Much has happened in the year 2022 concerning a project to rebuild an historic locomotive in the City of Corry. Will that momentum continue in 2023?

In October 2020, a few founding members of a group called “Corry R.A.I.L.S.” brought back parts of a Climax-A locomotive which they found in Alaska.  The locomotive was manufactured in Corry in 1902.  An effort to rebuild the locomotive began in early 2021. The multi-year project continues today.  When completed, the locomotive would be the only Climax-A assembled and running on tracks.  Carl Wassink is one of the founding members of Corry R.A.I.L.S.  He is working hard to see the project through.

Carl says a lot was accomplished in 2022.  He says a man from Lock Haven manufactured some of the pieces that were missing from the pile of parts found in Alaska. 

"He's been here 3, 4, 5 times on our work sessions and he's working on a couple of more patterns for other parts that we need also,” says Carl.

There were other major accomplishments in 2022. A man from Meadville did a great job in getting the original engine up and running. It was a major milestone in the rebuilding project. The engine is now running like a dream.

So, what are the milestones to be reached in 2023?  Corry R.A.I.L.S. hopes to finalize the contract for a new boiler.  Some of the original boiler will be placed on the rebuilt locomotive, but there are safety restrictions to obey before the locomotive can travel on the rails. That’s why the new boiler is needed. The acquisition of a new boiler, however, will take money and time. Carl has been doing a lot of wondering.

"Is it going to be in the $80,000 to $100,000 range or is it going to be over $200,000? Then it comes down to, ‘Well, maybe we can get it done in a year and a half to maybe it will take three or more years."  

The frame for the Climax-A locomotive is made of wood.  For historical purposes, the group plans to use just some of the 120-year old wood from the original. The new wood must be Southern Yellow Pine. It's hard to find, but Carl found some rare 24-foot beams in Georgia.

"Those are waiting now.  We have a trucker locally who is going to be going down to pick them up,” he says.

There's more good news for Corry R.A.I.L.S.  A railroad museum in Fairbanks, Alaska is donating original trucks from a Climax-A that were found near that city. Trucks are the wheel. axle, and brake assemblies found under a rail car. Corry R.A.I.L.S. hopes to bring those trucks back to Corry sometime in 2023.