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Royal Hudson 2860 (Canada)
Click on a thumbnail to see the full size photo
All Photos ©Sunny Wong 2002
Text Credits Greg Chadwick and Link to his pages
The Royal Hudson 2860 is moved to its new home on May 24th 2002, Squamish and the West Coast Railway Heritage Park. It has traveled to for the past 25 years, and be preserved for future operations and generations to enjoy.

Royal Hudson #2860 looks grand sitting on the mainline at the platform of the Squamish station in the Park. Over the summer 2002, #2860 will be available as an exhibit, but you do need to see her by this fall, as she will then move into the shop for the start of refurbishment work – a project that will take several years.
Current Status
History
The Royal Hudson 2860 is an ex-CPR Hudson type steam locomotive. The first Hudson type built for the CPR was produced in 1929 by the Montreal Locomotive Works (MLW) in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. All of the best features of North American locomotive design were incorporated into the Hudson. The Hudson type was continued until 1940. In all, 65 of these beautiful locomotives were produced for the CPR by the MLW. The class ranged from H1a to H1e. The 2860 is of the H1e class, 1st of the last 5 Hudsons to be produced for the CPR. The Hudson achieved great success as a high speed passenger locomotive, quickly making previous types obsolete. Her top speed was in excess of 90 mph (144 kmh)!!.

The Royal Hudson 2860 spent 16 years working the rails between Vancouver and Revelstoke through difficult terrain. The era of steam had come to an end with the introduction of diesel locomotives. The 2860, like all the other Hudsons, was retired to the scrap yard. In 1964, she was restored for a proposed rail museum in Vancouver, but the museum was never built. The 2860 sat in storage for 10 years, until the provincial government of British Columbia bought her in 1974. The Royal Hudson 2860 made her first run to Squamish from North Vancouver the same year. It was the start of a new beginning for the 2860, working as the only steam locomotive in North America on regular scheduled runs over mainline track. The 2860 has also made trips as far south as California, and to eastern Canada.