Little Joes - Classic Trains Magazine
Rachel Ellis
Updated on April 07, 2026
- Member since
August 2006 - 62 posts
Bob-Fryml wrote:
The National Museum of Transportation, housing the only remaining prototype Milwaukee Road Bi-Polar, is located near the western/southwestern edge of metropolitan Saint Louis. The Museum is near a place called Barretts Station and is hard by the MoPac mainline that runs west to KCMO.
I've seen the engine painted in both the Union Pacific livery and the classic Milwaukee Road orange and maroon. Unfortunately it's not under any kind of shelter, so it's exposed to the weather elements daily. Every few years this old locomotive is in a dire need of a paint job.
When I first saw pictures of Bi-Polars as a kid, I thought their dimensions were on a par with those of the R.M.S. Titanic. Surprisingly, they're not as large as one might expect. And another surprising truth is this: the Erie Lackawanna SDP45 on display there could develop more horsepower than the electric. Still, the Bi-Polars were awesome machines! God bless The Milwaukee Road for having them!
Excellent points, Bob. Growing up as I did less than a mile up Barrett Station from the MOT, I got to know the exhibits there VERY well, indeed. Milwaukee Bi-Polar #E2 always fascinated me as a kid - like yourself, I thought it was HUGE at first sight. That, and it's "centipede" running gear always made me wish I could have seen one operate.
One thing I must point out, however. While it's true that the EL SDP45 is far more powerful than the #E2, keep in mind that the Bi-Polar dates from 1919, when 2000 or more horsepower from ANY type of locomotive was considered "Super Size" thinking. On a final note, I was at the MOT the day the SDP 45 arrived {along with a super-rare former Jersey Central GP-7, which still has the squared-off long hood, which originally housed suburban-train lighting generators, or an early form of HEP}. And even though the MOT acquired a GG1, my heart still lies with #E2 - you never forget your first, I guess!!
Eagle Expidited Merchandise Service - 'cos DHL, FedEx, and UPS are ignorant of their history..........
