Rio Grande Southern

Try emailing this guy: snipped-for-privacy@idm.com

His web site

lists the following: Rio Grande Southern Road #: 25 Builder: N. Y. Locomotive Works (Rome), # 90, 1884 Photographs: p 214 [1], pp 172-3, 192, 548, 598 [2]

I don't know to which book those pages refer, sorry.

Thanks for the plug - I'm here.

Actually, this is from a link to the DRGW.ORG site, which has excellent specs & history on lots of locomotives. If you explore that site a bit, you'll find the books for the page references.

The RGS had two #25s, suprisingly both were 4-6-0s. The one referred to above was the first, purchased 2nd-hand from the D&RG about 1891 and scrapped in 1916. The second was much larger, and purchased from the Florence & Cripple Creek in 1916.

I have a complete (mostly) timeline of locomotives used by the RGS here:

have links there to a few photos of the locomotive. Here's a photo from 1923, when it was operating: Neither of the #25s survived, although a sister to the 2nd #25 did - and that's RGS #20. If you go to this page on my site: 's information and photo links for RGS #20, now on display at the Colorado Railroad Museum, in Golden CO.

The second RGS #25 was purchased in 1916 from the Florence & Cripple Creek, and used until about 1930, by which time it had been sidelined needing repairs. Victor Miller (receiver of the RGS at the time) repaired it for about $1000 and put it back in service. By 1940 it was out of service again, and being stripped for parts.

- Steven

Steven, that's a great photo, thanks for the link.

The poor old thing obviously had a hard life, but it has heaps of character. No wonder the RGS has such a loyal following.

All the best,

Mark.