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In the early 1940s, the Chesapeake & Ohio needed new power on its Allegheny Division to move coal trains over the 80 miles of track from Hinton, WV east to Clifton Forge, VA. On the brink of ordering more 2-10-4s the C&O was approached by the Lima Locomotive Company with a new and more powerful locomotive design.
The C&O placed an order for ten of these 2-6-6-6 locomotives and Lima delivered them in December, 1941. They were designated Class H-8 and assigned road numbers 1600 through 1609. With a new wheel arrangement came a new name. The C&O selected the name "Allegheny" for the mountain range that this new locomotive would do its work.
In operation, one "Allegheny" leading and one pushing could move a 140 car loaded coal train up the mountain from the Hinton terminal. At the top the pusher would be taken off, turned around and sent back to the Hinton terminal. The single leading "Allegheny" could handle the decent down the mountain to Clifton Forge where it would be turned around for a return trip with a train of empty coal cars.
The C&O had 23 of its "Alleghenies" equipped with steam heat and signal lines for passenger service, but they were used sparingly, pulling an occasional heavy mail train or a troop train during World War II.
The "Allegheny" may have been the ultimate freight locomotive. They were able to achieve a very impressive record even though they were used in a manner for which they were not designed. The Allegheny boilers were capable of delivering up to 8000 HP! This was far greater than any other reciprocating steam locomotive could develop.
However, the C&O used the H-8s in "coal drag" service where they were unable to realize their full potential as high speed locomotives. The C&O Alleghenies were designed to haul 5,000 tons at 45mph, but unfortunately were used to haul trains of 10,000 or more tons at 15mph.
C&O's 2-6-6-6s were very impressive locomotives. However, they were never used to their full potential. The "Allegheny" was truly magnificent in its role, but as good as it was it could not win the battle with the diesel.
The C&O's "Alleghenies" were taken out of service beginning in 1952 with the last fire dropped in 1956.
The Virginian was the only other railroad to have bought the 2-6-6-6. It took delivery of eight of them in 1945 and used them for hauling coal trains well into the 1950s. On the Virginian these Lima built copies of the C&O "Allegheny" were called "Blue Ridge" type locomotives.
Fortunately, two of the C&O "Allegheny" type locomotives survive today, number 1601 at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI and number 1604 at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, MD.