Southern Pacific 1744

Southern Pacific No. 1744 is a preserved American M-6 class 2-6-0 'Mogul' steam locomotive built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for the Southern Pacific Railroad in November 1901. Originally with vauclain compound motions, it was rebuilt with simple cylinders in 1912. It operated for many years out of Oakland on the SP Western Division and in California's Central Valley where the Mogul and its classmates were fondly called “Valley Mallets” by their crews. The locomotive was made famous in later years by operating on several of the last steam excursions on the SP alongside other steam locomotives, including 4-8-4 4460. In 1959, it was donated to the Sons of Utah Pioneers in Corinne, Utah, where it remained on static display, until 1980. That year, it was restored by New London Railroad and Village Incorporated to operate on the Heber Valley Railroad in Heber City for the rest of the decade. In 1989, it was sold again to Tarantula Corporation to spend another whole decade of storage in Fort Worth, Texas. In 1999, it was leased by the Rio Grande Pacific Corporation, who restored it again to operate in New Orleans, Louisiana, until 2001. It was eventually sold once again to the Iowa Pacific Holdings for use on the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad between Alamosa and La Veta, Colorado. However, its fourth return to service only lasted less than a year, as firebox repairs needed to be done for the locomotive. The boiler was sent to Springville, Alabama, for repairs, and in 2012, the boiler was moved again to Rusk, Texas, and then the RGSR stopped the rebuilding process after they ceased steam operations, and then they ceased tourist operations altogether. In March 2020, the Pacific Locomotive Association acquired the 1744 with the hopes of restoring her back to service on the Niles Canyon Railway.

Southern Pacific 1744
No. 1744 when it operated on the Rio Grande Scenic Railroad, 2007
Type and origin
Power typeSteam
BuilderBaldwin Locomotive Works
Serial number19671
ModelM-63 21/28 150-S
Build dateNovember 1901
Rebuild date1912
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 • Whyte2-6-0
 • UIC1'C'h
Gauge4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Driver dia.63 in (1,600 mm)
Wheelbase51.29 ft (15.63 m)
 • Engine23.67 ft (7.21 m)
 • Drivers15.17 ft (4.62 m)
Adhesive weight144,120 lb (65,370 kg)
Loco weight166,300 lb (75,400 kg) (Pre-1912)
174,000 lb (79,000 kg) (Post-1912)
Tender weight100,000 lb (45,000 kg)
Total weight266,300 lb (120,800 kg) (Pre-1912)
274,000 lb (124,000 kg) (Post-1912)
Tender type100-C-1
Fuel typeNew: coal
Now: fuel oil
Fuel capacitycoal: 12 t (12 long tons; 13 short tons)
Oil: 2,800 US gal (11,000 l; 2,300 imp gal)
Water capNew: 6,000 US gal (23,000 l; 5,000 imp gal)
Now: 10,000 US gal (38,000 l; 8,300 imp gal)
Firebox:
 • Firegrate area		49.50 sq ft (4.599 m2)
Boiler pressure200 lb (91 kg)
Heating surface:
 • Firebox		160.32 sq ft (14.894 m2) (Pre-1912)
162 sq ft (15.1 m2) (Post-1912)
CylindersTwo, Outside
Cylinder size21 in × 28 in (530 mm × 710 mm) (Post-1912)
High-pressure cylinder15.5 in × 28 in (390 mm × 710 mm) (Pre-1912)
Low-pressure cylinder26 in × 28 in (660 mm × 710 mm) (Pre-1912)
Valve gearStephenson
Performance figures
Tractive effort33,320 lb (15,110 kg)
Career
OperatorsSouthern Pacific
Heber Valley Railroad
Rio Grande Pacific Corporation
Rio Grande Scenic Railroad
ClassM-6
NumbersSP 1744
FW&W 1744
NO&GC 1744
SL&RG 1744
NicknamesThe Big Easy Steam Train
RetiredSeptember 24, 1956 (Revenue service)
May 4, 1958 (1st Excursion service)
December 3, 1989 (2nd Excursion Service)
May 12, 2001 (3rd Excursion Service)
September 2007 (4th Excursion Service)
RestoredSeptember 1980 (2nd Excursion Service)
September 2, 2000 (3rd Excursion Service)
May 21, 2007 (4th Excursion Service)
Current ownerPacific Locomotive Association
DispositionUndergoing restoration to operating condition for the Niles Canyon Railway; components slowly being gathered at Brightside, California.

