New York Central Hudson 5344

Classic Trains General Discussion
1

Does anyone know the date that New York Central Hudson 5344 was scrapped?

5344 was built in November 1931 and was streamlined twice - the first time in 1934 as the Commodore Vanderbilt and the second in 1939 in the same style as the J-3a Hudsons used on the 20th Century Limited.

There is a great write up on the streamlined NYC Hudsons in Classic Trains Special Edition No.5 “Steam Glory 2”, but no scrapping dates.

Thanks

2

I don’t know the date, but there is a picture in Thoroughbreds of Staufer in her cab with the number lined out, which may be dated.

I’d post this on the NYC Yahoo Group. Someone there probably knows the time of day, what kind of torch they used, and what the scrappers ate for lunch.

3

Streamling was removed due to a grade crossing accident in Chicago in 1945, dropped from the roster in 1954, the same year it was scrapped. Made contact with a friend in the NYCHS as to a specific date in 1954, still looking.

4

Peanut butter and bananas on pumpernickel.

5

An exact ‘scrapping date’ can be hard to find, as railroads often sold the engine to a scrap dealer. The engine could sit in the scrapper’s yard for months or years before being dismantled and melted down. If you access to company records, you can often find the date the engine was sold however.