Delaware and Hudson 1205 and 1216

Delaware and Hudson locomotives 1205 and 1216 are the only surviving Baldwin Sharknoses. They have been stored out of service at the Escanaba and Lake Superior Railroad since 1981.

Delaware & Hudson 1205 and 1216
Type and origin Power type Diesel-electric Builder Baldwin Locomotive Works Serial number 75316 and 75372 Model RF-16 Build date December 1951 and January 1952
Specifications Configuration: ​  • AAR B-B  • UIC Bo′Bo′ Gauge 4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) Prime mover 608A Engine type Four-stroke diesel Aspiration Turbocharged Displacement 15,832 cu in (259.44 l) Cylinders Inline 8 Cylinder size 12.75 in × 15.50 in (324 mm × 394 mm) Transmission DC generator, DC traction motors
Performance figures Power output 1,600 hp (1.19 MW)
Career Operators New York Central Railroad (NYC), Monongahela Railway, Delaware and Hudson Railway, Michigan Northern Railway Numbers NYC 3805 & 3816. NYC 1205 & 1216. Current owner Castolite Corporation Disposition Stored out of service

The locomotives were part of a fleet of 18 on the New York Central Railroad, and were originally numbered 3805 and 3816. The Central later gave them the numbers that they would retain for the rest of their career: 1205 and 1216.

After years of service on the New York Central, they were traded in to GE Transportation Systems, but instead of scrapping them, GE sold them to the Monongahela Railway for $6000 each, along with seven others. The Sharknoses hauled coal trains for the Monongahela between 1967 and 1972. By 1972, 1205 and 1216 were the only operable locomotives of the bunch, and the entire group was sold for scrap.

In 1974, the locomotives still had not been cut up, and the Delaware and Hudson Railway exchanged $12,000 of scrap boxcars for 1205 and 1216. The D&H used the locomotives in freight service until 1978.

In 1978 the pair was sold to the Castolite Corporation, a locomotive leasing firm. In 1979, they were leased to their final operator, the Michigan Northern Railway. It was not long before the 1205 suffered a crankshaft failure, and it was sent to be stored out of service at the Escanaba and Lake Superior. The 1216 continued to work until February 1982 before finally having mechanical failure and joining the 1205 in storage. The locomotives are indoors and out of view.

As of January 2020, owner and president of Escanaba & Lake Superior Railroad, John Larkin had an exclusive interview with Trains News Wire, saying that upon his death, the two Sharks will be sent to museums for future preservation. The museum in question has yet to be determined.

Larkin had purchased parts and primemovers for the units should they ever be restored but deemed their cost would be significant.