History

Original service life

Between 1882 and 1930, the Southern Pacific Railroad acquired a total of 438 distinctive M-class 2-6-0 "mogul" types[1] for themselves or their subsidiary companies, like the Texas and New Orleans Railroad. The moguls they purchased were built by several manufacturers:[2] 131 units from the Cooke Locomotive and Machine Works in Patterson, New Jersey, 9 units from the New York Locomotive Works in Jersey City, New Jersey, 33 units from the Brooks Locomotive Works in Buffalo, New York, 7 units from the Rhode Island Locomotive Works in Providence, Rhode Island, 7 units from the Pittsburgh Locomotive and Car Works in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, 24 units from the Schenectady Locomotive Works in Schenectady, New York, 190 units from the Baldwin Locomotive Works in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a single unit from the Lima Locomotive Works in Lima, Ohio, and 36 units built by the SP themselves at their own facilities in Sacramento, California and Houston, Texas.

No. 1744 was the 20th member of the M-6 class built by Baldwin and delivered to the SP in November 1901. The mogul and its classmates started out as Vauclain compound high-pressure locomotives, as in the turn of the 20th century, this design became very popular with various class 1 railroads, including the SP. However, the popularity was short-lived. Significant maintenance difficulties appeared, particularly with uneven forces wear on the crosshead guides. The two cylinders were supposed to be proportioned so as to do equal work (with the low pressure being three times larger than the high); but since the steam passed between the low and high-pressure cylinder is always expanded, even before cutoff, the force produced in the low-pressure cylinder varies differently from that in the high-pressure cylinder. The complex valve assembly and the starter valve also led to increased maintenance costs, as they caused the locomotive's coal and water economy to be so good that they were also pricy to operate. As a result of this, the SP chose to rebuild all their compound Moguls between 1907 and 1914, with No. 1744 rebuilt in 1912, with conventional cylinders. Shortly afterwards, they were modified with superheaters.

These locomotives were intended for freight service, operating out of Oakland on the SP Western Division and in California's Central Valley. Despite no longer being compound locomotives, the Moguls were still fondly nicknamed by their crews "Valley Mallets". On October 7, 1954, the 1744's old 6,000 gallon tender was replaced with a 10,000 gallon class 100-C-1 tender for an increase of water capacity. As 4-6-0 "ten-wheelers" and 2-8-0 "consolidations" became backbones of certain assignments, along with locomotives with longer wheel arrangements being introduced, the 2-6-0s were all relegated to branch lines and rail yards across the SP system.[3] The railroad started retiring their little moguls as early as 1928, when the first M-7s were already sold for scrap. The 2-6-0s would retire more frequently as the SP began to fully dieselize. The 1744 was among the last steam locomotives on the railroad to be removed from revenue service, as it pulled its last freight assignment in Sacramento on September 24, 1956.

Between 1951 and 1958, by the approval of the road's president Donald J. Russel, the SP used their steam locomotives one last time for a series of "Farewell to Steam" excursions.[4] They selected some of the last steamers on their active roster for the fan trips, including the 1744, 1896-built T-1 class 4-6-0 "ten wheeler" 2248, P-8 4-6-2 "Pacific" 2475, GS-4 4-8-4 "Northern" 4443, GS-6 4-8-4 4460, SP-2 4-10-2 "Overlander" 5011 and AC-11 4-8-8-2 Cab forward 4274. On May 4, 1958, the 4460 was assigned to pull the Oakland-Sacramento Senator plus an extra string of Harriman type passenger cars for an excursion over the 34-mile Sutter-Basin branch North of Sacramento. As the train approached Davis, it was handed over to the 1744, and it pulled the train on the rest of the journey to the end of the little-used Knights Landing branch, a signpost lettered "Josephine", where until that time, there had never been a passenger train. That was the last time the 1744 was operated by the Southern Pacific, before her fire was dropped one last time. The 4460 would pull the final excursions before being retired on October 31 of that same year, and the 2248 remained on the active list until May 3, 1961.

Preservation

Of all the steam locomotives that pulled the farewell to steam excursions, only the 1744, 2248, and 4460 are preserved. The 4460 has remained on static display at the Museum of Transportation[5] in St. Louis, Missouri, as the Forgotten Daylight, whereas the 2248 has been restored to operation on the Grapevine Vintage Railroad[6] in Tarrant County, Texas, as Buffy since 1993, but is currently undergoing a 1,472-day overhaul required by the Federal Railroad Administration.[7] On April 18, 1959, the Southern Pacific donated the 1744 to the Sons of Utah Pioneers, and the locomotive was moved to their grounds in Corinne, Utah on May 9, where it remained on static display for the next twenty-one years.

