Quoting from [www.locomotives.com.pl];
In July 1917, after USA had entered WWI, U.S.Army Transportation Corps (USATC) placed an order for 150 1-4-0, or Consolidation, engines, to be used in Europe by American Expeditionary Forces. They had many European features, in particular cabs, but generally represented the American design school. In August 1918, the second order was placed with Baldwin for further 510 identical engines and total output eventually reached about 2000 examples.
This total does not include locomotives built for Poland and Romania – see below. In 1918 U.S.Army began referring to them all as the
Pershing class, in honor of Gen. John J. Pershing, the AEF commander.
Another recipient of Pershings was Romania. In all, Romanian railways CFR acquired 65 examples. Of these, 140.101 through 140.115, from wartime Baldwin production, were presented by French authorities in 1919, together with 48 ex-KPEV engines. In April 1920, CFR purchased further fifty engines: 140.116 through 140.140 (built by Baldwin) and 140.141 through 140.165 (built by Montreal Locomotive Works, an ALCO subsidiary). They differed in having rocking grates and
provisions for mixed coal/oil firing. There are some discrepancies concerning steam engine: competent Romanian sources (including ITFR) give cylinder bore/piston stroke at 584/660 mm (i.e. 23’/26’), which of course resulted in higher tractive effort of 15.9 tonnes. On the other hand, other sources (including Baldwin catalogue) give 21’/28’, as in original Pershings and Polish Tr20s. Apart from five written off after accidents, all CFR engines were still in service in late 1953. Most were withdrawn between 1970 and 1973 and the last one was 140.105 (ex USATC 1664, Baldwin 50433/1918), withdrawn in September 1977 and formally written off in October 1979.
As far as I know, only two Pershings have survived until today. One engine from the first batch of 150 (U.S.Army No.8341, built in 1917), which had not been sent to France, saw some service at Ft.Monroe, VA, and was rebuilt in 1925. Withdrawn in 1945, it was sent to Korea in 1947 along with 100 engines acquired from Europe – hence its new number, No.101. It was returned by the authorities of the Korean Republic in 1959 and can now be seen at the National Railroad Museum, Green Bay, WN.
The other surviving Pershing is CFR 140.117 (Baldwin 53343/1920), which has been preserved in Sibiu. It underwent a major overhaul in 2004 and is still in working order, from time to time running with special trains.
