Full steam ahead on journey to preserve historic Transcona locomotive

The Transcona Museum is halfway towards its fundraising goal to build an over $600,000 enclosure to protect restoration efforts on its historic CN 2747 train.

Shovels went into the ground Wednesday to continue efforts to preserve a rolling piece of Transcona’s history.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held at Rotary Heritage Park to mark the start of construction on a protective enclosure for a historic train owned by the Transcona Museum. Members of the museum’s board, Counc. Shawn Nason (Transcona) and Radisson MLA James Teitsma were on hand for the ceremonial event.

Organizers say it signifies the next major step of the ongoing project to restore and preserve the historic CN 2747.

“It’s the first steam locomotive built in western Canada, built here in the Transcona shops. The Transcona Museum has had ownership of it since 2015, and we have to protect it from the elements, the weather, the vandalism,” explained Jack Moore, president of the museum’s board of directors.

Moore said when the museum took over ownership of the train, a consultant’s assessment found without protective measures, the locomotive will depreciate severely in the next 10 to 15 years.

Since then, new running boards have been installed on the train, its exteriors were cleaned and painted, and the ceilings and floors were replaced.

The next step is to build the enclosure to protect ongoing restoration efforts.

Moore said the pandemic stymied early fundraising efforts, and now the board is focused on raising awareness about the need for donations.

According to its website, the museum has raised just over $325,000 of its over $600,000 goal.

“We want to preserve it for years to come,” he said, noting restoration and preservation will enable visitors down the road to tour the locomotive.

Anyone who wants to donate to the campaign can visit the Transcona Museum’s website.