To compete in the Chicago-Twin Cities corridor with the Milwaukee Road's Hiawatha and the Burlington Route's Zephyr, the North Western introduced the 400 in 1935. Initially this fast train was powered by four rebuilt, oil-burning class E-2 4-6-2s, of which No. 2907, shown here, was one. The rebuilding was carried out in 1934 in the C&NW's Crawford Avenue Shops in Chicago, and the locomotives were reclassified E-2-A. As rebuilt, they had 79-inch disc drivers and cast steel 26x28-inch cylinders, and weighed 295,000 pounds. Boiler pressure was increased from 210 to 225 pounds and the locomotives were converted to burn oil. These engines had a grate area of 63 square feet, 3250 square feet of evaporative heating surface, and 685 square feet of superheater surface. In 1939, after the 400 became a diesel-powered streamliner, the E-2-A class were converted back to coal-burners, reclassified E-2, and returned to general passenger service. No. 2907, originally from ALCo in 1923, was dropped from the roster in 1955. This view, purchased through eBay, was taken at Milwaukee on July 4, 1939 and is simply initialed “E. W.”