This past week I took a trip up to Northern California. On the last day of my trip (Tuesday), I had some time in Sacramento as I waited for my train. So I walked over to the railroad museum just to look around. Its a good thing I did.
Parked outside the train shed where they kept some equipment I found this:
Also near by I saw Granite Rock 10.
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Gary–
The “J.W.Bowker” is one of the original locomotives acquired by the museum. It was originally a switcher for the V&T, then spent some time on logging railroads in the Truckee, CA area. It was also a movie star in several films, most notably deMille’s 1939 epic UNION PACIFIC, and featured in a Randolph Scott western (briefly) called SANTA FE. When you visit the Railroad Museum, you never exactly know where you’ll find her from week to week. A lot of time she spends her days in the train shed. Cute lil’ ol’ thing, isn’t she?
The two Santa Fe steamers–4-8-4 and 2-10-4 have been awaiting restoration for some time. I’m not sure exactly when they’re scheduled to go into the shop. It will be interesting to see what happens to them. The trailing truck on the 2-10-4 had to be removed to get the loco through the wye at the museum onto the display track where you shot the photo.
Tom [:)]
Thanks for the background info on the “J.W.Bowker”. I wondered what her story was. And she’s a cute ol’ thing.