File:DSC00531 - Steam locomotive CN 49 (48167662896).jpg

English: Steam locomotive CNR 49 was one of six locomotives of the X-10a class with a 4-6-4T configuration, that were built for the Grand Trunk Railway in 1914. At the time, its number was GTR 1544. These six locomotives were specifically designed for the Montreal-Rigaud suburban line (which originally stopped at Sainte-Anne de Bellevue). At the time, the two major railway companies – the Grand Trunk and the Canadian Pacific – were competing for the lucrative western suburbs market. Although this locomotive’s 4-6-4 configuration would appear to make it a “Hudson”, it is, in fact, a "Baltic Tank", that is, a locomotive with its water and fuel bunkers on the frame of the locomotive.

To improve its bi-directional capability – a major asset on a suburban line – the Grand Trunk Railway chose a configuration that was seldom used in North America. The locomotive could change direction at the end of the route without needing either a turntable or a turnaround, allowing the company to save both money and time on each trip. The Canadian Pacific Railway also built three tank locomotives in 1910-1912 and gave them road numbers CP 5991 to CP 5993. In the United States, only seven locomotives using this configuration were built.

With the merger leading to the creation of the Canadian National Railways in 1923, the locomotive was renumbered CNR 49. It continued its career, along with its five sisters, until 1960. This locomotive was the last steam locomotive to be reconditioned at the Pointe Saint-Charles workshops in 1957. There are only three 4-6-4T locomotives still in existence. Two are in Quebec, one in the United-States.

All the information used with the pictures was taken from information at the Canadian Railway Museum Site.

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