Clinchfield No. 1 – Fabled Steam Engine
- Home Page
- History: Summary | Design | Surveys | Railroad Battles | Construction | Clinchfield Coal
- Predecessors: Summary | CRRR | 3Cs | OR&C | S&W | CC&O
- Leaders: George L. Carter | M.J. Caples | John B. Dennis
- Floods: Floods and Clinchfield/CSX Reconstruction
- The Clinchfield: Maps | Mileposts | Stations | Connections | Branches/Spurs | Yards | Sidings | High Line | Bridges | Tunnels | Grades | Loops | Santa Train
- Locomotives: Summary | Diesels | Steam | Challengers | No.1 | CRR 800 | CSX Heritage Unit
- Operations: Summary | Freight | Passenger | Timetables | Wrecks | Dispatcher’s Sheet
- Corporate Couplings: Summary | Family Lines | Seaboard System | CSX | Closure/Reopening
- CSX/CRR Today: Summary | CSX Kingsport Sub | CSX Blue Ridge Sub
- Railfanning: Summary | Restaurant Guide
- Destinations: Summary | Elkhorn City | Breaks | Dante | Speers Ferry | Kingsport | Johnson City | Erwin | Nolichucky Gorge | Spartanburg | and more
- Model Railroads: Summary
- Resources: Books | Scholars | Museums
- Clinchfield.org: Editor | Site Map
- Related Websites: Appalachian-Railroads.org | Southern-Railroads.org
Clinchfield Railroad No. 1
Clinchfield No. 1 became a beloved steam engine that was nationally known when the Clinchfield Railroad ran it in excursion service from 1969 to 1979. Built initially in 1882 for the Columbus Chicago & Indiana Central Railway, it was then purchased several years later by a Clinchfield predecessor, the Ohio River & Charleston Railway. In ran on the Black Mountain Railway from 1907 to 1955, a rail line that was owned by the Clinchfield Railroad. Today it is on display at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore MD.
Photo: No.1’s last solo excursion in 1978 passing through Johnson City TN.
Clinchfield No. 1 Stats and Timeline
- Type: 4-6-0 Ten-Wheeler
- Year Built: 1882
- Original Railroad: Columbus Chicago & Indiana Central No. 423
- 1900: Engine was sold to the Ohio River & Charleston Railway (OR&C) and operated as No. 5
- 1903: South & Western Railroad (S&W) bought the OR&C. S&W became the Carolina Clinchfield & Ohio Railway in 1908, and eventually the Clinchfield Railroad in 1924.
- 1907: Engine was sold to the Black Mountain Railway and operated as No. 1
- 1955: Engine was sold back to the Clinchfield Railroad
- 1960s: Erwin TN displayed the engine in a public park
- 1968: Engine was sold back to the Clinchfield Railroad. Repairs were made to return it to operating condition.
- 1969-1979: Clinchfield Railroad ran No.1 in excursion service, gaining national recognition
- 1979: Engine suffered a crack frame and was retired
- 1981: Clinchfield No. 1 was donated to the B&O Railroad Museum where it resides today
Remembrances of Clinchfield No. 1 by Ron Flanary
Narrative and Photos by Ron Flanary
Saturday, November 27, 1976: “Clinchfield Railroad Ten-Wheeler No. 1 has just arrived at Kingsport, Tennessee with the annual Santa Claus Special from Elkhorn City, Ky.
One half of the famed Hatcher brothers who always handled the “One Spot”–fireman George Hatcher–is leaning over from the engine’s deck to catch a question coming from a railfan (who is unfortunately standing atop the rail!). George was quite a guy–a POW from WWII who kept in shape for this hard firing duties on No. 1 by riding a bicycle around Erwin. He died a few years ago but lived long enough to see Clinchfield’s first F-unit, No. 800, restored and placed on the point of the 2017 train.”
“No. 1 resides in the B&O Museum in Baltimore these days, still looking exactly as she does here, except for the absence of the spit and polish and shiny copper trim. The B-unit is one of two the Clinchfield used to provide most of the motive power, as No. 1 could only handle two coaches on the strength of her 125 PSI boiler pressure.”
