EMD SW900
Encyclopedia
An EMD SW900 is a diesel switcher
locomotive
built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division and General Motors Diesel
(GMD) between December 1953 and March 1969. Power was provided by an EMD 567C 8-cylinder
engine that generated 900 horsepower
(670 kW). Built concurrently with SW1200, the eight cylinder units had a single exhaust stack.
260 examples of this locomotive model were built for American
railroads and 97 were built for Canadian
railroads. Canadian production of the SW900 lasted three and a half years past EMD production. Seven units were exported to Orinoco Mining Co (Venezuela); two units were exported to Southern Peru Copper Co; and five units were exported to the Liberian-American Mining Co. Total production is 371 units.
Some SW900s were built with the generators from traded in EMC switchers and were classified as SW900M by EMD. These units developed 600 or 660 horsepower with the older generators instead of the full 900 horsepower of the SW900.
In the early 1960s, the Reading Company
sent 14 of their Baldwin
VO 1000
model switchers to EMD to have them rebuilt to SW900 specifications. The Reading units retained the Baldwin switcher carbody and were rated at 1000 horsepower by EMD.
A Cow-calf
variation, the TR9, was cataloged, but none were built.
Switcher
A switcher or shunter is a small railroad locomotive intended not for moving trains over long distances but rather for assembling trains ready for a road locomotive to take over, disassembling a train that has been...
locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division and General Motors Diesel
General Motors Diesel
General Motors Diesel was a Canadian railway diesel locomotive manufacturer.-History:General Motors Diesel, Limited, was created in 1949 as the Canadian subsidiary of the Electro Motive Division of General Motors located in the United States...
(GMD) between December 1953 and March 1969. Power was provided by an EMD 567C 8-cylinder
Cylinder (engine)
A cylinder is the central working part of a reciprocating engine or pump, the space in which a piston travels. Multiple cylinders are commonly arranged side by side in a bank, or engine block, which is typically cast from aluminum or cast iron before receiving precision machine work...
engine that generated 900 horsepower
Horsepower
Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
(670 kW). Built concurrently with SW1200, the eight cylinder units had a single exhaust stack.
260 examples of this locomotive model were built for American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
railroads and 97 were built for Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
railroads. Canadian production of the SW900 lasted three and a half years past EMD production. Seven units were exported to Orinoco Mining Co (Venezuela); two units were exported to Southern Peru Copper Co; and five units were exported to the Liberian-American Mining Co. Total production is 371 units.
Some SW900s were built with the generators from traded in EMC switchers and were classified as SW900M by EMD. These units developed 600 or 660 horsepower with the older generators instead of the full 900 horsepower of the SW900.
In the early 1960s, the Reading Company
Reading Company
The Reading Company , usually called the Reading Railroad, officially the Philadelphia and Reading Rail Road and then the Philadelphia and Reading Railway until 1924, operated in southeast Pennsylvania and neighboring states...
sent 14 of their Baldwin
Baldwin Locomotive Works
The Baldwin Locomotive Works was an American builder of railroad locomotives. It was located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, originally, and later in nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania. Although the company was very successful as a producer of steam locomotives, its transition to the production of...
VO 1000
Baldwin VO-1000
The Baldwin VO-1000 was a diesel-electric switcher locomotive built by Baldwin Locomotive Works between January, 1939 and December, 1946. The 236,260–242,200 lb units were powered by a normally aspirated eight-cylinder diesel engine rated at , and rode on a pair of two-axle trucks in a B-B...
model switchers to EMD to have them rebuilt to SW900 specifications. The Reading units retained the Baldwin switcher carbody and were rated at 1000 horsepower by EMD.
A Cow-calf
Cow-calf
In North American railroading, a cow-calf locomotive is a set of switcher-type diesel locomotives. The set usually is a pair; some 3-unit sets were built, but this was rare. A cow is equipped with a driving cab; a calf is not...
variation, the TR9, was cataloged, but none were built.
