Southern Pacific class GS-2

SP GS-2

Power type	Steam
Builder	Lima Locomotive Works
Serial number	7646 – 7651
Build date	December 1936
Configuration	4-8-4
Gauge	4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm)
Driver size	73½ inch diameter
Weight on drivers	266,500 lb
Total weight	448,400 lb
Boiler pressure	250 psi
Cylinder size	27 in dia × 30 in stroke
Tractive effort	62,200 lbf, 74,710 lbf with booster
Career	Southern Pacific Railroad
Class	GS-2
Number in class	6
Number	4410 – 4415
First run	January 1937
Retired	1956
Disposition	scrapped

The GS-2 is a streamlined 4-8-4 Northern type steam locomotive that served the Southern Pacific Railroad from 1937 to 1956. They were built by Lima Locomotive Works and were numbered 4410 through 4415. GS stands for "Golden State" or "General Service."

The GS-2 had a very different appearance than that of the GS-1. The GS-2s were streamlined and designed for high-speed passenger service. They featured a silver smokebox with a cone-shaped single headlight casing, skyline casing on the top of the boiler, skirting on the sides, and an air horn. They retained the teardrop classification lights and whistles.

They were the first to receive the red and orange "Daylight" paint scheme and were used for the streamlined debut of Southern Pacific's premier passenger train, the Coast Daylight on March 1 1937. The following year they were replaced by the improved GS-3 engines. During World War II, they were painted black and silver and were used to transport troops. In the 1950s their side skirting was removed for easier maintenance, and the locomotives were assigned to general service, pulling such trains as San Jose-San Francisco commutes, the "Coast Mail" trains, and freight service.

No GS-2 locomotives survive.

References

• Diebert, Timothy S. and Strapac, Joseph A. (1987). Southern Pacific Company Steam Locomotive Conpendium. Shade Tree Books. ISBN 0-930742-12-5. 

GS-class steam locomotives of Southern Pacific Railroad
Classes:	GS-1 · GS-2 · GS-3 · GS-4 · GS-5 · GS-6
Preserved:	SP 4449 · SP 4460