No. 1744 when it operated on the Heber Creeper, 1982

On April 22, 1980, the 1744 was purchased by the New London and Village Incorporation, and it was moved by truck to Heber City, where it was given a major work over in the locomotive shops. In the Labor Day weekend of that year, the 1744 was back under steam and was ready to operate on the Heber Valley Tourist Railroad,[8] albeit named the Heber Creeper at the time. There, the 1744 would operate alongside some other active steam locomotives, including Great Western Railway 2-8-0 "Consolidation" 75, Union Pacific 2-8-0 618, and Santa Maria Valley 2-8-2 "Mikado" 100. The 1744 would even do some famous doubleheaders with the other locomotives, which would also only happen on Labor Day.[9] As the decade progressed, however, the Heber Creeper was running into some financial trouble, and they slowly struggled to operate any more trains. The 1744 made its last run in Heber on December 3, 1989, when it pulled the Santa Claus Express,[10] and its fire was dropped once again.

Citizens in the Heber area successfully petitioned the State of Utah to help save the railroad, leading to the creation of the Heber Valley Historic Railroad Authority in the early 1990s. By that time, however, the 1744 was auctioned off to Tarantula Corporation. It was moved by truck to Ogden, and then moved by rail East-bound to Fort Worth, Texas, where it was re-lettered Fort Worth and Western. There were possible plans to operate the locomotive on the Grapevine Vintage Railroad, the same tourist line where the 2248 is currently preserved. However, such plans never came to fruition, as the 1744 instead spent the rest of the decade in storage at Fort Worth. On May 21, 1999, the 1744 was acquired by the Rio Grande Pacific Corporation,[11] who moved the locomotive on a flatbed to New Orleans, Louisiana, where they gave it a thorough overhaul beginning in January 2000 at a combined purchase and refurbishment cost of $1.3 million. The little mogul was test fired on August 29, 2000, and it was approved to operate by the FRA twenty-one days later. The Locomotive made its official debut run in October 1 of that same year for the Burlington Rock Island Historical Society,[12] and after that, it started pulling regular weekend passenger trains between Belle Chasse and Gretna on one of the RGPC's subsidiaries, the New Orleans and Gulf Coast Railway.[13] With no way to turn the locomotive each run, the 1744 would operate forwards to Gretna, and an EMD FP10 diesel unit, or two, would pull the train back to Belle Chasse with the 1744 "pushing" the train backwards. As the only steam locomotive to operate on that line, the locomotive was earned the nickname "The Big Easy Steam Train". May 12, 2001 was the last day the 1744 operated under RGPC ownership, and as patronage was downgraded, the little mogul was once again put into storage in New Orleans for the next six years. It was undamaged in spite of the Katrina Hurricane of 2005.[14]

No. 1744 climbing to Sierra in Forbes Park, 2007

On March 21, 2007, the 1744 was sold off to Iowa Pacific Holdings, which owned the very recently opened Rio Grande Scenic Railroad that operated on San Luis and Rio Grande trackage. On May 9 of the same year, the 1744 was moved to Alamosa, Colorado, and it operated on a test run pulling ten loaded boxcars thirteen days later.[15] On May 25, the locomotive began operating on the Scenic line between Alamosa and La Veta, and it would also often travel South-bound to Antonito where passengers could connect with the narrow gauge Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad.[16] The 1744 would only operate on the SL&RG for only four months, before it's fire was again dropped. This time, it was due to the fact its firebox was in need of extensive repairs. In the beginning of 2008, disassembly began inside a tent in Alamosa,[17] and with the 1744 out of service again, the SL&RG chose to acquire another operable steam locomotive for the trips: Ex-Lake Superior and Ishpeming 18, a 1910-built 2-8-0 that has been restored for excursion service since 1989, and has very recently operated on the Mount Hood Railroad[18] in Hood River, Oregon.

Soon, the 1744's boiler was separated from the frame, and it was shipped to Historic Machinery Services Corporation in Springville, Alabama with the hopes of having it repaired. In 2012, the corporation's owner was retired, and the unfinished boiler was moved to the Rusk Palestine and Pacific Railroad, better known as the Texas State Railroad,[19] in Rusk, Texas, which has a complete steam shop capable of full repairs. Some parts for boiler repairs were also being fabricated by the Strasburg Rail Road[20] at Strasburg, Pennsylvania. As the 2010s progressed, the boiler was brought back to Alamosa, as the RGSR was starting to run into some financial trouble to the point they could no longer afford to operate or maintain steam locomotives. The 18 was the last steamer that operated on the SL&RG in September 2013. One of the final straws to the RGSR's struggle was a wildfire that badly damaged the Fir Concert Grounds. The railroad ceased all tourist train operations as they declared bankruptcy and shut down by the end of 2019, and the SL&RG began liquidating the unnecessary assets.[21] The 1744 would be put up for sale on Ozark Mountain Railcar[22] along with 18, Ex-LS&I 20, and some Ex-New Jersey Transit GP40FH-2 units. The IPH would also go defunct after merging with the Grenada Railroad.

