Know Thy Early Mohawks

Know Thy Early
Mohawks

by
Thomas R. Gerbracht

Dedication

This book is dedicated to the New York Central crews
who manned the cabs of the Central’s Mohawks for over four decades,

and to their extended families.

2019 by Thomas R. Gerbracht.
All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in part or whole,
in any form or means whatsoever, including electronic media, without express
written permission from the publisher, except for brief quotations used in reviews.

Published by
T. R. Gerbracht
4883 Thoroughbred Loop
Erie, PA. 16506
ISBN: 978-0-578-53093-2
Printed in the USA by Jostens Book Manufacturing by
Seaber Turner Associates, www.seaberturner.com
Book Design by mjlipkin.com

Purpose and Acknowledgements

The beginning of my quest to fully document the three great steam designs of the New York Central
Railroad began with “everyone’s favorite locomotive”, the classic New York Central Hudson type. But
there was a triumvirate of Central steam that deserved to be recognized. The second book had as its
subject the most powerful and arguably the best two-cylinder steam locomotive ever built, the New York
Central’s Niagara.

A third book was planned, celebrating the Central’s Mohawk type locomotives. My investigation of the
original Mohawk design, dating from 1916 and continuing through the “L” subclasses, led to a decision to
divide this subject into two volumes. The significant amount of information available as a result of the
operation of Mohawks from 1916 until the very end of steam in 1957, and the fact that there were 600
New York Central Mohawks, were the principal factors that led me to this decision. This became quite
a challenge. For example, the preparation for these two books required a review of 2,662 images of Mo-
hawks for potential publication, and a technical history review that began shortly after the beginning of
the modern New York Central. There were other factors of course, including the high cost of a single very
large book and its associated economics that would be required to do these locomotives justice, and my
goal of including everything of value to our readers and fellow modelers. A mandatory inclusion was a
superb series of mostly unpublished photographs on the highest quality print stock and using the most
advanced stochastic printing methods.

The selection of photographs was made to publish the very best images that would also be a source of
technical information and enjoyment for our readers. Unfortunately, a number of these images lacked
date and location information. I was able to identify a number of locations, and some dates are either
estimated or a date range is used. For any errors in the captions or the narrative, those errors are the
responsibility of the author.

The book that you are holding identifies the environment that led the Central to a 4-8-2 wheel
arrangement, compares the Central’s early Mohawks to their contemporaries, describes the service
experience of these landmark locomotives, and identifies the evolutionary changes that the railroad made
to improve the basic design. The figures in parenthesis that follow text are the reference NYC drawing
numbers that formed the basis of the narrative.

The Central’s early Mohawks, the L-1 and L-2 classes, ruled the Central’s mainline from 1916 until the
1950’s. L-1 and L-2 Mohawks and Hudsons were the two standard steam locomotive designs used by the
railroad during its Golden Age. The original L-1 Mohawk was the initial design that led to a continuous
evolution of Mohawks that lasted through 1943. The last of the modern Mohawks sired the ultimate
steam locomotive, the Central’s Niagara.

This book, like the previous two, is a team effort. I would like to extend my thanks to my fellow
Directors of the NewYork Central System Historical Society for their support. All proceeds from this book,
and the subsequent volume on Late Mohawks, will be donated to the New York Central System
Historical Society.

Several of my fellow Directors must be recognized for their roles in bringing this project to
fruition. I would like to extend my appreciation to President Dave Mackay for his enthusias-
tic support. Vice President Sheldon Lustig provided a critical operational perspective for Line

East train operation during the 1920’s and 1930’s. Fellow Director Jim Suhs shared images
from his extensive photograph collection. Director Emeritus Richard Barrett shared images
and information from his collection of NYC memorabilia. Fellow Director and Manager of Collinwood
Shop, Mike Vescelus, must be recognized and acknowledged for his yeoman work on orders placed with
us via our website. A special thank you to Director and Treasurer Noel Widdifield for handling advertising
for the book, and for his detailed accounting for this project.

My “color coverage” support team, including Art Peterson of Krambles-Peterson archive and
John Szwajkart, promptly responded to my plea for color images of Mohawks. It is my pleasure to include
images from Art’s and John’s collections in this volume. Fellow Director Jim Suhs and Director Emeritus
Dick Barrett also responded with color images from their collections. Thank you to these selfless indi-
viduals for showing us what the NYC at work was really like, and for providing such high-quality images.

In addition, I would like to thank John Szwajkart, who generously provided the two images for the dust
jacket depicting Mohawks in their role as a “workingman’s locomotive”.

