Alco’s Cooke Works in Paterson, NJ, built 0-4-2T (Tank) locomotive #8 in 1920 for the Coronet Phosphate Company in Coronet, FL. Coronet Phosphate was formed in 1906. A processing plant was built near Plant City, FL, and mining operations started in 1908. Mined phosphate was transported to a processing plant where it was dried and stored for later shipment. The company passed through various owners and finally closed in 2004 as Coronet Industries Inc.
#8 is an oil burner weighing 87,000 lbs, 77,000 lbs on its 39” drivers. With 14” x 22” cylinders, it operated at a boiler pressure of 180 psi delivering 16,500 lbs tractive effort. It is on display at the intersection of FCI Rd & Caverns Rd in Marianna, FL, along with an unnumbered cupola caboose, an SCL freight truck and an unmarked flatbed car, all looking pretty run down.
You can see three other surviving Coronet Phosphate locomotive on this site. #6 is on the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum page, the remains of #7 (now de-accessioned) on the Gold Coast Railroad Museum page and #9 on the Illinois Railway Museum Yard page.
