#444 was one of three Ten Wheeler type (4-6-0) locomotives (#444-#446) built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for the Brinson Railway Company, operator of a short line in northern Georgia. In 1914, the railroad was renamed the Savannah & Northwestern. The S&NW was merged with the Savannah & Atlanta in July 1917. #444 was sold in 1935 to the Marianna & Blountstown Railroad in Florida.
Sometimes known as “Many Bumps” or “Meat and Bread”, the twenty nine miles connecting its namesake towns was Florida's shortest railroad. With an interchange with the Louisville & Nashville at Marianna, it provided passenger services until 1929 and also shipped a wide array of agricultural products. The road was abandoned in 1972.
#444 worked on the M&B until the late 1940s and remained with the railroad until 1966, when it was sold to Albert Folds in Malone, FL. In 1982, the engine was sold to the George Ranch Historical Park in Richmond, TX. However, the park’s plan to include a railroad never eventuated and, in 1989, #444 was bought and returned to Blountstown for display.
