The Oyster Bay Railroad Museum (OBRM), located on Long Island in New York, has contracted with Next Generation Rail Solutions (NGRS) to cosmetically restore Long Island Railroad (LIRR) steam locomotive No. 35. The awarded contract ends a long waiting period during which the museum went through the process of finding and negotiating with contractors. The locomotive sat disassembled but will now be getting a full cosmetic restoration, as well as running gear work so that it can be moved around the museum grounds.
The 1928 locomotive was built in the Pennsylvania Railroad Juniata Pa shops for the Long Island Railroad (partially owned by the PRR), No. 35 is a 4-6-0 G5 class, built specifically for commuter passenger service. After retirement in 1955, the locomotive was displayed in Salisbury (Eisenhower) Park after being donated to Nassau County. Today, the Oyster Bay Railroad Museum cares for the locomotive on its property.
During the restoration process, parts will be sent to Next Gen Rail Services’s shop at various points to be restored. Headed by Jason Sobczynski, “That Steam Guy”, Next Gen has been involved with several other recent steam locomotive restorations including C&O #2716 at Kentucky Steam and L&N #152 at the Kentucky Railway Museum.
No timeline has been given for completion of the restoration. The museum provides a link to donate towards the restoration cost on its website.
Image from LIRR Steam Locomotive #35 Facebook page
Learn more
LIRR 35 restoration announcement on Facebook
Oyster Bay Railroad Museum website
History of LIRR 35
Next Generation Rail Services Facebook page