Steam & Excursion > Headed To The Roundhouse At Jamestown-Sierra #38!

When the Sierra Railroad decided to take one last try at extending it's steam motive power fleet in 1952 with the purchase of Weyerhaeuser Timber 2-6-6-2 #4 they had one problem, she would not fit in the turntable at the Sierra Roundhouse in Jamestown, California. When serious shopping was done on her, the shop crews had to remove her tender so she could be turned on the turntable and put into one of the roundhouse stalls.

In the first view, taken in 1953 by Stanley Borden, we see Sierra #38 headed down the roundhouse lead track. In the second view we see her, sans tender, being serviced in one of the roundhouse stalls.

On at least one occasion, the April 1955 "Farewell To Steam Excursion", this "remove the tender" procedure was used to simply turn the #38 so she was headed west and back to Oakdale.

We all should be grateful for the efforts that the Sierra Railroad went to in order to make steam last a few years longer on this Mother lode Shortline.

Martin



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 08/03/13 04:31 by LoggerHogger.

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How was it turned for regular operations? I never saw it operating in reverse on the main line.

Martin:

Thanks for the interesting pictures of the #38 getting into the Jamestown Roundhouse (albeit in pieces!).

My grandfather was a steam donkey and later main boiler engineer for the Pickering. He started off with the HHYV then to the Empire City operation, over to the Standard Lumber Company (future Pickering) where he ended his career at the Standard plant. He and my grandmother used to indulge my early childhood fascination with the Sierra and as we could see the smoke from the daily freights in Sonora (we lived on Knowles Hill) I was always asking to go "see the little black engines" (which I assume were the various consolidations and mikes the Sierra ran into Sonora and back to Oakdale as well as the upper division locos). Both my parents worked so I spent many days in the care of my grandparents at that time.

In any event, one day we went out to see the trains in Sonora and here was this big monstrous looking thing with a white front sitting over in front of the derrick on the old Sonora Lumber Company spur. The train was sort of scattered around - apparently stopped in the process of switching - and I recall a bunch of guys in overalls standing around looking at this thing (which of course was the #38) and talking/scratching their heads etc. It ominously, was not moving.

My grandmother and I watched while my then retired grandfather went over and talked to the crew for what seemed like a long time. When he came back he explained to my grandmother that the Sierra's #38 was broken down and that engines were being sent up from Jamestown to take care of the train. He said the crew was not too happy with the "new" engine and his own opinion was that it had too many problems which he then ticked off. Finally he said that it was "a used up piece of junk"! I of course went along with anything my grandfather said about steam engines.

From then on my grandfather would refer to the 38 in a very derogatory fashion. It was a steam engine and I liked watching it when it came to Sonora. At the time I thought it was huge until I was up at my uncles in Colfax and watched some SP AC's roll through eastbound with three of them dragging over 100 cars! Those were REALLY monsters to me. From then on whenever our family went up and stayed a few days, I wanted to stay at the depot and watch the trains.

My uncle's father was Mr. Hawke an engineer on the old Nevada County Narrow Gauge and for years he had an old narrow gauge hand car in his garage. My uncles house was on the hill behind the depot and you could get down to the tracks in a matter of a few minutes. Perfect place to live!

Anyway, thanks for posting a picture of the Sierra's "used up piece of junk"!

John

In normal operations #38 was turned at the Cooperstown wye. They would have to back from Jamestown Cooperstown turn around the wye. Then they would turn her again on the Y at Oakdale.

Posted from iPhone

Boy! I sure remember the days of chasing her out of Railroad Camp in the 60's with my Dad, Jack Holst, Murph and the gang! The shop tours were really fun too! I don't remember the hogheads name, but he could play that whistle like the "Comin' of Gabriel"! I've got a recording of her someplace. It is off of the old LP album from the late 50's or early 60's called "Whistles in the Woods". I don't even know if you can still find a copy of it.

patd3985 Wrote:
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> Boy! I sure remember the days of chasing her out
> of Railroad Camp in the 60's with my Dad, Jack
> Holst, Murph and the gang! The shop tours were
> really fun too! I don't remember the hogheads
> name, but he could play that whistle like the
> "Comin' of Gabriel"! I've got a recording of her
> someplace. It is off of the old LP album from the
> late 50's or early 60's called "Whistles in the
> Woods". I don't even know if you can still find a
> copy of it.

