Milwaukee Road 760, the first locomotive built by Fairbanks-Morse, preserved in operating condition at Illinois Railway Museum.
(User:Slambo, CC BY-SA 2.5 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5>, via Wikimedia Commons)
FAIRBANKS-MORSE FM H-10-44 DIESEL-ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVE
The FM H-10-44 was a switcher locomotive produced by Fairbanks-Morse from August, 1944–March, 1950. The units featured a 1,000-horsepower (750 kW), six-cylinder opposed piston prime mover, and were configured in a B-B wheel arrangement mounted atop a pair of two-axle AAR Type A trucks, with all axles powered. Many H-10-44s received modifications that increased their horsepower rating to 1,200 hp (890 kW).
The Raymond Loewy-designed carbody featured a slanted nose, sloping hood lines, and (considered to be its most distinguishing feature) a protruding roof visor mounted on the rear of the cab. These styling cues were carried through to the H-10-44's successor, the FM H-12-44, until September 1952 when the exterior design was "Spartanized" to reduce production costs.
A total of 195 units were built for American railroads. Three intact examples of the H-10-44 are known to survive today, all of which are owned by railroad museums. Most notable of these is Milwaukee Road No. 760 (originally delivered as No. 1802), the first Fairbanks–Morse locomotive constructed in their own plant, which is preserved and operational at the Illinois Railway Museum. Another example is former Hallet Dock Company HD-11, which is now at the Lake Superior Railroad Museum in Duluth, Minnesota.
A reproduction H-10-44 locomotive sits atop the Wood Family Fishing Bridge, a former railroad bridge which crosses the Rock River several hundred yards south of the foundry where the H-10-44s were built, in Beloit, Wisconsin.
Units produced
| Railroad | Quantity | Road numbers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apache Railway | 2 | 100, 200 | |
| Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway | 3 | 500–502 | |
| Baltimore and Ohio Railroad | 10 | 300–309 | Renumbered 9700–9709 |
| Chehalis Western Railroad (Weyerhaeuser) | 2 | 492, 493 | |
| Chicago and North Western Railway | 21 | 1036, 1048–1065, 1070, 1082 | |
| Chicago, Indianapolis and Louisville Railway (“Monon”) | 1 | 18 | |
| Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (“Milwaukee Road’) | 23 | 1802–1818, 1820–1825 | Renumbered 760–776, 778–783; 760 (ex-1802), 767 (ex-1809) and 781 (ex-1823) are preserved in museums |
| Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Railway (“Omaha Road”) | 5 | 94–98 | |
| Columbia and Cowlitz Railway | 1 | D-1 | to Pacific Great Eastern Railway |
| Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad | 4 | 120–123 | 122 to Frisco 286 |
| Fairbanks-Morse (demonstrator unit) | 1 | 10L45 | to Milwaukee Road 1819; renumbered 777 |
| Indianapolis Union Railway | 9 | 10–18 | |
| Kentucky and Indiana Terminal Railroad | 10 | 48–52, 55–59 | |
| Minnesota Western Railway | 1 | 51 | to Minneapolis, Northfield and Southern Railway 11, to Hallet Dock Company HD-11 |
| New York Central Railroad | 7 | 9104–9110 | to Penn Central 8204–8210 |
| New York Central (Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad) | 4 | 9100–9103 | |
| New York, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad (“Nickel Plate Road”) | 9 | 125–133 | to Norfolk and Western Railway 2125–2133 |
| Pennsylvania Railroad | 55 | 5980–5986, 5997–5999, 9080–9099, 9184–9196, 9288–9299 | to Penn Central 8211-8265 |
| Pittsburgh, Chartiers and Youghiogheny Railway | 1 | 1 | |
| St. Louis-San Francisco Railway | 12 | 270–281 | |
| Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis | 4 | 700–703 | |
| Union Pacific Railroad | 5 | DS1300–DS1304 | |
| Wabash Railroad | 4 | 380–383 | to Norfolk and Western 3380–3383 |
| Weyerhaeuser Timber Company | 1 | 481 | |
| Total | 195 |
An F-M H-10-44 Gallery
New York Central FM H-10-44 9109 at Cleveland, Ohio, September 28, 1960. Photographer: The Garys. (Craig Garver, Public domain, Flickr)
Denver & Rio Grande Western FM H-10-44 122 at Denver, Colorado, April 1, 1967. Photographer Bruce Black. (Craig Garver, Public domain, Flickr)
Denver & Rio Grande FM H-10-44 122 at Salt Lake City, Utah, April 24, 1965. Photographer Bruce Black. (Craig Garver, Public domain, Flickr)
Pennsylvania Railroad FM H-10-44 9096 at Fort Wayne, Indiana, January 28, 1961. Photographer unknown. (Craig Garver, Public domain, Flickr)
Pennsylvania Railroad FM H10-44 9082 at Richmond, Indiana, September 3, 1960. H. N. Proctor photo. (Craig Garver, Public domain, Flickr)
Central Railroad of New Jersey Fairbanks Morse H-10-44 9704 at Jersey City, New Jersey, March 19, 1972. Photographer unknown. (Craig Garver, Public domain, Flickr)
Central Railroad of New Jersey FM H-10-44 9702 at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, March 26, 1972. Photographer: J.W. Hulsman. (Craig Garver, Public domain, Flickr)
Union Pacific FM H-10-44 1304 at North Platte, Nebraska, April 10, 1950. Photographer: unknown. (Craig Garver, Public domain, Flickr)
Overview
Type and origin
Power type: Diesel-electric
Builder: Fairbanks-Morse
Model: H-10-44
Build date: August 1944–March 1950
Total produced: 195
Specifications
Configuration:
• AAR B-B
Gauge: 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Trucks: AAR type A
Wheel diameter: 40 in (1,016 mm)
Minimum curve: 29.50 (194 ft (59.13 m) radius)
Wheelbase: 33 ft 6 in (10.21 m)
Length: 48 ft 10 in (14.88 m)
Width: 10 ft 2 in (3.10 m)
Height: 14 ft 6 in (4.42 m)
Locomotive weight: 240,000 lb (108.9 t)
Prime mover: FM 38D-8 1/8
Engine type: Two-stroke diesel
Aspiration: Roots blower
Displacement: 6,222 cu in (101.96 L)
Generator: Westinghouse 481-A
Traction motors: (4) Westinghouse 362-D
Cylinders: 6 (Opposed piston)
Cylinder size: 8.125 in × 10 in (206 mm × 254 mm)
Locomotive brake: Straight air
Train brakes: Air
Performance figures
Maximum speed: 60 mph (97 km/h)
Power output: 1,000 hp (746 kW)
Tractive effort: 40,440 lbf (179.9 kN)
Career
Locale: North America
Disposition: Three preserved, remainder scrapped