Posted by J. C. Smith, Jr. on January 24, 2007 
For those interested in such things, this particular Geep began it's career as a U. S. Army GP7, which was built with AAR type-A switcher trucks. It was among a few that were transferred the Alaska Railroad, which, at the time, was owned by the USDOT. There, they eventually were given chopped noses, and acquired AAR type-B road trucks, which were taken from the road's retired RS1s, and the rearmost cooling fan was equipped with an extra-tall winterization hatch. The "Spartan" cab, four-stack exhaust and roof-top access hatches, came about many years later, during a comprehensive rebuilding of the group by ICG/Paducah. The forward cooling fan and corresponding radiator section were removed, having been deemed "unneccessary" in the northern climes of our 49th state (some Alaska F-units also had such a modification). As newer locomotive types arrived, several GP7s were sold off, but those retained by the Alaska were later equipped with dynamic brakes.
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