East Broad Top Locomotive Roster
15

Common Carrier Era

#15 was ordered in 1912 as a virtual duplicate of #14, though there were minor differences. The additional traffic from the non RI&C mine at Jacobs on the new Rocky Ridge Branch was a motivator for her purchase. She is most distinguishable from sister #14 by the finial atop her headlight from the days of kerosene headlamps. #14 had hers removed fairly early in her life. Like #12 and #14, #15 has slide valves above her pistons while #16, #17 and #18 have piston valves. #15 worked pretty much until the closing in 1956, though she and #14 rarely operated in the last few months.

Kovalchick Tourist Era

#15 and #12 were the first to be restarted in 1960. In the 1960 excursion season, she at first pulled trains back to Rockhill after #12 pulled them out. Later in the season the positions were reversed as #12's smaller water tank required more frequent visits to the water column. She operated at least some every season from 1960 to 2002. Besides some fire grate problems in the early 1980's she was "old reliable". General Manager Stanley Hall referred to her as the 'lazy engine' because, according to him, she lets the other loco in doubleheaders do more work, but maybe she deserves it. She and #14 were the primary excursion locos during the 1990s and 2000s.

Prior to 2002 the Kovalchick Tourist Era EBT fell under the Pennsylvania State Boiler Code. In 2002 with the Federal Railroad Administration asserting its boiler regulations on the EBT, #15 was deactivated for Form 4 certification under the Code of Federal Regulations, 49 Part 240. That work required the complete evaluation of the boiler to FRA regulations. At the same time repairs were made to her running gear. This was not a complete tear-down rebuild. Her repairs and inspection took until 2005 when she returned to operation, during which time #14 was the only operating steam locomotive on the EBT, operating under a waiver from the FRA until #15 was completed. At the 2005 Fall Spectacular #14 and #15 operated together. That was the first time two or more steam locomotives operated together since October 2001, and the last time (as of 2025) that more than one EBT steam locomotive operated at a time.

With the start of the 2006 season, #15 became the only operating steam locomotive and remained so until the end of Kovalchick Tourist Era operations in December 2011. About 2009 it was found that #15's trailing truck was severely worn. #14's truck was removed to place on #15, but it was found to be almost as worn out. One of the trucks was shipped to the Strasburg Railroad for repairs, but needing a complete rebuild, the cost was beyond available resources. #14's truck was installed under #15 and #15's remained at Strasburg.

With the end of Kovalchick Tourist Era operations at the end of 2011, #15 was not operated starting in 2012. However needed inspections and paperwork were kept up so that it could be returned to service if needed. In fall of 2020, a few months later the purchase of the railroad by the EBT Foundation, the 15 year limit on her Part 240 inspection expired with 15 years passed (the inspection is good for 15 years or 1472 operating days, whichever comes first.) With that expiration, #15 will need a new form 4 inspection and associated repairs before operating again.

Foundation Kovalchick Tourist Era

With the purchase of the EBT in 2020 by the EBT Foundation, all the Mikados were evaluated as to which were the best candidates for return to service. On March 10, 2029, #15 was steam cleaned for her inspection. #15's sister #14 was selected for rebuild along with #16. upon #14 being disassembled along with #16, #14 was found to need more work than expected. #16 was completed and #15 swapped in place of #14 as the next in line. limited work on #15 was commenced in 2024, however the discovery of a driver wheel center crack on #16 shifted the focus to that locomotive. Those repairs continued from winter to late summer of 2024 and #16 returned to operation in September 2024. Late in 2024 #16 then suffered a failure of the trailing truck bearing, which forced work on #16 to take priority again. 12-5-2024 #15's tender was removed from the roundhouse for the removal of the cistern for replacement. All hardware had already been removed from the tank for reinstallation on the replacement cistern. The new cistern is to be welded rather than riveted, but faux rivets will be welded on to maintain the appearance.

The week of 1-13-2025, #15's tank was trucked to Curry Rail Services in Hollidaysburg, PA to be replicated. Curry previously fabricated a new tender tank for #16. As of summer 2025, work on returning #16 to operation continues to take priority over #15. The fabricated tank was delivered to the EBT 1-14-26 and awaits installation of hardware.

In 2026, work progresses as time allows. The same crew is responsible for all the oeprating equipment on the railroad.

General References

• G1 - East Broad Top - Lee Rainey and Frank Kyper - p. 217
• G2 - A Ramble into the Past on the East Broad Top - Frank Kyper - p.60-61