Burlington Northern Santa Fe #2972 was originally built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in March 1964 as Gulf, Mobile & Ohio #601, a 2,500-horsepower GP35. On August 10, 1972, the Gulf, Mobile and Ohio Railroad merged with the Illinois Central Railroad to form the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad, and this locomotive was assigned Illinois Central Gulf #2500, but this number was never applied before it was sold in the spin-off of the new Paducah & Louisville Railway on August 27, 1986, remaining as #601. It was later sold to VMV Enterprises of Paducah, Kentucky, where it was rebuilt into 2,300-horsepower GP39V Burlington Northern #2972 in October 1990. Following the merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on September 22, 1995, this locomotive became Burlington Northern Santa Fe #2972 on October 25, 1999. I photographed it from Amtrak’s westbound Empire Builder at Havre, Montana, on May 18, 2002.
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