Southern Pacific #8 is a

narrow-gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge (distance between the rails) narrower than . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curv ...

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, Fuel oil, oil or, rarely, Wood fuel, wood) to heat ...

, built by

Baldwin Locomotive Works The Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) was an American manufacturer of railway locomotives from 1825 to 1951. Originally located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, it moved to nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania, Eddystone in the early 20th century. The com ...

in August 1907. It was originally built for the

Nevada–California–Oregon Railway The Nevada–California–Oregon Railway was a Narrow gauge railways, narrow gauge railroad originally planned to connect Reno, Nevada, Reno, Nevada, to the Columbia River. However, only of track were laid so service never extended beyond Lak ...

as their second #8, and was sold to

Southern Pacific The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the names ...

in 1929. She spent the rest of its career hauling passengers and freight along Southern Pacific's Keeler Branch. The locomotive, along with sisters #9 and #18 were nicknamed "The Desert Princesses", having served the desert areas of

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

and

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. In 1954, an GE 50 Ton diesel locomotive was purchased, relegating steam power on the Southern Pacific's narrow-gauge line to backup duty. Locomotive #8 was retired in 1955 after 48 years of service and donated to the State of Nevada. Now owned by the

Nevada State Railroad Museum The Nevada State Railroad Museum, located in Carson City, Nevada, preserves the heritage railroad, railroad heritage of Nevada, including locomotives and cars of the famous Virginia and Truckee Railroad. Much of the museum equipment was obtai ...

, it has been on display at Lillard Park at

Sparks, Nevada Sparks is a city in Washoe County, Nevada, United States. It was founded in 1904, incorporated on March 15, 1905, and is located just east of Reno, Nevada, Reno. The 2020 U.S. Census counted 108,445 residents in the city. It is the List of citi ...

since 1975 after negotiations of a long-term loan.

References

External links

Nevada State Railroad Museum
* https://c1.staticflickr.com/6/5030/5686584026_d534a91817_b.jpg * http://www.pacificng.com/imglib/main.php?g2_itemId=11020&g2_imageViewsIndex=2 Spec sheets for SPng/N-C-O #8 courtesy of Pacificng.com. {{Commons 0008 4-6-0 locomotives 2′C locomotives Baldwin locomotives 3 ft gauge locomotives Railway locomotives introduced in 1907 Preserved steam locomotives of Nevada Sparks, Nevada Narrow-gauge steam locomotives of the United States Individual locomotives of the United States

See also

References

External links