Category Archives: C&NW #1385 Status Updates

Welcome to the Chicago & North Western #1385 steam status blog! Follow along as we bring the 1907 American Locomotive Company 4-6-0 steam engine back to operating condition.

1385 Steam and Air Line Installation/Donation Update

Mid-Continent Railway Museum Posted on by

We have had multiple teams working on various projects and great progress has been made. We are now working on the installation of the steam and air lines. As of right now, we are still looking for funding to bring the #1385 home. Thank you for your continued help and support on the full restoration of the #1385!

Sincerely,

Andy
MCRY President

Donations can be made online by clicking the link: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=QWRDMKVLN9CHU

You can also make a donation by phone or mail. (If donating with a check, please write ‘Bring the #1385 Home Fund’ in the memo line.) For assistance, contact our office staff at 608-522-4261. For more information and weekly updated donation fund thermometer, please check out our Facebook or our website post titled, “Your Help is Needed to Bring the C&NW #1385 Home Again!”

#1385 Cab, Smoke Stack, and Hand Rail Installation/Donation Update

Mid-Continent Railway Museum Posted on by

🚂 #1385 Cab, Hand Rails, and Smoke Stack Installation/Donation Update 🚂

The #1385 now has its hand rails and smoke stack installed!

As of today (3/13/2025), we are now up to $23,895 on our Bring the #1385 Home Fund! We have an end goal of $80,000 in order to transport the steam locomotive back to Mid-Continent. For more information and weekly updated donation fund thermometer, please check out our Facebook or our website post titled, “Your Help is Needed to Bring the C&NW #1385 Home Again!”

If you would like to donate online, please click the link: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=QWRDMKVLN9CHU

Donations can also be made by phone or mail. (If donating with a check, please write ‘Bring the #1385 Home Fund’ in the memo line.) For assistance, contact our office staff at 608-522-4261.

Your Help is Needed to Bring the C&NW #1385 Home Again!

Mid-Continent Railway Museum Posted on by
The C&NW #1385 in North Freedom, taken February 19th, 1978. Randy Long Collection.

Members, Friends, and Supporters of the Mid-Continent Railway Museum

We are now raising funds to bring our #1385 Chicago & North Western R-1 class steam locomotive home. As most of you know, the locomotive has been out of service for a little over 26 years and away from the museum since 2013. Finally, in 2025, we plan on bringing #1385 back to Mid-Continent.

The plan is to move the engine by truck and load it onto a flat car. From there, the Wisconsin and Southern Railroad will bring the engine back by rail. This move will include three crane lifts, transportation and securing. With the information we have now our latest estimate, including all required work, is around $80,000. Once it’s back home, final assembly and testing can begin. Our goal is to have #1385 ready for operation in 2026. Please help support the Bring the #1385 Home Fund.

If you would like to donate online, please click the button below. Donations can also be made by phone or mail. (If donating with a check, please write ‘Bring the #1385 Home Fund’ in the memo line.) Our mailing address is:

P.O. Box 358
E8948 Museum Road
North Freedom, WI 53951

For assistance, contact our office staff at 608-522-4261.

Created using the Donation Thermometer plugin https://wordpress.org/plugins/donation-thermometer/.$80,000‘Thanks$32,805‘Thanks41%

The raised amount is accurate as of 4/30/2025.

Sincerely,

Andy Spinelli

President

Mid-Continent Railway Museum

Donate Here!

Chicago & Northwestern #1385 Form 4 Update

Mid-Continent Railway Museum Posted on by

A Form 4 is a crucial document used by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to record detailed information about the boiler of a steam locomotive. The form includes data on the boiler’s construction, materials, and condition, as well as the results of various tests and inspections to demonstrate compliance with safety regulations.

The Form 4 has been completed and submitted to the FRA in Washington for the #1385. The FRA gave us approval to proceed with the FRA witnessed Hydrostatic test. This was done on October 10th, 2024. All went as planned with no issues.  The engine passed the test and FRA Inspector Dave S’s final comment on the test was “Good work!”

Now we are waiting for Washington for the final approval of the Form 4. We have compiled a complete list of all the work to be done on the engine and have assessed who is doing each task. We will bring in the following labor to work on the completing the engine: volunteer museum members, paid staff, and third-party contractors including Spec Machine and FMW. This winter will be a very busy season for us. Some of the larger tasks left to complete are installing the air and steam lines, adding insulation and the sheet metal jacketing, installing the cab, ashpan installation, smokestack installation, and installing the pistons and rings. There are many other smaller items that need to be completed as well.

The #1385 Task Group and Management Committee are still meeting weekly and the items to get completed are getting smaller in number. Our plan is still to have the engine back at the museum in 2025 and at least begin testing. I want to thank our friends and supporters of this project. We could not have gotten to this point without your help, support and understanding. If you would like to give a gift to #1385, please click the button below to donate online. Your gift will ensure this work is completed in a timely manner and help with transportation costs to ship the engine back to the museum.

Thank you in advance for your positive help and support!

Andy S.

President

Mid-Continent Railway Museum

Click Here To Donate!

1385 Update: At the Sawmill

Mid-Continent Railway Museum Posted on by

Greetings from the 1385 Steam Team!

Although progress is happening on the locomotive back at the shop, we had a unique work experience that took place over August 16, 17, and 18 during the Badger Steam and Gas Engine Club annual show.

Mike W, Pete D, Ed R, and the rest of the regular sawmill crew, met and sawed the wood needed for the tender foot board and the tender coal boards. They used steam power in the form of traction engines to run the sawmill at the Badger Steam and Gas Show. Ash and white oak logs were used.

We would like to thank the Badger Steam and Gas Engine Club for the donation of the time of their mill to help another steam engine get back to operation. The lumber is now at the museum awaiting installation. The coal boards will be used to hold back the coal in the tender as it is filled. As the pile drops the boards get taken out. Once we fill the tender back up, the coal boards get placed back into their pockets.

The foot boards will be mounted at the rear of the tender and provide a place for trainmen to ride during switching operations. For safety, the footboards will only be used when the locomotive is traveling forward.

Looking forward, we are in the preparation stage for our next hydro test. More information will be available soon.

Thank you for your positive help and financial support with this project.

Sincerely,

Andy S.

Mid-Continent President