Great Smoky Mountains Railroad No. 1702
Specifications
| Road Name | Great Smoky Mountains Railroad No. 1702 (S160 class) |
| Number | 1702 |
| Original Railroad | U.S. Army Transportation Corps (S160 class); later Warren & Saline River Railroad, Reader Railroad |
| Builder | Baldwin Locomotive Works, Philadelphia, PA |
| Build Date | September 1942 |
| Wheel Arrangement | 2-8-0 (Consolidation) |
| Gauge | 4 ft 8½ in standard gauge |
| Weight | 161,000 lb |
| Tractive Effort | 31,500 lbf |
| Boiler Pressure | 225 psi |
| Driver Diameter | 4 ft 9 in (57 in) |
| Years Operated | 1942–1961 (revenue/military service); excursion service 1964–2004 and 2016–present |
| Current Status | Operational |
| Current Location | Bryson City, North Carolina |
| Current Owner | Great Smoky Mountains Railroad |
No. 1702 is a Baldwin-built S160-class 2-8-0 “Consolidation” locomotive, one of about 2,120 rugged, standardized war engines Baldwin turned out for the U.S. Army Transportation Corps during World War II. Built in September 1942 in Philadelphia, No. 1702 was originally fitted with a European-style link-and-hook coupler in anticipation of overseas service, but it never left the country, instead working out of the Army base at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
Sold as surplus in 1946, No. 1702 went to work for the Warren and Saline River Railroad hauling lumber trains out of Warren, Arkansas, where its firebox was converted to burn fuel oil. When that line dieselized in 1961, the engine moved to the Reader Railroad in Hot Springs, Arkansas, and by 1985 it was pulling tourist excursions for the Fremont & Elkhorn Valley Railroad in Nebraska over former Chicago & North Western track.
The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad purchased No. 1702 in September 1991 and rebuilt it with a taller smokestack, larger sand dome, and wider cab to give it a more traditional American appearance. It entered excursion service on the Nantahala Gorge and Tuckasegee River routes out of Bryson City in June 1992. Firebox problems sidelined the engine after 2004, but a comprehensive rebuild, aided by a $700,000 Swain County investment in a new steam shop and turntable, returned No. 1702 to active service on July 26, 2016.
Today No. 1702 is one of only about two dozen surviving S160-class locomotives and one of a handful still operating, making it a rare, running link to Allied war-transport history as well as a workhorse of the GSMR excursion fleet through the Nantahala Gorge.