6 July 2007
Empress of Agincourt Cosmetic Restoration
ex-Canadian Pacific Railway number 8921, the
"Empress of Agincourt".
St. Thomas Ontario - There are still a few little details
to finish, but the cosmetic restoration of ex-Canadian Pacific Railway number 8921, the "Empress of Agincourt"
at the Elgin County Railway Museum is pretty much complete.
Built as a demonstrator by the Montreal Locomotive Works in 1957, this is the one and only RSD-17 ever built. It was
originally loaned to the CPR from May to December of 1957 with the road number 7007. It was then transferred to Canadian National for
testing and renumbered to 3899. CN only had it four months when the Pacific Great Eastern (now BC Rail) tried it out until October of
1958 under road number 624.
Finally in 1959, Canadian Pacific purchased the locomotive outright and gave it its current number, 8921.
Always a railfan favorite, it was nicknamed the "Empress of Agincourt" because of its rarity and common presence around
Toronto's Agincourt Yard.
8921 received a number of paint schemes over the years, and in 1988 under went a major cosmetic change when Canadian Pacific chopped
the nose to increase visibility. In 1995 Canadian Pacific was forced to retire the ALCO because of truck problems that could not be
repaired. Realizing the historic value of the locomotive, CP actively looked for a group to preserve it. So in 1997, 8921 was donated
to the Elgin County Railway Museum where it is now completing its cosmetic restoration.
|
