Fundraiser for 142-year-old Manitoba locomotive gaining steam

An iconic Manitoba railway is looking for nan public’s thief to get Canada’s oldest operating steam locomotive backmost connected track.

The beloved Prairie Dog Central Railway is looking astatine captious attraction to its Steam Locomotive No. 3, which was built measurement backmost successful 1882, to get it backmost successful work for 2025.

The value tag for nan awesome attraction activity is astir $150,000, truthful nan volunteer-driven Vintage Locomotive Society is hoping a nationalist fundraising run will thief scope nan goal.

The society’s Paul Newsome told 680 CJOB’s The News that contempt nan ask, fans of nan longtime Manitoba tourer attraction don’t request to interest — nan locomotive is conscionable successful statement for a scheduled overhaul.

“This year, nan Steam Locomotive No. 3 is undergoing its required 15-year awesome maintenance, which includes re-tubing of nan boiler,” he said.

“It’s a required process that’s done connected each operating steam locomotives successful Canada and nan U.S., truthful it’s not for illustration nan point is falling apart. Its clip is due.”

The train, which usually departs from a position conscionable northbound of Winnipeg’s airdrome and heads northwest to Warren, Man., pinch a fewer stops on nan way, is billed much than conscionable a train ride. It’s intended to springiness passengers nan railroad acquisition a personification travelling done nan prairies would person had much than 100 years ago.

The society’s trading head Catherine Duffin said nan existent Go Fund Me campaign is opening to summation steam, arsenic individual donations are coming straight to nan organization.

“We’ve had astir $3,000 successful donations done that, arsenic good arsenic group mailing successful donations, wherever we’ve had astir $8,000,” Duffin told The News.

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“So we’re group astatine astir $11,000 successful very, very generous donations correct now.”

The locomotive came disconnected nan tracks past September, and nan extremity is to person it backmost up and moving by 2025, but its impermanent removal doesn’t mean nan Prairie Dog Central has unopen down. The railway has its vintage (1958) diesel motor acting arsenic a backup.