West Pratt Street, Baltimore City, Maryland


The American Freedom Train (AFT) was a 26-car train led by one of three enormous steam engines restored just for the occasion. Over a 21 month period from April 1, 1975 to December 31, 1976 more than 7 million Americans visited the train during its tour of all 48 contiguous states.

The 1975 - 1976 American Freedom Train
AFT Locomotive #1: The former Reading Railroad T-1 #2101 went on to pull the Chessie Steam Specials before being damaged in a roundhouse fire. It was cosmetically repaired and has a permanent home at the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Museum in Baltimore, MD. But... the coal tender with the 2101 at the B&O museum is not the tender it pulled on the AFT. That tender, full of coal, was severely damaged in the roundhouse fire and it was deemed easier to fix up the tender from T-1 #2100, which had been used for spare parts when 2101 was originally restored in 1975. Today, the 2100 is also a restored (and operable) steam locomotive. And, yes, 2100 is pulling the AFT tender, finally repaired from its fire damage. 2100 is owned by a Canadian investor who has converted the former AFT tender from coal to oil. The tender and its "new" locomotive were most recently in service with the Golden Pacific Railroad, Inc. in Tacoma, WA. In addition to its own coal tender, AFT T-1 #2101 picked up an auxiliary water tender/tool car in the early days of the AFT (also used on the Chessie Steam Specials, also burned in the roundhouse fire). The extra tender was from a New York Central 4-8-2 Mohawk and is now located in Elkhart, Indiana at the National New York Central Railroad Museum.
(info from American Freedom Train website)

Photographed by Mark Beebe, December 5, 2008.
Added to the photo archive by Mark Beebe, December 12, 2008.
Railroad: B&O Railroad Museum.

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