Visitor status: Restoration and relocation project — confirm access
The Louisiana Steam Train Association preserves a particularly personal piece of the state’s industrial history: Southern Pacific steam locomotive No. 745. The engine dates from 1921 and is associated with locomotive construction at Algiers, giving the project a direct Louisiana identity rather than simply a home for equipment imported from elsewhere. The association, commonly called LASTA, was formed in 1997 and is operated by volunteers.
No. 745’s preservation story has included several different kinds of survival. Southern Pacific donated the locomotive for display in New Orleans in 1952. Decades later, changes at the Audubon Zoo required it to be moved, and the Old Kenner Railway Association helped rescue it and relocate it to Jefferson Parish. LASTA subsequently took responsibility for restoring the engine. This sequence shows that a public monument can still face an uncertain future long after retirement from ordinary railway service.
The restoration brought the locomotive back to mainline operation in December 2004. That achievement involved a different goal from cosmetic preservation: the engine had to function as a steam-powered machine again. The project offers a useful way to understand why operating locomotives require continuing work. Boilers, running gear, inspections and the training of people all remain essential after a celebrated return to service.
The next chapter has also involved uncertainty. LASTA’s published rebuilding account reports that it received notice in 2025 to leave its Jefferson Yard site shortly before a planned grant-funded rebuild. Current location, workshop access and operating opportunities therefore need direct confirmation. The association should be approached as an active preservation and relocation effort, not a daily walk-in museum at an address copied from an older guide.
For readers interested in steam engineering, the attraction lies in following the work as well as seeing the completed locomotive. Public events and announced visits may reveal how volunteers maintain large historical machinery and why a local engine matters to cultural identity. Ask about the current project and any specifically authorized access. The strongest story is one of repeated rescue: from railway retirement to display, relocation, restoration and the continuing search for a secure future.
Visitor information
Researched November 2026.
Sources
More railroad museums in Louisiana
- DeQuincy Railroad Museum — DeQuincy: Depot museum and railroad collection
- Eunice Depot Museum — Eunice: Depot and local history museum
- Louisiana Orphan Train Museum — Opelousas: Rail-related social-history museum
- Shreveport Railroad Museum — Shreveport: Railroad artifact museum
- Southern Forest Heritage Museum — Long Leaf: Industrial museum with logging railway collection
- All 6 railroad museums and sites in Louisiana
Keep exploring
- All heritage sites — museums, stations and landmarks
- Southeast — the trains you can ride in the region