In a shower of sparks and shroud of smoke, New Jersey’s Morristown & Erie Railway unveiled its semiquincentennial locomotive on June 20.
Built by EMD in 1977 as Southern Railway MP15DC 2354, the locomotive has been renumbered Morristown & Erie 26. The scheme pays tribute to the Southern’s style and lines, while staying true to M&E’s classic red paint, said Matt Phalon, railroad superintendent. The paint job took about three weeks to complete. “We didn’t have to measure (for the new paint),” he said. “It still had its Southern paint underneath.”
The Morristown area holds historic significance in the American Revolution. George Washington established his 1779-80 winter headquarters in Ford Mansion, which is now part of nearby Morristown National Historical Park. To commemorate that connection, the railroad put “Washington Headquarters” under the cab, and “Crossroads of the Revolution” on the hood.
Morristown & Erie Railway’s “America 250” locomotive rolled out of the Morristown, N.J., shop building on Saturday, June 20, 2026. Photo by Michael T. Burkhart
About 36 hours before the debut, an invitation went out on social media for the public (and railfans) to view the unveiling from a nearby elevated parking lot. Despite numerous other rail-related events that day (a streetcar trip in Philadelphia, Pa., Pennsy steam at Williams Grove, Pa., and a historical society convention in the Harrisburg area), about 100 people turned out. Following the debut, the crowd was invited to take an up-close look and take night photos.
The switcher was retired by Norfolk Southern in 2016 and purchased at auction by the M&E, Phalon said. After being leased to a Staten Island, N.Y., container operation, it returned to Morristown in the fall of 2024 and received a new main generator along with a black Erie Railroad-style paint scheme.
The locomotive was expected to be briefly put on display at the Whippany Railway Museum before entering regular freight service.
The M&E dates back to 1895, when it was known as the Whippany River Railroad. While in the past it was best known as an Alco-road, today its fleet consists mostly of four-axle EMDs.
—Michael T. Burkhart