Clinchfield’s Hatcher brothers–George (on the left) and Ed–are giving Ten-Wheeler No. 1 lubrication attention during a water stop at Johnson City, Tennessee in 1973. This was a “steam only” excursion, with No. 1 pulling her maximum tonnage–two heavyweight coaches full of railfans. Man, I would love to do this again!
Recommended Reading
A. J. ‘Alf” Peoples and Mark A. Stevens have written and published two wonderful books on Clinchfield no. 1.
The Clinchfield No. 1 by Mark A. Stevens and A. J. ‘Alf’ Peoples, 2014
The 1 & Only by A. J. ‘Alf’ Peoples ad Mark A. Stevens, 2018
Links for More Information
Click here for more information about No.1 at the B&O Railroad Museum
Clinchfield.org Sources and Resources
The following are excellent resources for those of you wanting to explore and learn more about the Clinchfield Railroad. These sources of information also serve as reference and historical materials for Clinchfield.org. Much of the content on the website is verified across multiple sources.
- Associations: Carolina Clinchfield Chapter National Railway Historical Society, Louisville & Nashville Railroad Historical Society, George L. Carter Railroad Historical Society, Watauga Valley Railroad Historical Society
- Personal maps, timetables, track charts, and memorabilia
- Archives of Appalachia – ETSU, Johnson City TN
- Books – Beach: ‘The Black Mountain Railway,’ Drury: ‘The Historical Guide to North American Railroads’, Goforth: ‘Building the Clinchfield’ and ‘When Steam Ran the Clinchfield’, Graybeal: ‘The Railroads of Johnson City’, Helm: ‘The Clinchfield Railroad in the Coal Fields’, Irwin & Stahl: ‘The Last Empire Builder: The Life of George L. Carter’, King: ‘Clinchfield Country’, Marsh: ‘Clinchfield in Color’, Poole: ‘A History of Railroading in Western North Carolina’, Poteat & Taylor: ‘The CSX Clinchfield Route in the 21st Century’, Stevens & Peoples: ‘The Clinchfield No. 1 – Tennessee’s Legendary Steam Engine’, Way: ‘The Clinchfield Railroad, the Story of a Trade Route Across the Blue Ridge Mountains’, Wolfe: ‘Norfolk & Western’s Clinch Valley Line‘ and ‘Southern Railway Appalachia Division,’ and Young: ‘Appalachian Coal Mines and Railroads in Color.’ Volume 1: Kentucky, Volume 2: Virginia
- Magazines – ‘Trains‘ , ‘Classic Trains‘
- Newspaper Articles – Newspapers.com
- Online Article – Scientific American: ‘The Costliest Railroad in America‘, Classic Trains: ‘Remembering the Clinchfield Railroad‘, Railway Age: ‘This Coal Road Is Also A Speedy Bridge Line,’ Sept 1, 1952 edition, ‘Railway Signaling and Communications‘, Flanary: ‘The Quick Service Route, The Clinchfield Railroad‘, Flanary: ‘Men Against Mountains, Running Trains on the Clinchfield‘ October 2001
- Online Videos – Ken Marsh on Kingsport area railroads and region’s history Video #1, Ken Marsh on railroads and region’s history Video #2:
- Websites – Carolana.com – North Carolina Railroads, South Carolina Railroads, Johnson’s Depot hosted by StateOfFranklin.net, RailFanGuides.us for Johnson City and for Erwin, The Radio Reference Wiki, SteamLocomotive.com, VirginiaPlaces.org – Railroad History of Virginia, Multimodalways.org
Contact Us at Clinchfield.org
Would enjoy hearing from you if you have questions, suggestions, edits, or content that you are willing to share. Don’t hesitate to reach out if you have similar interests in the Clinchfield or Model Railroads.
3Cs Websites
Appalachian-Railroads.org | Clinchfield.org | Southern-Railroads.org
