Free Web space and hosting from freewebspace.com
Search the Web

Official Website for Mack #4!

MACK Home Page MACK Photos MACK Videos

Welcome to the official "MACK #4" Box Cab Locomotive Restoration website.

.

An 84 year old locomotive, unique even in it's early years.

This is the history of a rare locomotive that had been rusting away since the mid 1970‘s. The old #4 box cab on March 01, 1924 was originally built by GE as a trolley freight motor for the Southwest Missouri Railroad Company at a cost of $15,450.00. With the closure of that line in 1939 the Mack Truck company of Allentown, PA purchased #4 and identical box cab #3, rebuilding them into experimental gas electric locomotives. The retrofitted locomotives were offered for sale as new products, but were never sold causing Mack to exit out of the locomotive business. The #4 and #3 were eventually placed into service as the plant switching locomotives until the closure of the entire Mack railcar department in 1960.

The journey of Mack #4 continues throughout Pennsylvania.

The Mack #4 locomotive has had and interesting journey since that time, and in 1962 it was acquired by and moved to the Rockhill Trolley Museum. Then during the last two months of 1968 it was moved to Mount Union, PA where #4 preformed the last offical switching duties at the dual gauge rail yard of the East Broad Top railroad. In March of 1970, RTM loaned #4 to Jimmy McHugh, Sr.   to assist a eastern PA short line railroad. Then #4 in January 1971 was moved to Penndel, PA were it was placed into storage with three other RTM peices of railway equipment. The Wanamaker, Kempton & Southern railroad owners of Mack #3 obtained #4 in March 1986 and moved it to Kempton, PA were #4 was again placed into storage.

An uncertain fate, many others decide #4 is not worth saving.

In late 2007 it had been rumored that if new guardians could not    be found for either Mack locomotive that they both would see the flames of a cutting torch and become scrap iron. The two Mack locomotives previously had been offered to several railway and trolley museums, railroad tourist lines, the Mack Truck Museum,  and private collectors. All of these prospective clients declined     due to the amount of investment required, considering the intial  sale price, transportation expenses, purchasing of replacement truck assemblies with traction motors, and then the restoration cost. One outrageous railfan did desire to make the Mack carbody's into storage sheds, but the WK&S did not consider this odd idea. The former owner felt that they could find a party who was interested in preserving one locomotive, that also had the capabilities to follow through and complete the project.

A family, not a museum comes to the rescue of Mack #4.

A relationship had devoloped between the WK&S and the McHugh family with a favorable outcome for Mack #4. Although a few people had made comments that neither Mack locomotive #4 or #3 should be saved. These remarks did not discourage the McHugh's who were adamant that they would restore #4 when others felt it was not worth the effort to do so. The McHugh family nostalgia for this rare old box cab, and that #4 was also a part of Pennsylvania's industrial railroading heritage is why they wanted to see it preserved. In June 1970 on the last day Mack #4 was in serivce, Jimmy McHugh, Sr. placed his son on the engineers seat and it was the first locomotive JC McHugh operated. This childhood memory of JC's is why he has a fondness for Mack #4, and is the reason the McHugh family saved it from becoming scrap metal.

A old locomotive ready for the junkyard, is now restored.

The cosmedically restored Mack #4 locomotive journey continues today, in August and October of 2008 it was transported to two historical events then displayed for veiwing. The overwelming positive responce to this restoration, has enforced the McHugh family that their efforts on the project was worth it. If anyone would like to veiw #4 please send us an email so proper arrangements can be made for you. A very informative history of Mack #4 can be found by visiting the HISTORY TIME LINE LINKS located at the right side of this page.

 This is usually how our Mack is displayed.

The following people, railway operations, and business's have given photographs to the McHugh family for use on this website; Dave Biles, Joel Salomon, Adam Christman, Nevin Byers, Lee Rainey, Tom & John Hartman, Jeff Z., Rob Piligan, RTM collection of Louis Buelher, WK&S, EBT, MRME, INC.

All photographs on this website are the property of the McHugh family and the photographer, these photographs are not to be copied in any form whatsoever.

If you are in the market for a locomotive, a railroad crane, need parts, or service, please contach us;

email: jcmchugh@verizon.net

telephone: 215-949-0430

Our company McHugh Locomotive & Crane website can be visited @               

www.mchughlocomotiveandcrane.com 

 

 

#4 is the last locomotive to leave the production line at MACK Truck, Inc. in 1939 and is the only Mack box cab in existance.

11 various photo albums with 130 photographs are located in the "Mack Photos link" at the top of the page.

Historical information and additional photographs are located in the "eight Mack locomotive date time line links" below.

1924 - 1939            1939 - 1962            1962 - 1968            1968 - 1969            1970 - 1971             1971 - 1986            1986 - 2007            2008 - 2008

Mack #4 was displayed at the East Broad Top railroad in Rockhill Furnace, PA on October 10th, 11th, & 12th, 2008 for the 40th anniversary of when it assisted the rail line. In 1968 Mack #4 was the last locomotive to pull a narrow 3' gauge and standard 4' 8-1/2" gauge trains over the dual gauge rails of the EBT Mount Union yard.

At the Antique Equipment Show in Brownsville, PA, one could say this is a Macktastic reunion!

Mack #4 was displayed at the National Pike Historical Equipment Show in Brownsville, PA on August 9th & 10th, 2008 to celebrate  the cosmedic restoration of #4. The old box cab locomotive had been ravaged after 69 years of outside storage, and it had not seen any maintenance since 1971. This was also the first time that #4 had been fully repainted and lettered, since 1939 when it was last preformed by the Mack company.

The following websites have a link to our site;                                  Discover Live Steam, Jeff Z., S.Berliner III, Railserve, and              McHugh Locomotive & Crane

The photographs on this website have been given to the McHugh family by; Louis Behuler collection RTM, Dave Biles, Joel Salomon, Adam Christman, Nevin Byers, Steve Urban, Rob Piligan, Mike & Tom Hartman, Jeff Z., Lee Rainey, and the McHugh's.

If you are in the market for a locomotive or a locomotive crane, you may contact us at the following;

telephone 215-949-0430 or

email jcmchugh@verizon.net

Visit our company website @  www.mchughlocomotiveandcrane.com

Website created by Adam Christman & J.C. McHugh. Last update - Nov. 9th, 2008.