I’ve shown a number of photographs of the Southern Pacific steam locomotive #745 over the past several years. I admit to having a soft spot in my heart for the locomotive as I’ve known her since I was a kid in the 1950s and 60s. I crawled and climbed over every square inch of the beast during her earlier years on display in the Audubon Park in New Orleans.

In 2005 the restored #745 pulled a train of passenger cars around the State of Louisiana, the cars featuring exhibits of the state’s history. During the return journey back to New Orleans, the train traveled through a portion of Mississippi, running south on Canadian National’s McComb Subdivision mainline (this is the line between Chicago and New Orleans).

I recorded this photograph of her while in McComb, Mississippi. The date is April 30, 2005, and the locomotive is laying over for the night in McComb. Tomorrow she’ll continue south to Hammond, Louisiana where she’ll pause for a few hours to allow the citizens a chance to view the train. Late that afternoon she will head west to Baton Rouge for her next overnight.

I acquired my first digital camera during the period when the locomotive was being restored to operation back in the early 2000s, and I have quite a few images of her underway on test runs she made, as well as on her tour around the state in 2005. I may post a few of those images from time to time.