Built by Electro-Motive Division, USA
| Railroad | Quantity | Road numbers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electro-Motive Division demonstrator | |
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to River Terminal 99 |
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to Waterloo Railway 4 | |
| Alabama By-products Corporation | |
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| American Steel and Wire | |
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| Armco Steel Corporation | |
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| Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often abbreviated as Santa Fe, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The company was first chartered in February 1859... |
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| Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which... |
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| Birmingham Southern Railroad Birmingham Southern Railroad Birmingham Southern Railroad is a subsidiary of Transtar, operator of several short-line railroad companies. The BS operates on 84 miles of track, providing switching services in the Birmingham, Alabama area.-History:... |
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| General Motors-Buick Motor Division | |
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| Canton Railroad Canton Railroad The Canton Railroad is a Class III switching and terminal railroad, operating in eastern Baltimore City and Baltimore County. It serves the Helen Delich Bentley Port of Baltimore and local shipping companies, and connects with two Class I railroads: CSX Transportation and the Norfolk Southern... |
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| Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway The Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway , also known as the Crandic is a Class III railroad operating in the US state of Iowa.-History:... |
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| Champion Papers Inc | |
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| Chicago and North Western Railway Chicago and North Western Railway The Chicago and North Western Transportation Company was a Class I railroad in the Midwest United States. It was also known as the North Western. The railroad operated more than of track as of the turn of the 20th century, and over of track in seven states before retrenchment in the late 1970s... |
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| Chicago Great Western Railway Chicago Great Western Railway The Chicago Great Western Railway was a Class I railroad that linked Chicago, Minneapolis, Omaha, and Kansas City. It was founded by Alpheus Beede Stickney in 1885 as a regional line between St. Paul and the Iowa state line called the Minnesota and Northwestern Railroad... |
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| Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock.-Incorporation:... |
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550-563 are 600 h.p. SW900M |
| Colorado and Wyoming Railway Colorado and Wyoming Railway Originally founded in 1899, the Colorado and Wyoming Railway is a subsidiary of the Oregon Steel Mills. It hauls coal, ore and steel products on about five miles of track inside Oregon Steel's Rocky Mountain Steel Mills facility in Pueblo, Colorado, and connects to the Union Pacific Railroad and... |
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| Texas Construction Material Company (Colorado River and Western Railroad) | |
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| Corinth and Counce Railroad Corinth and Counce Railroad The Corinth and Counce Railroad was a Class III railroad operating freight service between Mississippi and Tennessee. The line was built in 1959, expanded in 1974 and sold in 1991 to a new owner who changed the railroad's name... |
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| Cuyahoga Valley Railway | |
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| DeQueen and Eastern Railroad | |
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| Detroit Edison Company | |
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| Hammond Lumber Company (Feather River Railway) | |
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| Fernwood, Columbia and Gulf Railroad | |
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| Grand Trunk Railroad (of Maine) | |
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| Grand Trunk Western Railroad Grand Trunk Western Railroad The Grand Trunk Western Railroad is an important subsidiary of the Canadian National Railway , constituting the majority of CN's Chicago Division .... |
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| Granite City Steel Company | |
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| Great Lakes Steel Corporation | |
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| Hanna Furnace Company | |
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| Hercules Powder Company | |
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| Inland Lime and Stone Company | |
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| Jacksonville Terminal Company | |
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| Lancaster and Chester Railway Lancaster and Chester Railway The Lancaster and Chester Railway is a railway headquartered in Lancaster, South Carolina, in the United States. The original route connects Lancaster, in Lancaster County, with Chester in Chester County... |
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L&C 91 was the last EMD built SW900 in 11/65 |
| Lehigh Valley Railroad Lehigh Valley Railroad The Lehigh Valley Railroad was one of a number of railroads built in the northeastern United States primarily to haul anthracite coal.It was authorized April 21, 1846 in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and incorporated September 20, 1847 as the Delaware, Lehigh, Schuylkill and Susquehanna Railroad... |
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107,110 are 600 h.p. SW900M, 106 is 660 h.p. SW900M |
| Liberian-American Mining Co | |
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Liberia, Africa |
| McLouth Steel Corporation | |
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| Missouri Portland Cement Company | |
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| Monessen Southwestern Railway | |
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| New York Central Railroad New York Central Railroad The New York Central Railroad , known simply as the New York Central in its publicity, was a railroad operating in the Northeastern United States... |
