time, and their specifications closely resembled to those on North American steam locomotives. Two of the CVRR's higher ups subsequently visited three seperate locomotive factories in China to enquire them for a new locomotive to be constructed exclusively for export to the United States.

Construction and export
Before construction began on the CVRR's new locomotive, some modifications had to be made to the locomotive design; the state of Connecticut ordered that the boiler be constructed to match the boiler code from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). The CVRR subsequently selected the Tangshan Locomotive and Rolling Stock Works to construct their new locomotive, since their employees had more willingness to study American regulations and boiler codes. The new locomotive was to be a copy of the China Railways SY-class, and it was to be numbered SY1647M, with 'M' indicating its shipment to America. The Chinese-written construction plans for the locomotive had to be translated to English with converted measurements, and several modifications that needed to be made to the boiler were identified, including thicker firebox sheets and larger staybolts in the crown sheet.

Furthermore, the engineer's controls, which were positioned on the left side of the cab in China, had to be moved to the right side for American usage. The SY1647M locomotive cost US$300,000 to be built. Other tourist railroads in the United States began to consider acquiring Chinese locomotives, similar to what the CVRR did; Sloan Cornell enquired the Tangshan Works to construct a locomotive with matching modifications to SY1647M for use on his Knox and Kane Railroad in Pennsylvania, and then another SY locomotive, SY1658M, was built. The Boone and Scenic Valley Railroad of Iowa also purchased a Chinese-built locomotive, but they chose a larger JS-class locomotive, JS8419, which had been built by the Datong Locomotive Factory in 1988.

All three locomotives were scheduled to be shipped across the Pacific Ocean in March 1989, but the shipping was delayed for several months, due to difficulty in securing a ship. When one ship was secured, M.V. Trade Fir, the two SY locomotives were loaded on board in Dalian, and JS8419 was loaded in Qingdao. Upon arrival in the United States, M.V. Trade Fir stopped at a harbor in California, where JS8419 was unloaded, and then the ship carried the two SY locomotives through the Panama Canal, bound for the Northeastern US. On December 17, M.V. Trade Fir arrived at the Port of Camden in New Jersey, and the two SY locomotives were unloaded at the Beckett Street Terminal. They were subsequently loaded onto flatcars to be shipped to their respective destinations on the Conrail mainline. On January 13, 1990, SY1647M arrived at the CVRR's location in Essex, Connecticut, and crews began to apply some additional modifications to the locomotive, including a bell being installed on top of the smokebox door, and as a safety requirement, the Chinese safety valves being replaced with American model valves.

Excursion service
On April 21, No. 1647 pulled its inaugural train on the CVRR; a round trip between Essex and Deep River, Connecticut, and it consisted of twelve passenger cars, which marks the longest passenger train in CVRR's history. Although, a rain storm was occuring in Essex that day, and the departure from Deep River was delayed when there was difficulty in coupling two of the passenger cars together. The following day, April 22, No. 1647 was involved in a low speed collision with the rear of the North Cove Express dinner train on passing trackage. Some slight injuries were reported, and a coupler on one of the passenger cars was damaged and had to be replaced.