Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad

A grant from the Kansas State Historical Society that was announced over the weekend will help the Abilene and Smoky Valley Railroad’s efforts to get its prized steam locomotive back on the rails as soon as possible.

The grant in the amount of $79,152 will cover part of the cost of rebuilding Santa Fe 3415, which is out of service this season as work crews rebuild the engine, a maintenance procedure required every 15 years by the Federal Railroad Administration. 

The KSHS Heritage Trust Fund provides matching funds to help preserve properties listed in the National Record of Historic Places. Santa Fe 3415 was placed on the national record in 2011.

The grant will help cover the cost of inspecting the locomotive’s boiler and replacing an intricate system of flue tubes, a process that requires outside consulting and skilled labor. 

A crew from the Durango and Silverton steam railroad in Colorado was in Abilene last month to supervise a group of volunteers on the process of removing the old tubing and other construction tasks. About 15 volunteers from four states were in Abilene for January’s work weekend. The railroad plans to conduct organized work weekends every month until the project is completed.

A&SV President and General Manager Ross Boelling said that the railroad will need more money and volunteer hours to complete the rebuild, but work crews have done a remarkable job of dismantling the engine and carefully cataloging and storing parts.

“We would like to have the engine back in service late this year,” Boelling explained. “Santa Fe 3415 figures to play a major role in Abilene’s observance of America’s 250th birthday in 2026, so we need to get the engine up and running. This grant will make us one step closer to completing that goal.”

The Santa Fe 3415 grant is one of ten projects to receive money from the KSHS Heritage Grant program this year. Boelling said work on the projects detailed in the A&SV grant will begin this summer.