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CSX Black Berkshire

(Requested by opaldubereats)

(If you have a particular livery you'd like me to make, you may leave a request in the comments. However, if you do not word your request as a question, I will not honour your request. This is because I absolutely hate it when some people think they can just say something like 'make duck from Thomas and Friends' and expect me to go along with the idea, because that makes me think that they're just telling me to do something instead of asking. I do not allow that sort of attitude in the comments section on my re-skins).

('make wilson from chuggington' or 'make Jubilee from underground ernie' are examples of the WRONG way to word a request. Again, if you word your request like that, I will NOT honour it).

This re-skin is based on the black livery worn by Chesapeake & Ohio 2-8-4 No. 2716 back in July 2019. Like Rolling Line's Berkshire model, C&O 2716 is also a 2-8-4 tender engine. The number carried by this re-skin is that of a real-life 2-8-4 that worked on the Pere Marquette Railroad. 1220 was part of the same class as the famous 1225.

C&O 2716 was a K-4 class 'Berkshire' (not to be confused with the Pennsylvania K4 Pacifics) built by the American Locomotive Company in December 1943, and was the 17th engine to be built in a class of 90. The locomotive worked for the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad until her retirement in 1957. The reason for her short service live was due to the rapid advancement of diesel locomotive technology.

Anyway, two years after retirement - in 1959 - 2716 was donated to the Kentucky Railway Museum in New Haven, Kentucky. Once there she was placed on static display and has remained at the museum for most of her preserved life. 2716 has had at least two brief spells as an excursion locomotive; one from 1980 to 1982 and another in 1995/96. After her second excursion period, the locomotive was sent back to the Kentucky Railway Museum for display.

Thankfully, the future looks bright for 2716. In July 2019, the aforementioned K.R.M. partnered with CSX Transportation to have 2716 moved (by rail, mind) from the museum to Ravena, Kentucky for yet another restoration. As part of the partnership, a modified version of the CSX 'boxcar' logo was painted on the tender.