Revenue service No. 2926 was among the last group of steam passenger locomotives built in 1944 by the
Baldwin Locomotive Works in
Eddystone (
Philadelphia),
Pennsylvania for the
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway. This class of locomotives comprised the heaviest 4-8-4's built in the United States, and among the largest. The railroad used the locomotive in both fast freight and passenger service, and it accumulated over one million miles of usage before its last revenue run on December 24, 1953. Equipped with the latest
Timken roller-bearing tandem side-rods between 1946-1948, it was then approved for 110-mph speeds with the Santa Fe's crack passenger trains: up from 100-mph when delivered with its original side-rods.
Preservation The locomotive and a caboose were donated to the City of Albuquerque, New Mexico in July 1956 to recognize the city's 250th anniversary, and placed in Coronado Park. The city displayed the locomotive as a static exhibit in the park until it was sold for $1.00 to the
Society on July 26, 1999. On June 23, 2000, the locomotive was moved by Messer Construction Company to a
BNSF Railway rail siding just south of Menaul Boulevard. The locomotive has been listed on the
National Register of Historic Places since October 1, 2007.
Restoration In May 2002, the No. 2926 locomotive was moved out on temporary snap tracks to its current location near the intersection of 8th Street and Haines Avenue, where it underwent a complete restoration to operating condition by the Society. On February 11, 2016, House Memorial Bill 100, introduced by
Don L. Tripp and adopted by the
New Mexico Legislature, recognized the Santa Fe No. 2926 steam locomotive as "New Mexico's steam locomotive and a representative of the railroads' contributions to the economic and cultural growth and stature of New Mexico". In January 2018, it was reported that the restoration was nearing completion, and that the locomotive could be operational by the end of the year. As of that date, NMSL&RHS members had put in 166,000 hours of volunteer labor and spent over $2.8 million on the project. On August 20, 2018, the boiler of ATSF No. 2926 was fired up for the first time in sixty-five years. The locomotive was scheduled for a test run on March 20, 2020, when it would move under its own power for the first time since 1953. However, that event and most other restoration efforts were suspended due to the
COVID-19 pandemic in New Mexico. On July 24, 2021, the No. 2926 locomotive moved under its own power for the first time in sixty-eight years.
Excursion service On May 6, 2023, No. 2926 visited a nearby brewing company for a fundraiser, a distance of about four blocks. The same visit happened two more times, on August 26, 2023, and May 4, 2024. On September 30, 2023, No. 2926 returned to the mainline on a 2.5-mile excursion to the
Albuquerque Rail Yards to attend the New Mexico Railroad Days event. On June 14, 2025, it was announced that the
New Mexico Department of Transportation and New Mexico Heritage Rail have agreed to allow No. 2926 to operate on 40 miles of state-owned trackage around Albuquerque from
Bernalillo to
Los Lunas. ==Surviving sister engines==