So apparently I'm out of the loop...
I've heard that Union Pacific 0-6-0 #4466 has been sold to the Niles Canyon RR, and is currently awaiting to be shipped from the California State RR Museum.
There's no mention of it on the N.C. RR website and #4466 is no longer on the museum's roster... Can somebody confirm or deny?
My guess is its a April fool Joke.
The announcement I read was about two years old, so no, it can't be April Fools.
One of my buddies has been trying to convince me for the past several months that "the news is true" but I'm rather skeptical. The silence is deafening.
Well according to wikipedia tthe engine is sitting waitting to be transfer to the Niles canyon.
Wikipedia well, isn't very reliable.
I'll be giving the CA RR Museum a call tomorrow to finally put this to rest.
well what did you find out ??
Sorry got caught up in work and school related stuff. I called but, nothing.
I find that at almost all establishments the person hired to work "the desk" and answer phone calls knows nothing about the "goings-on" at the place, as is the case here.
Sorry if "no clue" isn't what you wanted to hear. Maybe somebody should call the Niles Canyon Railroad? I'd do it but long distance calls are expensive for me.
Steamlocomotive.com lists the engine as being located at CSRM in Sacramento, but notes that it has been sold to Niles Canyon for restoration. I have no idea how reliable or timely this information may be.
Tom
Try Railway Preservation News. I bet there's more than one person over there that can give you a definitive answer on this.
I have nothing concrete, but CSRM has done some swapping with PLA to get more SP steam-era equipment that has direct ties to the Sacramento General Shops. That effort has resulted in the long-term loan of SP Pacific No. 2467 and Central Pacific suburban-type 2-6-2T No. 233, both of which had been removed by PLA from a city park in Oakland, CA under agreement with the City of Oakland. The 2467 was made operable by the PLA; the 2-6-2T remains a hulk (it was built at Sacramento Shops in the 1870s). The 2467 was rebuilt in the late 1920s at Ogden, UT by SP using new cylinder castings and other components made in the Sacramento Shops and steel foundry (the former "Unit Shop").
PLA also has Sacramento-built SP 0-6-0 No.1269, which was a guest engine operated on CSRM's Sacramento Southern in the 1980s before UP donated the 4466. After 4466 arrived and was put in service, the 1269 went back to PLA, but perhaps it is now being reconsidered as part of a trade.
The 4466 is and always has been a coal burner, and that has presented problems to CSRM; it also now needs some boiler work to have its FRA permit renewed. When it ran on Sacramento Southern, it tended to spark grass fires and Old Sacramento merchants on the west side of the district were often none too happy about its acrid exhaust. Since it never historically ran outside of Wyoming, perhaps CSRM has found that it can have a better home elsewhere.
Again, I don't know the latest scuttlebutt, but this may shed some light on the topic.
There is no truth to the rumor that the California State Railroad Museum is selling the Union Pacific 4466. The California State Railroad Museum has worked cooperatively with the PLA in the past to acquire and transfer some locomotives and cars. However, there has not been any serious discussion about the California State Railroad Museum deacessioning the UP 4466. The California State Railroad Museum is part of California State Parks and to deacession a significant collection item involves a detailed process that includes in depth review.
Thanks,
Matt Bellah
District Superintendent
California State Parks - Capital District
THANK YOU, Mr. Bellah!
I hate that your introduction to this forum comes over the need to stomp out speculation, but I'm glad you're here...
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