Disposition

On March 9, 2020, it was announced that the 1744 would be purchased by the Pacific Locomotive Association, with the hopes of finishing its restoration[23][24] to operate it on the Niles Canyon Railway,[25] the last leg of the Transcontinental Railroad. The SL&RG started to help move the separated components of the little mogul West-bound to Brightside. The same day the acquirement was announced, the tender and cab arrived at the NCRY's facility at Brightside, California, and the tender was placed on the rails. On August 31, the frame and running gear also made it to the NCRY,[26] albeit by truck. As of 2021, the boiler is still in Alamosa, and the SL&RG is still prepping it for shipment. The running gear is currently being inspected, repaired, and reassembled. It will likely be a few more years before the little mogul will be ready to run again.

Film history

See also

References
  1. "Arizona & New Mexico / Galveston, Harrisburg & San Antonio / Gulf, Colorado & Santa Fe / Northwestern Pacific / Ohio River & Columbus / San Antonio & Aransas Pass / South Pacific Coast / Southern Pacific / Southern Pacific of Mexico / Texas & New Orleans 2-6-0 "Mogul" Locomotives in the USA". www.steamlocomotive.com. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  2. "Southern Pacific 'Mogul' Class Steam Locomotive Index". espee.railfan.net. Retrieved 2020-12-30.
  3. Warner, Paul T. (1959). "Mogul Type Locomotives". The Railway and Locomotive Historical Society Bulletin (100): 7–22. ISSN 0033-8842. JSTOR 43520224.
  4. Stindt, Fred A. (1983). "The Last Days of Southern Pacific Steam". Railroad History (149): 100–113. ISSN 0090-7847. JSTOR 43520976.
  5. "The National Museum of Transportation". National Museum of Transportation. Retrieved 2021-01-01.
  6. "Grapevine Vintage Railroad | Schedule & Tickets Here". www.grapevinetexasusa.com. Retrieved 2021-01-01.
  7. "Federal Railroad Administration". railroads.dot.gov. Retrieved 2021-01-01.
  8. "Heber Valley Railroad – Great Experiences Await". Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  9. "RailPictures.Net Photo: SP 1744 Southern Pacific Railroad Steam 2-6-0 at Vivian Park, Utah by James Belmont". www.railpictures.net. Retrieved 2021-01-02.
  10. "RailPictures.Net Photo: SP 1744 Southern Pacific Railroad Steam 2-6-0 at Charleston, Utah by James Belmont". www.railpictures.net. Retrieved 2021-01-02.
  11. "Home". Rio Grande Pacific Corporation. Retrieved 2021-01-02.
  12. "Steam in the Big Easy - New Orleans & Gulf Coast #1744 - YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  13. "Sires Photography: Trains: Louisiana: New Orleans: New Orleans & Gulf Coast". www.angelfire.com. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  14. Editors, History com. "Hurricane Katrina". HISTORY. Retrieved 2021-01-03.CS1 maint: extra text: authors list (link)
  15. "Memories of 1744". ngdiscussion.net. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  16. "Home". Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  17. "1744 in the "Shop"". www.rrpicturearchives.net. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  18. "Mount Hood Railroad | Scenic Train Rides & Tours in Hood River, OR". Mt. Hood Railroad. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  19. "Texas State Railroad - Piney Woods Texas Area Railroad Tours". Texas State Railroad. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  20. "Strasburg Rail Road - A Full Steam Adventure". Strasburg Rail Road. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  21. "Bankruptcy Court Judge Authorizes Chapter 11 Trustee for San Luis & Rio Grande Railroad, Inc. to Auction 100% of Membership Interest in Its Wholly-Owned Subsidiary Massachusetts Coastal Railroad, LLC". www.businesswire.com. 2020-05-18. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  22. "Ozark Mountain Railcar". ozarkmountainrailcar.com. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  23. "Southern Pacific #1744". Niles Canyon Railway. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  24. "Southern Pacific 1744". plasteam.ncry.org. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  25. "Home | Niles Canyon Railway | Fremont CA". Niles Canyon Railway. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
  26. "SP #1744 Running Gear Arrives - 9.02.2020". Niles Canyon Railway. 2020-09-04. Retrieved 2021-01-03.
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