Pacific No. 5293 exemplifies the modernization features of the P-16B class applied in 1943-44 when, due to wartime restrictions, the Alton Route was unable to acquire either new steam or diesel locomotives for passenger service. No. 5293 was chosen for testing to assess the effects of the rebuilding, hauling a dynamometer car with the Alton Limited between Chicago and St. Louis. The tests revealed a significant performance improvement over that of No. 5291 of the unrebuilt P-16 class. Potential cylinder horsepower increased from 2390 to 2830, with a twenty-percent reduction in coal consumption and an eleven percent increase in water evaporation per pound of coal. This image, acquired via eBay, was probably captured not long after the modernization project but the photographer and location are not specified.