We all know that after the day of doom and gloom (1963-the Southern takeover) all CofG locomotives began receiving the beautifully designed (yea, right) "tuxedo" paint scheme of the new owners. My question is this; After the merger did former CofG locomotives remain mostly in home territory or did they roam the entire Southern system freely??? In other words, for example, did the last group of locomotives ordered by the CofG (the GP and SD-35's I beleive) mostly stay on former CofG rails, as well as the older CofG units, or were you just as likely to see one of them in Cincinnati as in Macon??? Did Southern try to keep the former CofG power on the former CofG??? How about CofG passenger power??? Was it as likely to be seen on the Southerner as it was the City of Miami???

I'm thinking more on the period of time when they received the "tuxedo" paint but still had large "Central of Georgia" stenciled on the long hood. I know in later years when they were stenciled "Southern" on the long hood and only had the small "CofG lettering on the cab that they were subject to be seen anywhere.

Thanks ya'll, Bryan Smith

-- Bryan Smith (bsmith3608@aol.com), January 20, 2002

Answers

The SD-35's were delivered in 1966, about three years after the acquisition. I seem to remember them as free runners from the start. The GP-35's came in 1963 and I saw them initially in service on the Central of Georgia (they were not delivered in tuxedo, but solid black with gold lettering). I think within a few years the GP-35's were probably in general service on the Southern.

BTW, the Savannah & Atlanta GP-35's were in general service from the start.

My impression was that CofGA passenger power pretty much stayed on the CofGA passenger trains.

During the first few years, I believe the older CofGA power tended to stay put, but by the end of the sixties, the RS-3's were scattered to wherever Alco's were used on the Southern.

-- Jack Wyatt (cjwyatt@bellsouth.net), January 21, 2002.