UP SD40N No. 2044 in Sauget, IL
An Alton & Southern yard job heads down the A&S River Line after leaving Gateway Yard light power, en route to Cahokia for some work.
The UP SD40N No. 2044 is dressed in the Alton & Southern paint scheme, which it recently received at Jenks Shops at North Little Rock, AR. So far, this is one of three engine that have been repainted into A&S colors, the other two being SD62's that are typically assigned to transfers out of Gateway.
This engine was originally built as the MP SD40-2 No. 3263 in August of 1978. After the merger, it became UP No. 4263, eventually becoming UP No. B4263 when it, along with many other former MP SD40-2's, were changed to trailing unit-only status and classified as SD40-2B's.
It was renumbered yet again as the UP No. 8968 and assigned to the A&S Gateway Yard in East St. Louis, and in the near two decades it's been here, it's been renumbered twice more as the UP No. 3205 in 2014 and the UP No. 2044 in 2017 when it was rebuilt as an SD40N. At the beginning of 2023, it was repainted into Alton & Southern colors.
I've always thought the Alton & Southern's CNW-Mo-Pac inspired paint scheme was sharp, reflecting on the time when the A&S was jointly owned by those two roads. I love how their herald is also a blend of the CNW and MP emblems, incorporating the CNW bar and ball logo with MP's buzzsaw.
Though still a separate legal entity, the Alton & Southern is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the UP. The CNW and MP gained control of the A&S in 1968, but CNW ended up selling its share to the SSW in 1972. UP took control of MP's ownership when the two merged in 1982, and in 1996, they took full ownership when they acquired the SP, SSW's parent company.
Up until recently, only a few A&S painted switchers remain, and the famous GP38-2 duo have been off the roster for a few years now. I had never been able to nail any A&S power in my previous trips to the St. Louis. I made the trip this time to hopefully shoot the two SD62's, but they weren't seen or heard of all day. Even if it's light power, this SD40N was definitely a nice consolation prize as it's mostly captive to Gateway Yard and hasn't been photographed much yet.
It's definitely a refreshing sight to see a Class I railroad paint some of their locomotives into a paint scheme like this. Certainly makes the hobby just a bit more interesting in such a boring, homogenized era. 2/11/23.
UP SD40N No. 2044 in Sauget, IL
An Alton & Southern yard job heads down the A&S River Line after leaving Gateway Yard light power, en route to Cahokia for some work.
The UP SD40N No. 2044 is dressed in the Alton & Southern paint scheme, which it recently received at Jenks Shops at North Little Rock, AR. So far, this is one of three engine that have been repainted into A&S colors, the other two being SD62's that are typically assigned to transfers out of Gateway.
This engine was originally built as the MP SD40-2 No. 3263 in August of 1978. After the merger, it became UP No. 4263, eventually becoming UP No. B4263 when it, along with many other former MP SD40-2's, were changed to trailing unit-only status and classified as SD40-2B's.
It was renumbered yet again as the UP No. 8968 and assigned to the A&S Gateway Yard in East St. Louis, and in the near two decades it's been here, it's been renumbered twice more as the UP No. 3205 in 2014 and the UP No. 2044 in 2017 when it was rebuilt as an SD40N. At the beginning of 2023, it was repainted into Alton & Southern colors.
I've always thought the Alton & Southern's CNW-Mo-Pac inspired paint scheme was sharp, reflecting on the time when the A&S was jointly owned by those two roads. I love how their herald is also a blend of the CNW and MP emblems, incorporating the CNW bar and ball logo with MP's buzzsaw.
Though still a separate legal entity, the Alton & Southern is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the UP. The CNW and MP gained control of the A&S in 1968, but CNW ended up selling its share to the SSW in 1972. UP took control of MP's ownership when the two merged in 1982, and in 1996, they took full ownership when they acquired the SP, SSW's parent company.
Up until recently, only a few A&S painted switchers remain, and the famous GP38-2 duo have been off the roster for a few years now. I had never been able to nail any A&S power in my previous trips to the St. Louis. I made the trip this time to hopefully shoot the two SD62's, but they weren't seen or heard of all day. Even if it's light power, this SD40N was definitely a nice consolation prize as it's mostly captive to Gateway Yard and hasn't been photographed much yet.
It's definitely a refreshing sight to see a Class I railroad paint some of their locomotives into a paint scheme like this. Certainly makes the hobby just a bit more interesting in such a boring, homogenized era. 2/11/23.