No. 60 was built in August 1937 by the American Locomotive Company's (ALCO) Schenectady Locomotive Works, it originally operated on the Great Western Railroad (GWR) in Colorado where it pulled sugar beet and molasses trains.[2] During World War II, a smokebox extension was added to allow the use of poor quality coal because of war-time restrictions, No. 60 would continue to work in revenue service until being retired in the late 1950s.[3]
In 1963, No. 60 was purchased by the newly formed short line Black River and Western Railroad (BRW) for tourist excursion service.[1] It made its first passenger test run on April 25, 1965 and pulled the first official excursion train out of Flemington on May 16, 1965.[1][4][5][6][7][8] During its tenure running on the Black River & Western, 60 has undergone several cosmetic changes through the years.[4] The current paint scheme resembles a mid-sized freight locomotive, with a graphite smokebox and black drivers.[1]
While No. 60 was bought by the Black River & Western in 1963, it has ventured off the railroad several times.[4] In 1967, the locomotive ran excursions on the Long Island Railroad out of Jamaica, New York. It is rumored that she reached a speed of 55MPH with a 14-car long train during these trips. No. 60 also visited the Whippany Railway Museum in 1994 for a railroad festival alongside New York, Susquehanna and Western 142.[9]
The locomotive was used as the primary motive power for the railroad when in service.[4] The locomotive was taken out of service in November 2000 for a mandatory 1,472-inspection required by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) which took almost twelve years to complete.[1][10] The locomotive returned to service in August 2012.[1] In November 2023, No. 60 was removed from service to undergo another FRA 1,472-day inspection and overhaul.[1]
