It originally operated in Covington, Virginia, before ownership disputes moved it to Cumberland, Maryland.
The Allegany Central Railroad was founded by Jack Showalter in Alleghany County, Virginia, and he acquired Canadian Pacific 4-6-2 steam locomotives Nos 1238 and 1286 to be used for their operations.
The Allegany Central originally ran over the Chesapeake and Ohio's former Hot Springs branch between Intervale and Covington from 1975 to 1984.
There, a new excursion company was formed under the name Virginia Central Railroad, operating out of Staunton on the CSX mainline.
Nos 1238 and 1286 were stored in Staunton under tarps for several years, until they were sold to a private owner from Alberta in 2015 after Showalter's passing.
Both steam locomotives arrived on the Prairie Dog Central Railway in Winnipeg, Manitoba in September of that year.