Norfolk & Western No. 475
Specifications
| Number | 475 |
| Original Railroad | Norfolk and Western Railway |
| Builder | Baldwin Locomotive Works, Philadelphia, PA |
| Build Date | June 1906 |
| Wheel Arrangement | 4-8-0 Twelve-Wheeler |
| Gauge | Standard gauge (4 ft 8½ in) |
| Weight | 206,200 lb locomotive; ~373,700 lb with tender |
| Tractive Effort | 40,163 lbf |
| Boiler Pressure | 200 psi |
| Driver Diameter | 56 in |
| Years Operated | 1906–1959 |
| Current Status | Operational — only operating 4-8-0 locomotive in North America |
| Current Location | Strasburg, Pennsylvania |
| Current Owner | Strasburg Rail Road |
No. 475 was built in June 1906 by Baldwin, one of 125 Class M 4-8-0 “twelve-wheeler” locomotives constructed for the Norfolk and Western Railway. It worked N&W mainline freight before being reassigned in the 1920s to the railroad’s Blacksburg Branch in Virginia, handling mixed freight for decades.
Retired in 1959, it was sold for scrap in 1961 but narrowly avoided that fate when purchased by a private owner in 1962. Ownership passed through several private hands over the following decades before being donated to the Boone and Scenic Valley Railroad in Iowa in 1985.
In January 1991, the Strasburg Rail Road purchased No. 475 and undertook a full restoration, returning it to operating condition in November 1993. It is billed as the only operating 4-8-0 locomotive in North America and the oldest operating steam locomotive on the Strasburg roster. In September 2019, it operated jointly with mainline excursion locomotive Norfolk and Western 611 for the first time since both engines’ original 1959 retirement era.