I recently photographed this Porter 0-4-0 at Cool Springs Park, a roadside attraction near Rowlesburg, West Virginia. I have no information on it, and could find no indications of its heritage.
The Porter appears to be a close-clearance design with a home-built cab, and is 42” gauge. However, someone has modified the engine to run on 36” gauge track. The drivers on the right side of the locomotive touch the rails, while those on left side are suspended by guide wheels that have been bolted to the frame. Very strange, to say the least.
J. David says that the engine is possibly Three Forks – Sewel Coal. I do not have a copy of the Porter book to check if the Three Forks Coal Company rostered any close-clearance Porters.
There is quite a bit of 3’ gauge trackage on the grounds, including several EBT cars (two flatcars and a hopper) and cabooses from the B&O, one of which is on EBT trucks. There is also a Vulcan 0-4-0T, reportedly from Crab Orchard Coal.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/23/2015 07:08AM by Jeff Terry.