Wilmington and Western 98

Wilmington and Western 98 is a preserved 4-4-0 American-type steam locomotive. It was built by Alco in January 1909 for the Mississippi Central. No. 98 served in passenger service over an extensive 35-year period before being retired by the railroad in December 1944. Paulsen Spence, chairman of the Louisiana Eastern Railroad, purchased No. 98, for the Comite Southern, and later the Louisiana Eastern Railroad. In January 1960, it was purchased again by Thomas C. Marshall Jr., the founder of the Wilmington and Western Railroad and Historic Red Clay Valley, inc. In 1961, No. 98 became stored at the Strasburg Railroad. It is rumored that Strasburg crews wanted to operate No. 98, which is how it ended up being painted in a Strasburg paint scheme. No. 98 was moved to the Wilmington and Western in 1964, and following an extensive overhaul, it returned to operation in the Fall of 1972, and is now one of only two American-type locomotives in regular service East of the Mississippi River. In December 1996, No. 98 briefly operated in its late Mississippi Central Railroad appearance with a centered headlight and relocation of the bell. No. 98 returned to its W&W paint scheme after 1997. Since 2017, No. 98 has been out of service for its Federally Mandated 1,472-day inspection, and is expected to return to steam in 2024.

Revenue service
No. 98 was constructed by the American Locomotive Company’s Schenectady, New York plant in January 1909, and its design was based the general 4-4-0 engine designs built from 1837 to the early 1900s. The Mississippi Central (1897–1967) (Later Illinois Central Railroad) purchased No. 98 for use in pulling their shortline passenger runs. No. 98 continued service until December 1944, when it was retired from the Mississippi Central before being left in dead storage, and in 1947, it was sold to steam engine collector Paulsen Spence. Spence original intended to have No. 98 used on the gravel-hauling Comite Southern, a 1,000-foot industrial spur, in Tangipahoa, Louisiana. The engine was also planned to run on the proposed Louisiana Eastern Railroad, which would have bypassed the congested rail lines of New Orleans. Spence’s collection of steam engines peaked a total of 37.

Excursion service
Prior to Spence’s death, No. 98 was purchased in January 1960 by Thomas C. Marshall and T. Clarence Marshall. The Marshall brothers planned on using No. 98, along with other steam engines, on a proposed tourist railroad that would run on an abandoned Baltimore and Ohio branch line in Wilmington, Delaware. While the branch was being redeveloped for tourist operations, No. 98 was moved to the Strasburg Rail Road in Pennsylvania for temporary storage. In April 1964, No. 98 was moved from Strasburg to a shop complex in Wilmington, where steam crews began restoring the engine to working order. Work was completed in October 1972, and the engine began pulling the W&W’s trains between Wilmington and other small towns along the route. On the W&W, No. 98 would briefly encounter another engine that was formerly part of Paulsen Spence’s collection, #425. In December 1996, No. 98 was briefly repainted into its original Mississippi Central Railroad appearance with a centered headlight and relocation of the bell. No. 98 would later be returned to its Wilmington and Western paint scheme in early 1997.

Since its return to steam, No. 98 would serve the W&W as the road’s primary motive power. In December 1977, the Marshall brothers outright donated the engine to the Historic Red Clay Valley Inc., and 5 years later, the railroad obtained complete control of the Ex-B&O rail line. In 1985, No. 98 was present at the ceremony about Amtrak’s newly-renovated station in Wilmington. Between 1997 and 2004, No. 98 has undergone 2 extensive overhauls in order for its condition to comply with FRA standards. In 2009, No. 98 turned 100 years old, and the W&W hosted an event in honor of the occasion. In 2017, No. 98 was removed from service to undergo a federally mandated 1,472-day inspection, and the engine was then disassembled to allow the inspection to take place, it is expected to return to steam in 2024 or 2025.