Re: Maintenance - Steam vs. Diesel

Actually, I was thinking of those last 0-8-0's when I said 8 years. They ran from 1952-1960. The final Steam was in Williamson in May 1960.
Went to Roanoke two weeks before Amtrak, because the Pocahontas was to be discontinued when Amtrak started. Went to two scrapyards in Roanoke.
on the Northside of the mainline was the one with the pair of Y6's (2-8-8-2's for you non-N&W fans), and the one with the 4-8-0's and 2-8-0's was on the south side encrusted in weeds, fines and such and up on a coal dock of sorts. It was a mess even then.
I heard the Roanoke NRHS was trying to get money to save the 2179 (Used on an excursion we road in 1959) from that scrap yard and had an agreement with the owner.
Problem was he passed away, and the heirs decided to scrap both of them. What a shame. Even if never restored(And I bet they would have been when Claytor was around), they would have made a nice museum display at VMT.
Even with some of the short lives of N&W steam they lasted longer than most railroads, save for the NG in Colorado, and the Grand Trunk Western.
Greg