The railroad used the locomotive in both fast freight and passenger service, and it accumulated over one million miles of usage before its last revenue run on December 24, 1953.

[7][8] The city displayed the locomotive as a static exhibit in the park until it was sold for $1.00 to the Society on July 26, 1999.

On June 23, 2000, the locomotive was moved by Messer Construction Company to a BNSF Railway rail siding just south of Menaul Boulevard.

2926 locomotive was moved out on temporary snap tracks to its current location near the intersection of 8th Street and Haines Avenue, where it underwent a complete restoration to operating condition by the Society.

On February 11, 2016, House Memorial Bill 100, introduced by Don L. Tripp and adopted by the New Mexico Legislature, recognized the Santa Fe No.

[9] In January 2018, it was reported that the restoration was nearing completion, and that the locomotive could be operational by the end of the year.

As of that date, NMSL&RHS members had put in 166,000 hours of volunteer labor and spent over $2.8 million on the project.

2926 returned to the mainline on a 2.5-mile excursion to the Albuquerque Rail Yards to attend the New Mexico Railroad Days event.