America 250th
~ Semiquincentennial ~
Locomotive
On December 22, 2025 (just a few days short of the anniversary of George Washington and his troops crossing the Delaware River from Pennsylvania into New Jersey, in 1776), the North Shore Railroad unveiled NSHR 2238 – its Semiquincentennial locomotive.
This locomotive was completely hand-painted by local artist, Pedro Reyes, of Sunbury, PA. His beautiful work brought a vision of North Shore employees, Diana Williams and Loni Martz Briner, to life. This finished “canvas” was more beautiful than they could have imagined. Here is what you will find on this masterpiece…
On the first side:
George Washington crossing the Delaware River (a notable turning point in the Revolutionary War)
The Declaration of Independence (as penned by Thomas Jefferson, and signed on July 4, 1776)
The Liberty Bell (believed to have first rung in Philadelphia after the reading of the Declaration of Independence)
On the second side:
A bald eagle flying over “amber waves of grain” by “purple mountains majesty“ as sung in, America the Beautiful
An American flag, waving proudly - colored in red (meaning valor and bravery), white (meaning purity and innocence), and blue (meaning vigilance, perseverance, and justice)
The Statue of Liberty (a gift from France for the centennial celebration of signing the Declaration of Independence)
“Oceans, white with foam” as written in the song, God Bless America
Other featured items include:
One of the stacks is Paul Revere’s lantern (a symbol of his ride - alerting the colonists that the British were coming)
The other stack shows a cloud of black gun powder (symbolizing the war fought and won by Colonial Soldiers)
On the cab, below the hood, reads our Nation’s motto, “IN GOD WE TRUST”
Atop the cab roof is the full inscription found on the Liberty Bell (derived from Leviticus 25:10), “Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all inhabitants thereof.”
On the cab door, you will find the Mayham Tower (a 30-foot tower built and used in Augusta, Georgia, that was a turning point in the Revolutionary War in the south - which occurred 2238 days into the war)
The back of the cab displays red, white, and blue fireworks (a tradition set by John Adams from America’s inception)
NSHR 2238 depicts symbols of our Nation’s liberty and independence. We are honored to present her to America.
We have been asked by so many people to sell 2238 in model. So, we searched the globe for all remaining, undecorated SW1500 model locomotives - finding and purchasing four HO-scale models.
There was no way that we were willing to take on this process without Pedro. His painting is what makes the “real” 2238 the beauty she is, so we knew that he needed to be in integral part of the models.
First, Pedro worked with custom decal groups to see about (tiny) wrapping the models, but it was a cumbersome process that took away details in the locomotives that we did not want to lose, so Pedro does what he excels at - he painted.
The 2238 HO model locomotives were hand-painted by Pedro Reyes with the same paint (out of the same buckets) used on the actual NSHR 2238. Pedro had to cut hairs from a brush to make a point small enough for some of the tiniest details. Each one of the four models are similar and beautiful, but they are each truly one-of-a-kind.
NSHR is privately holding/gifting three of them, but is making the fourth model available to the public. If you are interested in purchasing the fourth locomotive (which will come with a signed certificate of authenticity), please click on the button below:
NSHR 2238 Meets Reading Blue Mountain & Northern’s RBMN 1776 | May 19, 2026
The North Shore Railroad Presents
America’s 250th
~ Semiquincentennial ~
LOCOMOTIVE UNVEILING
Monday | December 22, 2025
11:00 am
North Shore Railroad Home Office
356 Priestley Avenue
Northumberland, PA 17857
Dignitaries in Attendance
Pennsylvania Senator Lynda Schlegel Culver
Pennsylvania State Representative Kerry Benninghoff
Pennsylvania State Representative Jamie Flick
Pennsylvania State Representative Robert Leadbeter
Pennsylvania State Representative Michael Stender
Pennsylvania State Representative David Rowe
Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation Michael Carroll
Clinton County Commissioner Jeff Snyder
Columbia County Commissioner David Kovach
Montour County Commissioner Scott Lynn
Northumberland County Commissioner Meghan Beck
Snyder County Commissioner Adam Ewig
Snyder County Commissioner Joe Kantz
Union County Commissioner Jeff Reber
