One hundred years as a state. One of the reasons the area I live in today is part of the United States was to provide a rail link to the west coast. There needed to be one southern enough that winter would not hamper the flow of commerce frequently. See Gadsden Purchase History for a summary of this historical event.
A couple of generations later, the State of Arizona was formed. As part of the centennial statehood celebrations, Union Pacific showed off a nearly seventy year old locomotive for a few days.
A slight amount of ‘train geek’ showed up, and why not. It’s just not every day that a steam train rolls by your house.
Well, a couple of neat pictures would be nice - quick, on the bike, let’s go!
I must give my wife credit - a couple of terrific shots, with a simple point-and-shoot camera.
Their home is in Cheyenne, Wyoming. It’s my understanding that they work on them in the winter for the touring season when the weather is better. It might be a fun excursion to check that out first-hand someday.
You can read a bit about them here: Union Pacific Steam
Update March, 2019
I had mistitled this post originally...I thought this happened in 2012, which was the centennial year for Arizona.
No, this happened in 2011! November would be just two and a half months from the actual centennial, which was February of 2012.
20180208
A couple of generations later, the State of Arizona was formed. As part of the centennial statehood celebrations, Union Pacific showed off a nearly seventy year old locomotive for a few days.
A slight amount of ‘train geek’ showed up, and why not. It’s just not every day that a steam train rolls by your house.
Well, a couple of neat pictures would be nice - quick, on the bike, let’s go!
I must give my wife credit - a couple of terrific shots, with a simple point-and-shoot camera.
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| Train at speed - right near home! |
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| Nice shot of locomotive and tenders (2) from I-10 frontage near Marana, Arizona |
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| Locomotive and tenders (2) plus Southern Pacific Heritage diesel locomotive from I-10 frontage near Red Rock, Arizona |
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| Train at speed at grade crossing - the ground shook!! |
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| Florence, AZ whistle stop. Maintenance required every 150 miles or so to keep it running. |
Their home is in Cheyenne, Wyoming. It’s my understanding that they work on them in the winter for the touring season when the weather is better. It might be a fun excursion to check that out first-hand someday.
You can read a bit about them here: Union Pacific Steam
Update March, 2019
I had mistitled this post originally...I thought this happened in 2012, which was the centennial year for Arizona.
No, this happened in 2011! November would be just two and a half months from the actual centennial, which was February of 2012.
20180208
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