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| Photo From Trains Magazine |
When I discovered this story I have to admit that my heart jumped with joy. Way back in the 1980s I used to travel up to Madrid, New Mexico on a regular basis and during those trips I developed a love for ex Santa Fe steam locomotive 769. Being a huge rail fan how could I not? When I learned that it's owner Lori Lindsey has plans to restore it to working condition and use it on a tourist train operating over a restored seven mile section of ex Santa Fe trackage I was all in!
From Trains Magazine:
When Lori Lindsey bought The Mineshaft Tavern in Madrid, N.M., in 2007, she acquired the restaurant, museum, and Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe No. 769. After consulting with restoration experts, Lindsey is seeking funding to restore the 2-8-0.With encouragement from Santa Fe, N.M., resident Andrew Delgado, Lindsey consulted with steam restoration experts. She has now set her sights on restoring the locomotive and even rebuilding a track on the old right-of-way to Waldo.
“Expected complete operational restoration will cost $1.5 million to $2 million,” Lindsey says. “The hope is that New Mexico will build out or fund more heritage railways for tourism. It’s too valuable to let it degrade further, and it would be very exciting to see a steam engine going through the center of the town.”
Madrid was a coal-mining town, and SFPR built a 6.7-mile spur from there to Waldo, N.M., where it joined the main line. In 1950, No. 769 was sold to the Albuquerque and Los Cerrillos Coal Co. where it continued to transport coal until 1959 when the company went bankrupt, and the locomotive was parked in front of the engine house and hasn’t moved since.
First steps would include moving the locomotive to a better spot on the Mine Shaft property where the restoration work won’t interfere with the operation of the restaurant and museum. For more information and to help with the restoration, visit this GoFundMe page.
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