Union Pacific 737
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Union Pacific 737 | |
---|---|
Southern Pacific Railroad, Erath Sugar Company, Vermilion Sugar Company | |
Class | UP 600–700, SP E-21 |
Numbers | 737, renumbered 246 in 1904, 216 in 1913 |
Delivered | 1887 |
Retired | 1956 (revenue service) |
Current owner | Double-T Agricultural Museum |
Disposition | On static display |
Union Pacific Railway Engine No. 737 or UP 737 is a 4-4-0 "American" type steam locomotive. It is currently the oldest preserved Union Pacific steam locomotive. It was originally acquired by the Union Pacific Railroad (UP) in 1887.
History
UP 737 began its career as part of one of the largest locomotive orders on record up to that date, for use on Union Pacific passenger and freight trains. As delivered, the locomotive had a long, pointed,
In August 1904 (different sources disagree on the date), the Union Pacific Railroad sold Locomotive No. 737 and a few similar 4-4-0s to either
Locomotive No. 737 and some of her sisters migrated southward about 1904 to the
During the first quarter of the 20th century, the owning railroads made a number of important modifications to Engine 246, later 216. By the end of 1904, subsequent to Congress passing a safety act that mandated the change, the Southern Pacific converted the locomotive's link and pin coupling equipment to automatic "knuckle" couplers, possibly of the Janney type. At unknown dates, a number of other changes followed as the locomotive experienced further modernizations quite common on railroads across the country during that time. Mechanics and boilermakers replaced the original short smokebox with an extended smokebox with shotgun stack. It was almost certainly on the Southern Pacific Lines that the shops converted the locomotive from a coal burner to an oil burner. An oil tank was installed in the tender in place of the coal bin and hoses and pipes to feed oil to the firebox were rigged, with suitable controls and probably modification of the firebox grates. Thus the locomotive could exploit Texas and Louisiana petroleum for fuel. A steel pipe or "boiler tube" pilot replaced the original wooden type of cowcatcher. An all-steel cab replaced the original Baldwin wooden cab. A new and different headlight replaced the old kerosene "box" headlight.
Locomotive No. 216 was retired on December 4, 1929 retired from active service on a major railroad system when it was sold by Southern Pacific Company to Erath Sugar for industrial use in the cane fields of Louisiana. In August 1947, Erath Sugar transferred ownership of No. 216 to the Vermilion Sugar Company at Abbeville, Louisiana. The Vermilion Sugar Company retired No. 216 in 1956.
Restoration
A
In 1970, Steamtown began an ill-conceived attempt to cosmetically restore the engine. A replica box headlight was installed, and a wooden cab was built overtop of the existing steel cab. Most significantly, a diamond stack replica was installed on the engine. This diamond stack was much shorter than the one the engine originally carried, and was of a different design from the original. Thus, the restored 737 bore little resemblance not only to its original form, but any form it had assumed during its service life.
On October 30, 1986 the U.S. Congress passed legislation creating
In 2004, the WPRRM traded the UP 737 to the Double-T Agricultural Museum in Stevinson, CA, where presently remains on static display. The engine was cosmetically restored to its 1914 appearance as Southern Pacific 216, with the straight, shotgun style smokestack, as well as the electric headlight and restored steel cab.
References
This article incorporates public domain material from Union Pacific Railway NO. 737. National Park Service.
- This article was originally based on Steamtown NHS special history