By Railfan & Railroad Staff

The Whitewater Valley Railroad completed a decades-long restoration effort of a rare Lima-Hamilton LS-1000 locomotive this summer. Armco Steel Corporation 709 made its public debut on July 31, during a private photo charter, and then led excursions on August 3 and 4. 

Armco 709 served a steel plant in Ohio for most of its working life before being donated to Whitewater Valley in 1987. The locomotive saw limited service until 1989 when it was sidelined with mechanical issues. Restoration efforts were sporadic over the next decade but began again in earnest in 2015. 

The newly-restored locomotive joins the former Cincinnati Union Terminal 25, as the only two operational Lima-Hamilton switchers. 

For more information, visit the railroad’s website.