A Brand New 777 has arrived fresh from the factory

In this striking color slide, a brand new 777 has just been delivered to the Mount Frigid Engine Terminal from her birth place in Lima Locomotive Works in Lima Ohio.  The Bluefield ordered a total of 4 Lima-built Berkshires, numbered 775-778. They were essential copies of the famous Nickel Plate locomotives of the same wheel arrangement. When she arrived, the 777 had white running boards and white trimmed drivers (a look typically reserved for passenger power). She also sported a handsomely sheathed smokebox. The engine would not keep her fancy appearance for long, as tough mountain railroading and the many tunnels located on steep grades created less than clean conditions for any steam power.

A Bluefield 2-8-4 makes her way slowly through Williams Ridge with a reefer train in tow.  Bluefield had several 'hotshot' freights, and although they were not extremely high speed, they were faster than one would assume on a steep and winding road like the Southern Allegheny Division. 777 was a division favorite as far as heavy home steam power. She was a bit slippery on the grades, however, as were the other 2 original Bluefield 2-8-4s. The railroad continued to make small adjustments to try to give the engines better starting power.

1913 Bluefield and Allegheny Central Map.

This is the way the Bluefield and Allegheny Central Railroad appeared in 1913. The map was not to change much in the next 50 years except for the addition of some branch lines. By 1950, B&AC was controlled by the Norfolk and Western, but continued to essentially run as its own entity into the 1960s. Trains north of Fairmont operated with trackage rights over the New York Central to Pittsburgh.