For the first time in almost a decade, 1926 Alco-Cooke built 2-8-0 #97 pulls a revenue train for the Connecticut Valley Railroad. The locomotive just came out of the shops following an overhaul. Old 97 was originally built for export to Cuba but was instead delivered to the Birmingham Southern Railroad as #200. In 1964, she began running as Vermont Railways #97 before being sold to the Valley Railroad in 1970. On the day of this photo, she was used as the lead engine in a double-header excursion for the Mass Bay Railroad Enthusiasts along with #3025, 1989 Chinese Mikado built to look like a New Haven Railroad J-1. Connecticut Valley Railroad is now one of only a handful of railroads in the United States with three operable standard gauge steam locomotives.
Note: This was the site of a photo run-by for the patrons of the charter. Out of respect for the patrons, the drone was kept far away and at a higher altitude as not to cause noise interference. As a result, some of the individuals in the photo line were in the foreground. They were removed with clone stamp to get the desired image.
