Railroad club plans to move historic steam engine

? A railroad club plans to move a historic steam engine from a Pittsburg park to a nearby town to restore it.

The Joplin Globe reported that Kansas City Southern Railroad Steam Engine No. 1023 has fallen into disrepair. An estimated $150,000 is needed for sandblasting and painting, new tracks, and a concrete pad and shelter. But the city doesn’t have the money available in its budget.

The Heart of the Heartlands railroad wants to move the engine to its museum complex in Carona in neighboring Cherokee County. It is less than five miles east of Big Brutus, a giant coal-mining shovel that has become a tourist attraction.

Club leader Larry Spahn says the group of railroad enthusiasts wants the 1906-built steam engine to last another 100 to 150 years.