MAINE CENTRAL U18B'S

     In late June, 1975, the Maine Central took delivery of ten General
 electric U18B road locomotives, called the "Independence Class". As a salute
 to the upcoming Bicentennial, the locomotives were named for various
 colonial heroes and events. They were as follows:

#400--General Henry Knox--This trusted friend and advisor of General
Washington supervised the crossing of the Delaware on Christmas Eve, 1776,
when American troops surprised and soundly defeated Hessian soldiers.

#401--Hannah Weston--This grand lady of the patriotic cause carried power and
lead to Machias, Maine for the naval battle between the Colonial Sloop Unity
and the British Warship, Margaretta.

#402--General John Stark--"Send every man from the farm who will come, and
let the haying go to hell," urged this Colonial Colonel in a message to his
wife prior to the battle of Bennington, Vermont.

#403--General Peleg Wadsworth-- Second in command of the unsuccessful
expedition against the British at Penobscot, Maine; built the first all-brick
home in Portland.

#404--Kenneth Roberts--Left an illustrious career in journalism to write
biographical sketches about his beloved Maine - novels characterized by the
authenticity of their historical setting.

#405--Arundel--This first of Roberts novels after he left the SATURDAY
EVENING POST captures the history and lore of his native Maine.

#406--John Allen--Accused of treason by his native Nova Scotia for keeping
the Indians from deserting to the British, a factor which could have lead to
the fall of Maine.

#407--Unity--Turned by its crew into a warship for an afternoon, this
American Lumber Sloop defeated the British Man-of-War Margaretta in the first
battle of the Revolutionary War.

#408--Battle of Bagaduce--The Patriots suffer defeat as they attempt to
capture Fort George at Castine, Maine.

#409--Ethan Allen--Proclaimed an outlaw and with a price on his head, this
adventurer led his Green Mountain Boys to victory over the British at
Ticonderoga and to capture of its valuable artillery supplies.

These units are powered by GE's 7FDL8 engines - eight cylinders producing
1800 hp. They weigh 252,000 pounds, ride on Blomberg trucks. A fuel capacity
of 2150 gallons gives them a range comparable to that of a GP& or a GP38.
They are 55 feet long, about four feet shorter than other four-motor GE's.