Builders plate from GBW #302, built July 1913 by the American
Locomotive Company in Schenectady, N.Y.
Locomotive manufacturers attached builders plates to completed engines as a means to track the history of locomotives. As a locomotive changed appearance or even owners over the years, the builders plate would serve as a record of their true identity. These plates were usually located above the cylinders of steam locomotives. This particular builders plate came from Green Bay & Western #302, a 2-8-0 locomotive which was scrapped in 1939. The locomotive was originally built for the Chicago, Peoria & St. Louis Railway as #72 in July 1913. The CP&StL was a 400-mile long Illinois short line. The railroad went bankrupt in 1921 and the rolling stock was sold off and the trackage was split among several railroads. The GB&W acquired three of the moguls - including CP&StL #72, which became GBW #64. The engine went into GB&W service in April, 1927. It was renumbered to GBW #302 in October 1936 during a overall renumbering of the steam power. The last days of the locomotive were spent on the Whitehall Division before it returned to Green Bay on July 9, 1939. The locomotive was stored for a few months and scrapped that September. You can still see the builders photo on the side of #302 in a July 1939 photo of the engine in the dead line at Green Bay. More info:
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