American Industrial Railroad Society

05/15/2026

AIRS keeps on rolling!

We are pleased to have been awarded $5,000 by the St. Louis Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society as part of their Annual Grant Program! This gift will go directly into the ongoing restoration and stabilization of Indiana Northern #4’s chassis and running gear.

We are fortunate to have many components of our locomotives chassis ready for re-assembly. Some examples are reconditioned piston rods, resurfaced slide valves and brand new piston heads. In addition, the suspension, equalizers, springs and drive boxes have previously been reworked, needing only to be cleaned before they’re ready for service.

This grant from the St. Louis NRHS will assist AIRS in finishing what’s left to be done. Some of the major items to be worked on include a full inspection and reconditioning of each connecting rod, components of the cylinders, steam chests and steam chest gaskets. While we don’t anticipate this gift to fully cover what our locomotive's running gear requires, it’s a major step forward for us, and is helping keep progress rolling onwards!

If you’re interested in helping go through pieces of Indiana Northern #4 with us, or would like to support AIRS from afar, please consider making a gift through the “Donations” portal of our website at www.industrialrails.org so we can keep turning your support into steel!

05/01/2026

Is, uhh… is this thing on?

To all of our friends and followers – we know. Our posting schedule here has been a little sporadic, to say the least. We want you all to know that AIRS is still doing what we’ve set out to do from day 1 – preserve the history of industrial railroading in the United States, and returning Indiana Northern #4, our 1913 Baldwin 0-4-0, to steam.

To that end, we’ve been thinking of ways we can do a better job at keeping you all in the loop on what we’re up to. As a result you can expect to see some more activity on this page and other spaces in the weeks and months to come. There’s a lot to talk about, including, but not limited to:

1. An outline of the work we’ve done so far
2. Progress on fundraising
3. Restoration of several components of the locomotive, including an appliance or two
4. Some information on overall planning and next steps for the organization
5. Some general profiles about just who the heck has been asking you to support this little restoration project over the last few years!

As always, we love to hear from you guys, and if there’s anything you want to know about the project or the organization we’ll answer to the best of our ability. Your support is the reason we’re able to do all the cool things that we’re doing.

Expect to hear more from us soon!

12/14/2025

It's not too late to get your ornament this year! Order today and help bring one of Baldwin's best back into steam! https://www.industrialrails.org/online-store

12/12/2025

Those who guessed the pilot beam on our post yesterday are correct! The pilot beam spans the width of the front of the locomotive. It's main function is to support the coupler, so it has to be pretty stout to hold up to the forces of pushing and pulling heavy carloads.

12/11/2025

One of our supporters acquired and donated this 10x15x110-inch oak beam. Can anyone guess what it's for?

11/27/2025

As we all sit down for dinner tonight, we would like to extend a very heartfelt thank you to our donors, supporters, and volunteers. We are not a large organization, so every one of you makes a big difference!

11/26/2025

Whether you decorate for Christmas before or after Thanksgiving, make an addition to your tree this year with one of our ornaments! They also make a great stocking stuffer for the steam lover in your life! Now on sale on our website for $15, help us tell the untold story with your purchase and get it in time for Christmas! 🎄🎁

Get yours today! 👇 Made in the USA!

Help us share the history and heritage of our industrial railroads for years to come… Welcome to our online store! By purchasing AIRS wares, you are directly supporting our mission, the restoration of IN #4, and can have a small piece of the “untold story” for yourself or as a gift for someone...

10/15/2025

How'd you like to get a steam locomotive in just fifteen days? How about four of them? This Baldwin Locomotive Works ad from May, 1912 was recently donated to us. With Baldwin's standard designs, they were able to support fast turnaround times when the need arose. These four identical 0-4-0s (similar to #4) were ordered on April 2nd, finished on the 16th, and shipped the next day. That is downright impressive!

07/21/2025

Every once in a while, the stars align during a restoration project to make something happen. These two pieces, the top of the automatic brake valve and a valve handle for the locomotive's turret are original to the I.N. #4. Today they were donated to us and have come back to the locomotive after nearly forty years!

One of those cases where someone knows a guy, who has this friend, who heard from his coworker... well anyways, a couple of phone calls and a bit of driving by one of our members and we had them!

So, why is this noteworthy? During the two decades #4 was abandoned in Missouri, a lot of parts and pieces found a way of growing legs and going on an adventure of their own- particularly anything shiny or valuable. While not very flashy or exciting (well, they are exciting to us!) these two items give us hope that just maybe, someday, more of #4's missing pieces will find their way back to the engine.

Things being taken off the engine over the years has caused us some headaches as we work to return #4 to operation. Beyond missing pieces of the artifact, many of these items are difficult to locate and expensive to replace. Injectors, safeties, lubricator, brake system components, the bell, lights, gauges, valves, builder/number plates, even the smokebox door(!) all found new homes through legitimate and sometimes probably questionable means. Undoubtedly some were just lost as the #4 changed ownership and location multiple times.

Some of these missing items, like the builders plates and numberboard have already been replaced with replicas. Others we have virtually no hope of finding the originals- or verifying them as originals even if we did find them. The truth is, many of these items were mass produced and with enough funds identical parts can be obtained- and nobody will ever know they aren't original to the locomotive by looking. But knowing the story that these two lumps of iron have to tell, and that they represent eventually making #4 whole again against all odds is what makes them special.

So, if anyone actually read this far and has an interest in helping us make #4 not only a complete, but fully functioning locomotive again, we would be grateful for any help replacing missing parts. Even if you don't have, say, a pair of #7 Sellers lifting injectors just being used as doorstops, or that smokebox door in Grandma's basement, a couple of dollars in the donation jar go a long way (and are tax-deductible!) If you'd like, reach out to us or make a donation through our website, www.industrialrails.org

Thank you all for your continued support!

06/29/2025

In 1953, the Indiana Northern boasted more than seven miles of trackage being operated with engine #100, an EMD NW2. Depending on what was being moved, the IN could switch or transfer your freight, locomotives, or even passenger cars between twelve industries and five interchanges with other railroads. Costs ranged from $6.42 to $19.67 per car/locomotive, depending on what it was and what service was requested. That's between $77.30 and $236.82 today!