Quite a Motive Power Consist in Massillon

You’ve probably never seen a motive consist quite like this before and you probably won’t again.

It is April 10, 1998, in Massillon and a southbound Ohio Central train operating on the R.J. Corman has quite an ecletic collection of motive power including SPCX No. 705, OHCR No. 7573, and Connecticut Department of Transportation No. 471.

The lead unit is a GP10 that at the time was in the motive fleet of Qwest, which is best known as being a telecommunications company and not a railroad.

But it had a fleet of locomotives, including the 705, which was built for the Illinois Central as a GP9 in January 1955.

By this date it had joined the Ohio Central motive power roster although it continued to carry the Qwest herald on the flanks.

It was not unusual for Ohio Central to operate motive power still in the livery of a previous owner or operator.

CDOT 471 is a former Maine Central GP7 built in July 1950. During its time on the CDOT roster it received a livery paying tribute to the New York, New Haven & Hartford.

You probably know this locomotive fairly well because it pulled excursion trains for several years for the Orrville Railroad Heritage Society.

Photograph by Robert Farkas

Tags: GP7 locomotives, GP7u, Massillon, Ohio Central, Ohio Central motive power, Robert Farkas photography