BREAKING - Nickel Plate Road steam locomotive no. 757 is on her way back to where she belongs in Bellevue, Ohio. This marks a major milestone in a long campaign by the Mad River & NKP Railroad Museum to relocate the 757 from her resting place of 53 years in Strasburg, PA to where she was originally supposed to be displayed in Bellevue, along with cosmetically restoring the engine and placing her back on display. The Mad River Museum has also recieved a full transfer of ownership of the locomotive from the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania today.
She has a long 500-mile trip ahead of her, traveling on lines of the famed Strasburg Railroad, Amtrak, and Norfolk Southern. Due to safety and logistics, routing details and any form of a schedule will not be published, but progress reports may be announced on the Mad River group's Facebook page. If you do run into the locomotive, keep safety a top priority; stay a good distance away from the tracks and DO NOT trespass on railroad property.
After she was retired from service in 1960, the 757 was intended for donation to the city of Bellevue. Unfortunately, no display site or museum existed at the time, and after 6 long years in storage, the 757 was donated to the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania, and was shipped to Strasburg in December 1966. She has been in dilapidated condition ever since. In August 2017, the Mad River & NKP Railroad Museum started a campaign to relocate, restore and display the 757 in Bellevue, OH. As of February 1, 2019, the museum has raised over $157,000 of their $250,000 goal. For more information, or to donate, go to the Bring Back 757 website.
(Photo removed to comply with TOS.)
