I took these train pictures from my car on February 25, 2006. The first was taken along Interstate 5 near Martin's Bluff near Longview, Washington. Leading a southbound train, Burlington Northern Santa Fe #7916 is a 3,000-horsepower SD40-2 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in June 1979 as Colorado & Southern #7916. Colorado & Southern was a subsidiary of Burlington Northern, and its locomotives were painted in Burlington Northern colors. The Colorado & Southern was formally merged into the Burlington Northern on December 31, 1981, and this locomotive became Burlington Northern #7916. Following the merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on September 22, 1995, this locomotive became Burlington Northern Santa Fe #7916.
Closer to Longview Junction, Washington, is this southbound train led by Union Pacific #3143, a 3,000-horsepower SD40-2 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in January 1972. Trailing is Union Pacific #2419, a 3,800-horsepower SD60M that was built by the General Motors Locomotive Group in London, Ontario, in November 1990 as Union Pacific #6263 and was renumbered on January 6, 2005.
At the Longview Switching Company yard in Longview, Washington, Union Pacific #1434 is a 3,000-horsepower GP40-2 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in April 1980 as Southern Pacific #7949. After the Southern Pacific was merged into the Union Pacific on September 11, 1996, this locomotive became Union Pacific #1434 on December 20, 2000.
Albany & Eastern #2001 was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in February 1970 as Illinois Central #9502, one of an order of 20 2,000-horsepower GP38AC locomotives. In 1972, the Illinois Central merged with the Gulf, Mobile & Ohio to become the Illinois Central Gulf, and the locomotive became Illinois Central Gulf #9502.
After their original 15-year lease expired, this was one of 18 of the 20 to be leased to the Missouri-Kansas-Texas in 1985, and it became MKT #327. The Missouri-Kansas-Texas was acquired by the Union Pacific, and the locomotive became Union Pacific #1984 on February 6, 1991.
After their original 15-year lease expired, this was one of 18 of the 20 to be leased to the Missouri-Kansas-Texas in 1985, and it became MKT #327. The Missouri-Kansas-Texas was acquired by the Union Pacific, and the locomotive became Union Pacific #1984 on February 6, 1991.
After the MKT lease expired, Union Pacific purchased it on October 23, 1996. It was renumbered to Union Pacific #1785 on August 27, 1997.
Albany & Eastern #5129 is a 50-foot 5347 cubic foot boxcar, one of 300 built by the FMC Corporation for the Green Bay & Western in December 1979 and January 1980 in the 16000-16299 series. Cars 16100-16149 went to the Northwestern Oklahoma Railroad (NOKL) around 1993, and later became AERC 5100-5147. This car still wears its original yellow paint, with the “Green Bay Route” logo changed to read “Santiam River Route.”
Southern Pacific #4716 is a C-50-9 Class Bay-Window Caboose that was built by PACCAR in 1980 as part of an order of 75 that would be Southern Pacific’s last new cabooses.
The Southern Pacific was merged into the Union Pacific in 1996.
This caboose was no longer on Union Pacific’s roster in January 2002.
TTX Boxcar TBOX #666396 is a 60-foot boxcar built in 2004 by National Steel Car of Hamilton, Ontario.
Albany & Eastern #3859 was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in February 1959 as 1,750-horsepower GP9 #456 for the Texas & New Orleans, a subsidiary of Southern Pacific.
After the 1965 system renumbering, it became Southern Pacific #3660.
On January 9, 1978, it was upgraded by Southern Pacific’s Sacramento Shops as GP9R #3859.
It was retired on February 20, 1991, and was sold on February 5, 1992 to the Willamette Valley Railway.
It was later leased to the Albany & Eastern, which purchased it in 1999.
My dad, Cliff West, took these train pictures in late 2005. First are three photos of a Willamette & Pacific locomotive in Rainier, Oregon.
This picture of BNSF equipment was taken at the Amtrak depot in Vancouver, Washington. In the foreground, BNSF #518 is a 4,000-horsepower Dash 8-40BW that was built by General Electric in October 1990 as Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe #518. Following the merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on September 22, 1995, it became BNSF #518 in April 2001 and was repainted into BNSF’s “Heritage II” paint scheme in May 2001. In the background, BNSF #3126 is a 3,500-horsepower GP50 built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in August 1985 as Burlington Northern #3126. Following the merger of the Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on September 22, 1995, it became BNSF #3126 on June 3, 2002.
Montana Rail Link #45028 is a Pullman-Standard PS2-CD 4427-cubic-inch 100-ton covered hopper that was originally built in March 1971 as part of lot 9532, a group of 200 such cars built for the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway, or Frisco, numbered from 79300 to 79499. The Frisco was merged into the Burlington Northern Railroad in April 1980, and these cars became Burlington Northern 439000-439199. A group of 50 of these cars went to the Montana Rail Link after its creation in October 1987, and were numbered 45001-45050. Initially painted dark blue, they were used to carry materials such as lime, talc, and decorative rock, which caused the dark blue paint to weather quickly. When my dad photographed this car in Linnton, Oregon, it had recently been renovated and repainted light gray, which was expected to hold up better than the dark blue.
Willamette & Pacific GP39-2 #2310 “Monroe” is a 2,300-horsepower GP39-2 that was built by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors in August 1974 as Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe #3609. It was retired in December 1992 and was sold to the Willamette & Pacific Railroad in June 1993. It is pictured here at Saint Helens, Oregon, on October 1, 2005.
