The steam engine display question: AT&SF 4-8-4 3759 is on static display in Kingman. AZ, and faces WEST, but didn’t the display use to face EAST? Or, is my memory kind of dyslexic?
The steamer display is an incredibly popular one. Unbelievably so! Passersby and tourist were always getting in the way of photographic efforts. It dawned on this contributor afterward that the engine’s popularity with the crowds was something that should have been document as well …
While in Kingman, this forumist stumbled across the historic, ex-Santa Fe depot being renovated.
That tidbit was thought to be of interest to at least someone here at the forum.
Yes, all of the above pic’s are of interest to me. I worked in the Kingman area {automotive testing}, back 1969 - 1971…and all your photos show areas I visited with interest.
Used to watch the several passenger trains come in and stop at that depot {that was in use then}…Some in that era still had “covered wagons” for power and some even had the “Mar’s” lights that would be rotating, flashing all around coming down grade making ready to stop…
And as for the 3759…I remember it being positioned west at that time. I remember climbing up and into the cab sitting on the engineers seat, and thinking…"it took a brave man to ride this thing down thru here {believe it’s almost a 2% grade down, west}, with a long freight pushing behind…}.
It looks pretty sad now…Sure needs a freshening with paint, etc…
KP, if you are familiar with the Kingman area…we stayed {for our work operation there}, up the hill east {on 66}, out of Kingman, on the right at {then}, the Ramada facility, with the La Pasata restaurant {brand new at that time}, next door…Some time ago, I checked on here and that motel now is I believe a Best Western…Might be wrong on the exact name, but it is not a Ramada Inn currently.
If I remember correctly, just west of the depot, there was a Harvey House at one time…I never saw it, but believe {at that time}, one could still see it’s foundation.
Well, it sounds like this thread sent you on quite a nostalgia trip …
Personally, a motel stay in Kingman during 1984 was one of the most vivid and memorable I ever had, for the next morning my wife and I could not leave the motel porch overlooking the Santa Fe mainline. The desert landscape simply was just so serene and mesmerizing!
In the last decade, I stayed there again in hopes of capturing that wonderful experience all over again, but it was gone forever. New houses littered that landscape, and … well, the wonder and sereneness, sadly, just wasn’t there …
While in Kingman this past Tuesday, August 10, 2010, I took a few photos of the new bi-directional CTC signaling not very far from the old ex-Santa Fe depot. They likely will hit home with you, for I am sure you can remember the old days when each Kingman main was Automatic Block Signal (ABS) wired for only one direction of travel, either westbound or eastbound.
Looking west: The eastbound biased bi-directional track is in the foreground.
The eastbound biased track’s grade crossing with the new signaling for the westbound biased main in the background
A closer view looking east at the just above tri-light signaled mast:
The three new, contemporary views above should bring back
Yes, it sure has sparked my interest, very much so. I enjoyed myself very much as I was doing our work out there, which included running tests from Kingman, {our base of operation}, down perfume pass, {west on old 66}, and on down thru Yucca Flats, {and into the {then, Ford Motor Co. test facility at times}, and on down to Topock…back up the old, old rt. 66 thru Oatman, Goldroad, etc., also out of Kingman north, to rt. 68 and on out thru the desert valley and up to the pass and down to Bullhead City, and return.
Thanks for the several more photos of the area…Believe another change I see is concrete ties…I’m pretty sure they were not in place 40 years ago thru there. But the track always looked to be 1st class in structure.
I used to enjoy watching east bounds {when daylight was fading}, head out thru the valley east of Kingman, {by the airport}, and watch the signals change as the train passed thru each block. Believe one could see almost 15 or 20 mi. out thru there.
Anyway, K P…enjoyed all your comments and displays. And I have no memory of any caboose on display during the era I was present.
Item: The interstate west bound, at that time, was finished just to the east side of Kingman, and an access to it came down near the Holiday Inn {at that time}. It had not been constructed around the north and west side of Kingman yet. Rt. 66 thru there was still the main route. I believe we rejoined the interstate down on Yucca Flats {west bound}, at that time. I understand it circles around the north and west side of Kingman now and of course must have taken the thru traffic off Andy Divine thru Kingman.
…I too have a photo of the Kingman engine in static display, facing west. That photo {around here someplace}, was taken in the Summer of 1969 when we first started our testing program out there.
