UPRR City of Portland #6 wreck and derailment Dec 22,1963 Wyoming

[cogwheel]

I was a passnger on UP #6 west bound that day when the train was involved in wreck at Point of Rocks Wyoming. ( 40 miles east of Rock Springs, Wyo.). I would like to share info. on this wreck with any one interested or might have photographs.  The City of Portland east bound, traveling 74 mph, collided with derailing west bound freight train on adjacent double track.  The accident was caused by a hot box and burned off journal on a box car about 3 cars behind the locomotives.

[cogwheel]

Correction: UP #106 was East bound City of Portland. 

[tcox009]

At that time UP No. 6 was a unnamed mail and passenger train.  Rode it once on a family vacation to LA/Disneyland in 1959

[cnwfan51]

If you can find the hardbound book The History of the Union Pacific in Cheyenne bu Robert daewin It has photos of the wreak    Larry

[cogwheel]

tcox009

At that time UP No. 6 was a unnamed mail and passenger train.  Rode it once on a family vacation to LA/Disneyland in 1959

The correct train Name and number was City of Portland 106 east bound.  I do remember train  UP5/6 being listed as Mail and Express.  I was a student at The University of Idaho  61-65 and frequently rode The City of Portland # 105/106 and the Portland Rose # 17/18 both ways.

 

[Anonymous]

I just looked at the DOT Railroad Accident Repor site and there is no listing of a UP accident in December 1963:

http://ntl1.specialcollection.net/scripts/ws.dll?websearch&site=dot_railroads

[rrboomer]

There are a lot of accidents not listed in the DOT Special Collections.

[Anonymous]

rrboomer

There are a lot of accidents not listed in the DOT Special Collections.

Would you happen to know of an online site that has information to this accident?

Thanks in advance.

 

[rrboomer]

Don't know of one offhand. 

[tcox009]

cogwheel

tcox009:

At that time UP No. 6 was a unnamed mail and passenger train.  Rode it once on a family vacation to LA/Disneyland in 1959

 

The correct train Name and number was City of Portland 106 east bound.  I do remember train  UP5/6 being listed as Mail and Express.  I was a student at The University of Idaho  61-65 and frequently rode The City of Portland # 105/106 and the Portland Rose # 17/18 both ways.

 

My dad was an engineer on the UP based in Kansas City.  You couldn't ride the streamliners on a pass and when we went to the Pacific NW we would take the 17/18 the Portland Rose but when we wanted to go to LA we rode the Portland Rose to Cheyenne and there change to 5/6 to LA at least we did in 1959.

[Seas]

I was on the City of Portland going East in December 1963, and it derailed East of Rock Springs. The confusing thing is that my records say it was the 19th. Our train ran into a derailed freight train.  The last two cars were still on the rails, and we were pulled back to Rock Springs in these cars. 12 hours or so later we boarded a new train to Chicago. 

[recovered]

Cogwheel, I don't know if you are still monitoring this discussion, but I was an infant on that train. My father took some snapshots of the accident. He says the accident took place on a  Cheyenne Reservation.  Our car had derailed so we were sent to Rock Springs by bus.   

[dakotafred]

Note: There are no Indian reservations along the U.P. in Wyoming. (The accident site is certainly BLEAK  enough to qualify.)

[Seas]

well, it was the city of Portland in December 1963 when I rode on it.  I don't know about the designation UP No.6,but from 1960 through 1963, I took the City of Portland back and forth between my college (near Boise) and Chicago.

[Seas]

what you say is very true. And yet my experience proves that it happened. and now someone has posted pictures.

[Seas]

Thanks for posting these!