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| New York Central System (Cleveland Union Terminal Company) | |
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| Northern Pacific Railway Northern Pacific Railway The Northern Pacific Railway was a railway that operated in the west along the Canadian border of the United States. Construction began in 1870 and the main line opened all the way from the Great Lakes to the Pacific when former president Ulysses S. Grant drove in the final "golden spike" in... |
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| Orinoco Mining Company | |
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Venezuela, South America |
| Philadelphia Bethlehem and New England Railroad | |
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| Pickering Lumber Company | |
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| Raritan River Railroad Raritan River Railroad The Raritan River Rail Road was a twelve-mile shortline railroad founded in 1888 and based in South Amboy, New Jersey, U.S., which ran as far as New Brunswick, New Jersey. It served both passengers and freight in its heyday and operated profitably throughout much of its existence... |
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| Reading Company Reading Company The Reading Company , usually called the Reading Railroad, officially the Philadelphia and Reading Rail Road and then the Philadelphia and Reading Railway until 1924, operated in southeast Pennsylvania and neighboring states... |
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10-15 are 660 h.p. SW900M |
| Republic Steel Corporation | |
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| River Terminal Railway | |
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99 was EMD demo 6534 |
| Sand Springs Railway Sand Springs Railway The Sand Springs Railway is a class III railroad operating in Oklahoma.It provides freight rail service between Sand Springs and Tulsa over a 32 mile route. The company primarily hauls steel, pulp, scrap iron, scrap paper, petroleum products, plastic, and lumber... |
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| Simpson Logging Company | |
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| South Peru Copper Company | |
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Peru, South America |
| Southern Pacific Transportation Company | |
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| Steelton and Highspire Railroad | |
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| U.S. Steel Corporation | |
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| U.S. Sugar Corporation | |
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| Valdosta Southern Railroad | |
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| Virginia-Carolina Chemical Company | |
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| Waterloo Railroad | |
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Waterloo 4 was EMD demo 6535 |
| Woodward Iron Company Woodward Iron Company The Woodward Iron Company was founded on December 31, 1881, by two brothers, William & Joseph Woodward. William was the company president and Joseph was the company secretary. The company operated mines, quarries and furnaces that were connected by a private industrial railroad in Bessemer,... |
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| Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company | |
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| Total | 274 |
Built by General Motors Diesel, Canada
| Railroad | Quantity | Road numbers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Algoma Steel Algoma Steel See also Algoma Essar Steel Algoma is an integrated primary steel producer located on the St. Marys River in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. Its products are sold in Canada and the United States as well as overseas. Algoma Steel was founded in 1902 by Francis Clergue, an American entrepreneur... |
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| Aluminum Company of Canada (“Alcoa Alcoa Alcoa Inc. is the world's third largest producer of aluminum, behind Rio Tinto Alcan and Rusal. From its operational headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Alcoa conducts operations in 31 countries... ”) |
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| British Columbia Electric Railway British Columbia Electric Railway The British Columbia Electric Railway was a historic Canadian railway which operated in southwestern British Columbia.Originally the parent company, and later a division, of BC Electric, the BCER operated public transportation in southwestern British Columbia from its establishment in the... / BC Hydro BC Hydro The BC Hydro and Power Authority is a Canadian electric utility in the province of British Columbia generally known simply as BC Hydro. It is the main electric distributor, serving 1.8 million customers in most areas, with the exception of the Kootenay region, where FortisBC, a subsidiary of Fortis... |
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to Southern Railway of British Columbia Southern Railway of British Columbia The Southern Railway of British Columbia, branded as SRY Rail Link is a Canadian short line railway operating in the southwestern mainland of British Columbia. The main facility is the port at Annacis Island with major import of cars, export of forestry products, and other shipments... BC Hydro 911 was the last SW900 built in 3/69 |
| Canadian National Railways | |
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CN group 8535-8542 production started 12/53 first built |
| Canadian Pacific Railway Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001... |
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| McKinnon Industries | |
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| Midland Railway Company of Manitoba | |
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| Steel Company of Canada (“Stelco Stelco US Steel Canada is a steel company based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.-History:Several existing smaller steelworks combined and were incorporated as the Steel Company of Canada in 1910. Charles S... ”) |
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| Total | 97 |
See also
- List of GM-EMD locomotives
- List of GMD Locomotives
- EMD Serials http://community-1.webtv.net/ajkristopans/SWITCHERS201Aand567/page2.html
- EMD Trade In Serials http://community-2.webtv.net/ajkristopans/TRADEINJOBS/
- EMD Export Serials http://community-2.webtv.net/ajkristopans/ANDRESGMLOCOMOTIVE/page2.html
- GMD Serials http://community-2.webtv.net/ajkristopans/GENERALMOTORSDIESEL/