New Haven Railroad’s EF-4s: The Ex-Virginian EL-Cs

Published: August 2, 2026

The New Haven Railroad’s EF-4 electric locomotives were a small but distinctive fleet of 11 (later 10 operational) C-C road-switcher-style electrics that originated as the Virginian Railway’s Class EL-C. Built by General Electric in the mid-1950s, they were the first successful production locomotives to employ Ignitron (mercury-arc) rectifier technology for converting high-voltage AC overhead power to DC for the traction motors. Their service lives spanned five Class I railroads over roughly a quarter-century, ending with Conrail’s abandonment of electric freight operations.

Only a few days after its inclusion into Penn Central, a pair of New Haven's EF-4's - #303 and #309 - layover beneath the large coaling tower at the Cedar Hill engine terminal in New Haven, Connecticut on January 5, 1969. These units began their careers on the Virginian and then came under Norfolk & Western's ownership before finding work on the New Haven. They were later part of PC's fleet, and finally Conrail, before being retired. "Skipper" Clark photo.

Origins on the Virginian Railway

In the mid-1950s the Virginian Railway sought modern replacements for its aging fleet of Alco-Westinghouse EL-3A boxcab electrics that had powered its 11 kV 25 Hz AC electrified main line since the 1920s. That line, roughly 134 miles between Mullens, West Virginia, and Roanoke, Virginia, handled heavy coal traffic over the Alleghenies. GE delivered twelve locomotives, numbered 130–141, between October 1956 and January (or early February) 1957. They were ordered in 1955 and represented a clear advance over both the boxcabs and the Virginian’s four streamlined EL-2B sets of 1948.

The EL-Cs adopted a conventional diesel-style road-switcher carbody with a single cab and a C-C (Co′Co′) wheel arrangement—six powered axles, one GE 752 traction motor per axle. Overall length was 69 ft 6 in; weight was approximately 174 short tons (348,000 lb). Continuous power output was rated at 3,300 hp; starting tractive effort reached 98,500 lbf. Maximum speed was 65 mph. Power was collected via pantograph from the 11 kV 25 Hz catenary, stepped down by an onboard transformer, converted to DC by the Ignitron rectifiers, smoothed by a reactor, and fed to the motors. Dynamic braking was provided. The design proved reliable in coal service and allowed the Virginian to retire the EL-3As as planned.

Norfolk & Western Ownership and Sale

In December 1959 the Virginian was merged into the Norfolk and Western Railway. The EL-Cs were renumbered 230–241. N&W continued limited electric operations but routed primarily eastbound traffic over the former Virginian line, rendering the electrification largely redundant alongside N&W’s own parallel routes. On June 30, 1962, the power was shut off and the catenary system dismantled. One unit (N&W 230) was experimentally rebuilt as a road slug (renumbered 180); the conversion was unsuccessful. In 1963 N&W sold all twelve locomotives—including the slug as a parts source—to the cash-strapped New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad for $300,000 (roughly the price of a single new diesel at the time).

New Haven EF-4s #301 and #304 depart Cedar Hill Yard in New Haven, Connecticut with a long freight bound for New York City on September 17, 1966. J.W. Swanberg photo.

New Haven Service as Class EF-4

The New Haven, still under trusteeship after its 1961 bankruptcy, needed reliable electric freight power to replace aging 1910s-era boxcab motors on its electrified lines between New York and New Haven, Connecticut. The railroad classified the locomotives EF-4 (Electric Freight, class 4) and numbered them 300–310. They were painted in the familiar New Haven vermillion/orange, black, and white scheme and quickly earned the nicknames “Virginians” (from their origin) and “Bricks” (from their boxy, utilitarian appearance).

On the New Haven the EF-4s handled virtually all mainline freight under the wire, operating between Cedar Hill Yard in New Haven, Oak Point in the Bronx, and the Bay Ridge terminal in Brooklyn via the New York Connecting Railroad. Multiple-unit operation was common, and pairs or more were often seen on freights. The units restored meaningful electric freight service that had been largely dieselized earlier in the McGinnis and subsequent years, helping the railroad meet its contractual obligations for electric power purchases while the dual-power FL9s handled most passenger work. Service under New Haven ownership lasted from 1963 until the railroad’s inclusion into Penn Central on January 1, 1969. One unit (NH 301) was wrecked and did not continue.

A sparkling New Haven EF-4, #310, recently acquired from the Norfolk & Western (built new for the Virginian Railway), is seen here at Cedar Hill Yard in New Haven, Connecticut in October, 1963. Photographer unknown.

Penn Central and Conrail as Class E33

Penn Central redesignated the surviving locomotives Class E33 (following Pennsylvania Railroad electric freight practice) and renumbered them in the 4600–4610 series. One unit (generally listed as 4600) was wrecked and never entered PC service, leaving ten operational engines. They were assigned to freight protection on the Northeast Corridor and the Philadelphia–Harrisburg main line, often working in multiple with PRR E44s or other power. Some retained visible New Haven paint under subsequent coats for years.

When Conrail was formed on April 1, 1976, the ten E33s transferred intact. A number were repainted in Conrail blue (others received only stencils over PC black). They continued in freight service under the remaining electrified trackage until Conrail terminated its electric freight operations at the end of March 1981. The locomotives were then returned to GE as trade-ins; the majority were subsequently scrapped.

Roster Summary and Dispositions

Virginian: 130–141 (delivered 1956–57).

N&W: 230–241 (one converted to unsuccessful slug 180).
New Haven: EF-4 300–310.
Penn Central / Conrail: E33 4600–4610 series (ten operational after early wrecks).

Two locomotives survive. Ex-Virginian 135 is preserved at the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke, typically displayed in original Virginian livery. Ex-Virginian 131 (New Haven 300 / Penn Central–Conrail 4601) was acquired by the Railroad Museum of New England and later transferred to the Illinois Railway Museum in Union, Illinois, where it arrived in 2017; it remains unrestored and incomplete as of recent records.

Significance

The EF-4s (and their EL-C/E33 identities) occupy a unique niche in postwar American railroad history. They were among the last new mainline electric freight locomotives acquired by a U.S. carrier before the near-total dominance of diesel-electric power, yet they outlasted many contemporaries by moving from Appalachian coal service to New England and Northeast Corridor freights. Their Ignitron technology, while ultimately superseded by solid-state rectifiers (as later applied to PRR E44s and others), proved durable enough for multi-decade service across five owners. The $300,000 acquisition by the New Haven remains one of the more notable second-hand locomotive bargains of the era. Though their numbers were small and their careers relatively brief by steam or diesel standards, the “Bricks” provided reliable heavy-haul capability under wire until the final disappearance of Class I electric freight operations in the Northeast.

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