Union Pacific Steam Engine #1242 is the oldest coal burning steam locomotive in Wyoming. Union Pacific Railroad (UP) donated "Old Sadie," as she was nicknamed, to the City of Cheyenne in 1955 after being retired from the Walcott-Saratoga-Encampment branch line.
The engine ran the line from November 1, 1921 until its last trip May 15, 1954 with UP engineer, Floyd Young, Sr. The 44 mile Walcott-Saratoga-Encampment short line was originally built to haul copper from the Encampment area, but the mines closed soon after completion of the line in 1908. The line was then primarily used to bring livestock and forest products to the UP main line connection at Walcott Junction, 127 miles west of Cheyenne. The main UP train stops, east of west, across Wyoming (built in 1867-1868) are etched along the walkway surrounding Engine #1242.
After World War II, the popularity of efficient diesel locomotives eventually overtook the steam locomotives. Though steam engines were as powerful and often fast or faster than diesels, their huge appetite for fuel, water, and labor-intensive maintenance brought about their demise. Steam locomotives retreated to a stronghold in Wyoming, where the big engines ran their last miles in 1959. Union Pacific's heritage steam operations are still maintained in Cheyenne in a portion of the old roundhouse in the
rail yard.
Statistics
Built: December, 1890 by Cooke Locomotive & Machine Works of Petterson, NJ
Type: Ten-Wheel (4-6-0)
Drivers: 57" diameter
Weight: 198,370 pounds
Length: 63' 1 1/2"
Operating Boiler Pressure: 165 pounds
Tractive Force: 21,318 pounds
Tender Capacity: Water - 7,000 gallons, Coal - 12 tons
Comments 0 comments