Jeremy Taylor, a NYCSHS member and ardent supporter, supplied important information that permitted
me to develop detailed and informative captions for the final period of Mohawk operation on the Big Four.
Jerry’s detailed knowledge of operations in this service area are without peer, and I was delighted to have
him as a part of the informal team that allowed me to capture this information for our readers.

Two New York Central Headquarters volunteers also played a critical role in the development and avail-
ability of this book. Dave Nethery provided a complete series of high-quality scans of the Society’s Mo-
hawk images for the book. Bob Wasko, our shipping expert, continued his role in making sure that the
orders were accurately defined, and that books shipped to our loyal supporters were received by them in
a timely manner and in good condition.

I would also like to thank Gloria for her patience with and wholehearted support of these projects, and
for her help in making the manuscript readable and presentable.

Finally, I would like to thank those who displayed their faith in NYCSHS as an organization by purchasing
the volumes released to date. The income from these efforts has permitted our organization to fulfill its
mission and broaden its reach in the world railfan community. Prior books have all sold out, and it is grati-
fying to me that the affection I have for the Central’s motive power is shared by so many. I am proceeding
on schedule to have the second and final Mohawk book,“Know Thy Late Mohawks”, available in 2020.

I hope that the four volumes that will encompass the New York Central steam triumvirate will find a place
in your library, and that all readers will find the information and images a valuable and continuing refer-
ence to the power that propelled the Golden Age of the New York Central.

Sincerely,

Tom Gerbracht
Erie, PA
June, 2019

PHOTO CREDIT KEY

AP Arthur Peterson (Krambles-Peterson Archive)
CEH Clyde E. Helms
CF Charles Felstead
DTH Donald T. Hayward
GAD George A. Doeright
Gary’s The Gary’s
HLV H. Lansing Vail (NYCSHS Collection)
HS Harold Stirton
JH Jeff Hands (NYCSHS Collection)
JCS James Suhs Collection
JS John Szwajkart
JKT Jeremy Taylor (NYCSHS Collection)
JW Jay Williams Collection
NYCSHS New York Central System Historical Society Collection
RBG Robert B. Graham
RFC Raymond F. Corley
RFS Robert F. Schell (NYCSHS Collection)
RJB Richard J. Barrett Collection
RJF Robert J. Foster
RS Robert Spaugh (NYCSHS Collection)
RT Ray Tobey
TRG Author’s Collection
WAR W.A. Ranke

No. 2995 sits under the Elkhart coal dock in the early 1940’s. The clean lines and comely appearance of 2995 is enhanced
with a Hudson style smokebox front, deck mounted air pumps, a drop coupler pilot, NYC number plate and oval, and
Hudson style tender, making this engine and sister 2998 the best looking of all of the Central’s early Mohawks. (NYCSHS-RS)

Introduction

The first Mohawk type steam locomotive appeared on the newly minted New York Central in July, 1916, less than two years after
the Vanderbilt driven merger of the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad and the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern
Railroad. The first locomotive design with a 4-8-2 wheel arrangement consisted of three locomotives built for the C&O railroad
in 1911 for use hauling passenger trains weighing up to 700 tons over the Allegheny Mountains, hence the name “Mountain”.
The Central was the seventh user of the type. By the time that the Central received its first Mohawks in 1916, Mountain type
locomotives had been built previously for the C&O, Missouri Pacific, Rock Island, Great Northern, Seaboard Air Line, and Canadian
Pacific. The design base for the 4-8-2 type was the widely used 4-6-2 Pacific, with one additional set of driving wheels added to haul
steel passenger stock over mountainous profiles. The Central declined the use of the name “Mountain”, preferring to use the name
“Mohawk”. The Central’s engine was a fast freight design intended for use along its famous“water level route“.

Prior to the advent of the new Mohawk type locomotive, the 2-8-2 Mikado type locomotive was the standard “heavy freight” hauler on
the Central in the years 1913-1916. The relatively long and heavy main rod and the use of relatively small 63-inch driving wheels made
Mikados unsuitable for high speed service.

For service on the water level main line, something different, something faster and better was needed.

During this time in motive power history, the term “high speed service” was a relative term. For example, the Employees Timetable for
the Mohawk Division in September 1929 provided speed limits for various tracks. On tracks one and two, the “high speed” westbound
and eastbound tracks, the speed limit for freight trains was 40 mph. On tracks three through track eight, which were primarily freight,
the speed limit was 35 mph. The speed limit on the West Shore was 25 mph between Harbor (East Utica) and Syracuse. On both routes
there were speed restrictions as low as six mph. There were long sidings, based on 43-ft cars, only on the mainline. These were located
at St. Johnsville, Rome, and Oneida, with capacity of 110 to 200 cars. Train density was high, with about fifty first class trains every twen-
ty-four hours. The challenge for New York Central freight power would be to have the high drawbar pull at speed (horsepower) to haul
a train of approximately 75 to 95 cars weighing 2500 to 3500 tons at track speed, and to develop the excess horsepower to rapidly lift
the train from slowdowns due to speed restrictions. And the locomotive should have axle loadings that, while providing the necessary
adhesion, were also as low as practical to minimize damage to rail and roadbed.

