Photos by Jared Soares | The Roanoke Times

Several rail cars rusting away behind a scrap yard have historical value, but the transportation museum lacks the funds to recover them.

Diesel engines shown above

No. 662

• Manufacturer: Baldwin Locomotive Works of Philadelphia

• Class: DS

• Type: 4-4-600

• Constructed: 1946

No. 663

• Manufacturer: Baldwin
• Class: DS
• Type: 4-4-600
• Constructed: 1946

Steam engines at the scrap yard

No. 917

• At scrap yard since 1950
• Manufacturer: Baldwin
• Class: W2
• Type: 2-8-0
• Constructed: 1903

No. 1118

• At scrap yard since 1950
• Manufacturer: Baldwin
• Class: M2
• Type: 4-8-0
• Constructed: 1910

No. 1134

• At scrap yard since 1950
• Manufacturer: Baldwin
• Class: M2
• Type: 4-8-0
• Constructed: 1910

No. 1151

• At scrap yard since 1950
• Manufacturer: Roanoke Shops
• Class: M2a
• Type: 4-8-0
• Constructed: 1911

Sources:lostengines.railfan.net,baldwindiesels.railfan.net

With winter here, the openings between the branches reveal that a handful of historic locomotives are still awaiting rescue from a Roanoke thicket.

Four once magnificent steam engines are on a rail siding out back of Virginia Scrap Iron & Metal Co. on South Jefferson Street, beside two scrapped diesel locomotives. Norfolk and Western Railway scrapped them at the middle of the last century.

Rail buffs have watched seasons pass without movement on the issue of who might pay to relocate and refurbish the engines for public viewing.

"One of them is the second-oldest surviving locomotive made in the Roanoke Shops, so they have historic significance and should be saved," said Gene Elliott, who sits on the executive board of the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke.

The dark, hulking machines visible from a newly opened stretch of the Roanoke River Greenway may look abandoned indefinitely. But a potential buyer recently has been considering its options.

It appears that the fate of the trains will receive at least some official consideration in 2008. It seems unlikely they will budge, however, without a major infusion of cash or free or low-cost relocation services.

The company on whose land they sit, Virginia Scrap Iron & Metal, is winding down its business affairs following the 2003 death of owner Sam Golden.

In 2006, Golden's executors offered the trains to the Virginia Museum of Transportation. On Dec. 31, a first deadline passed for the museum to pick them up. No recovery occurred.

But a newer plan is under consideration to ensure the trains' safekeeping until somebody steps forth with hundreds of thousands of dollars for restoration, said Bev Fitzpatrick, who directs the museum.

Executors of Golden's estate are looking to sell the assets of the scrap business, including the land, and distribute the proceeds to beneficiaries this year, confirmed Peter Kuhnel, one of the company's lawyers.

Kuhnel said the executors or their representatives are talking with the Roanoke Redevelopment and Housing Authority about the government authority's buying the metal yard -- possibly with the trains in place.

The authority, which is interested in the land for redevelopment some day, confirmed talks are under way.

"An offer of sale was received from the property owners, and RRHA is in the process of evaluating that offer," said Glenda Edwards, the authority's interim executive director, by e-mail.

Fitzpatrick, a member of Roanoke City Council and former member of the authority's board, said he could support the housing authority's buying the land and agreeing that, for the foreseeable future, the trains could just sit there, perhaps behind a fence.

The museum has a spot on its downtown property for the 100-ton machines, but "we do not have the money to move them," Fitzpatrick said.

He thinks the museum would need at least $250,000 to $500,000 for the job and, with that amount of money, it could remove the four steam locomotives and produce two museum-quality showpieces from them.

He thinks the museum could also possibly use one of the two diesel engines. What pieces it doesn't want it could possibly sell to offset costs, Fitzpatrick said.

City leaders have identified the scrap yard and the defunct Roanoke City Mills flour mill as important addresses within a 110-acre area south of downtown Roanoke that are earmarked for the South Jefferson Redevelopment Area.

The project, which began in 2001 and is in its first phase, is designed to stimulate business opportunities, private investment and economic growth by courting new industry to replace old, officials said.

In the first phase, Carilion Clinic and Virginia Tech plan a medical school and research institute, while Carilion is building a new physician services building. Various other lots are still available before officials would have to start on phase two. For that reason, it's unclear when the redevelopment authority might need the space where the trains sit.

If the RRHA does purchase the site, Edwards said its use would be consistent with the South Jefferson Redevelopment Area.

Elliott said he is confident the locomotives will end up at the museum. That said, "It wouldn't be surprising if they're still there at the end of the year," he said.

But Elliott, and others, are leaving open the possibility that someone will step forward this year to donate money or services, or both, to relocate the trains and create a new museum exhibit.