The locomotive on display at the Fennimore Railroad Museum was brought to Fennimore, WI, as a "stand in" for the steam engine that used to run on the narrow gauge (36”) Chicago & North Western line between Fennimore and Woodman. The original engine, #279, affectionately known as the "Dinky" by locals in reference to it (and the line's) diminutive stature, now resides in Pioche, NV, and you can see photos and find out more about it on the CNW #279 page of this website.
#6 was built by the Davenport Locomotive Works as an 0-4-4T Forney four-coupled type locomotive in 1907 for the Alma Plantation Company, a cane sugar producer in Glynn, LA. In 1938, it was rebuilt as a Mogul (2-6-0) type with tender. It weighs 30,000 lbs, 25,000 on its 31” drivers, and has 9” x 14” cylinders. Operating at a boiler pressure of 163 psi, it delivered 5,011 lbs tractive effort.
In 1959, it was sold to the Edaville Corporation in Wakefield, MA. Three years later, it was moved to the Edaville Railroad in South Carver, MA, before finding a new home in Fennimore. It is on display with Chicago North Western Speeder #153.
The Godchaux Sugar Company started prior to
the Civil War and, as early as 1890, it began using rails to bring its sugar cane crops from the plantation fields to its south Louisiana mills for processing. Five years later, Godchaux had purchased its first two steam locomotives, two Baldwin tank engines, and had track stretching at least twenty miles.
The railroad system was scrapped in 1958 when
the mill was bought by the National Sugar and Refinery Company. The refinery finally closed in 1985.