The original Mohawks were followed within a few years by 4-8-2 designs for other railroads, including the Light and the Heavy 4-8-2’s
designed by the United States Railway Administration in 1918 for passenger service. There were four distinct subclasses of L-1 Mohawks
eventually used by the Central, and these 185 locomotives served in front line service until the mid-1920’s.

Motive power development in the early 1920’s prompted the Central to investigate a more advanced locomotive for Line East that would
supplement and eventually displace the L-1. A new design for this application would continue the use of a relatively large 69-inch driving
wheel, the four-wheel lead truck, but would have a higher boiler pressure and smaller cylinders. In order to achieve higher horsepower,
the new design would include a mechanical stoker, and for an increase in efficiency, the combustion chamber would be enlarged. The
new locomotive design included appliances that would further improve performance and efficiency,including a much larger superheater,
a feedwater heater, a booster engine, and a large tender. The emphasis on low individual axle loadings would continue. The first of these
Mohawks, the L-2A class, was introduced in 1925. The design was so successful that 300 L-2 Mohawks were acquired by 1930, in four
subclasses. By the early 1930’s, the L-2 Mohawks were dispersed throughout the entire NYC system.

The L-2A and its further evolved successors had a career on the Central that started in 1925 and ended in 1957. The final steam roster for
the New York Central, dated January 18, 1957, rostered eleven L-2 Mohawks, nine L-2C’s and two L-2D’s.

During the Golden Age of the New York Central, the Hudsons held the glamor assignments. Freight traffic paid most of the bills, however,
and the Central’s engine crews in road service spent a lot more hours, days, weeks, and years in the cabs of L-2 Mohawks than in any
other New York Central steam power, with the possible exception of Class H-5 Mikados and U class switchers. The L-1 and L-2 class rode
well, steamed well, and were fast and reliable. They were very well liked by crews. When they were built, they were the premier freight
locomotive on the premier railroad in the country.

Join me in saluting and celebrating the NewYork Central’s early Mohawks,and to the crews that recognized what a marvelous mechanical
tool they could use to contribute to the success of a great enterprise.

Tom Gerbracht



Know Thy Early
Mohawks

Table of Contents

The L-1 Mohawk......................................................................... 1
The L-2 Mohawk......................................................................... 43
Mohawks in Color...................................................................... 121
The Oddities ............................................................................. 153
Maintaining the Mohawk Fleet................................................... 177
Tenders ............................................................................. 203
The Final Miles........................................................................... 217
Bibliography ............................................................................. 229

L-1A Mohawk No. 2509 is new at Alco in November of 1916. She was a big girl for her time, far larger than the small
Pacific she would replace. Prominent is a large diameter boiler, high drivers, and the clean and simple lines of early
century motive power. The small eight-wheel tender design will not survive early evolutionary changes. (TRG)

The L-1 Mohawk

The History Central. The L-1 Mohawk appeared on the Central in July,
1916. Motive power developments on the Central and in
With the single unique exception of the steam to diesel the industry preceding the first Mohawk provide some
conversion, North American railroads have always clues about parentage. In the early twentieth century,
followed a path to new motive power using an there were a number of improvements in rolling stock,
evolutionary process. The reason for this is that the cost both freight and passenger, that forecasted an increase in
of failure is too high for revolutionary and therefore the size and capability of motive power. For passenger
unproven designs. The challenge in writing about the equipment, the government edict that mandated a change
Central’s L-1 Mohawk must therefore begin with a search in passenger equipment from wood to steel construction
for the Mohawk’s “parents”. resulted in heavier trains. The impact on passenger mo-
tive power resulted in the obsolescence of 4-4-2 Atlantic
The 4-8-2 Mohawk was the logical outgrowth of the 4-6-2 type locomotives, and higher passenger train speeds and
Pacific and the 2-8-2 Mikado type locomotives on the the need for higher horsepower resulted in a 4-6-2 Pacific

K-11E Pacific No. 3162, intended for passenger and freight service, had too little adhesive weight and tractive effort
for dual service after steel rolling stock was introduced. Similarity to the first L-1A Mohawk is apparent when com-
paring builder’s photographs. (TRG)

1