UPDATE: I tried going online to see about getting another copy of this album, but not too much luck. Anybody know where I can get a CD of these recordings by Stan Kistler? I'd REALLY appreciate it. Thanx,...........Pat

That whistle recording made by Stan Kistler of Rayonier #38 (Whistles in the Woods) is absolutely a thing of beauty! I bought the album from Stan back around 1964, and the CD from Stan just a few years ago. He was selling the CD on eBay. "Whistles in the Woods" is the best whistle recordings ever made!

Here are the "full particulars" for all of you regarding "Whistles in the Woods":

Here are some tidbits regarding its contents on the CD:

Stan Kistler has re-released his classic "Whistles in the Woods" audio recordings on CD. Logging engines including Westside # 3, 8, 9, & 10 plus std. gauge logging steam circa late 1950's. $15.95 + $2.00 S/H .

There's a wonderful sequence on this recording of Rayonier #120 whistling in the rain for a crossing on the Gray's Harbor Tree Farm near Humptulips, WA. It's one of the prettiest minor key whistles you'll ever hear, and the engineer is an artist with it.

Rayonier 120's whistle was the big bullet top Powell 3-chime that was on 489 for years.

Someday you might hear it on 1744.

120's whistle came into the possession of Tom Irion, who I believe may have got it when the locmotive was scrapped. He loaned it to Dan Ranger who put it on many locomotives in Northern Calif.

Dan took it with him when he moved to Hawaii to run the LK&P where it was put on an engine there. When Dan moved to Chama in 1983 it came with him. Eventually a gentleman named "Earl" noticed the similiarity of the 120's whistle to the dome-top 3 chime used on 489 in the 50's which later ended up on 487 in the 1960's. As 487 had a real nice 5-chime then and 489 needed to find her "voice", it went on 489. When Dan moved to CA in 1990, "Earl" became the whistle's custodian. It went with him to Calif in 1991, back to Chama in 1992 and was returned to 489. It stayed there until Earl left the C&TS in 1998. He again was its custodian when he had it in TX where it got put on SP 2248 for a week or so, it then came back to Chama and 489 in 2001 when he worked that summer. 489 got set aside at the end of the 2001, the whistle went back to Dan, where it resides currently.

The "New and Improved" version has extra stuff that the LP didn't have - such as the Southwest Lumber #2 and 12 double-headed.

Regarding the whistles used on some of the West Side Shays in this CD, listen carefully & you'll note that more than one are SP 6 chimes. Nearby Pickering Lumber didn't have any of these, so I suspect that Ed Sullivan or some West Side officer had an in with the SP to acquire this type, unique to the woods.

Currently, Westside Lumber # 10 at the Yosemite Mountain//Sugar Pine Railway (Fish Camp, CA) sports the whistle off of SP Class P-4 'Pacific' # 2422 which SP gave to my grandfather, Vic Shattock, as one of his retirement presents in 1959.

Stan Kistler was selling "Whistles in the Woods" on EBAY. Check out the attached PHOTO. Does this look like the product everyone is in search of ??

The CD is $15.95 plus $2.00 for shipping; Stan takes cash, checks, or Paypal which is easy, you just enter a credit card for the online transaction (very secure)) and you will have your CD in a couple of days. Note that Stan’s Ebay listing is also a “buy it now” fixed price listing so it is not an auction per say. When this listing expires (one week) he will relist it again. If you don’t want to deal with Ebay then just send Stan $17.95 to the address listed below
and you should be fine.

Stan Kistler
P.O. Box 977
Grass Valley, CA
95945-0977

Thanks everybody-- hope this helps. And to "Marty Hansen", I say, you owe me dinner! Of course "Marty" is trying to figure out where I got all this! (grin)

Cheers.

KRK



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/04/13 17:13 by KeyRouteKen.

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Actually Rayonier #38 is not included on Stan's famous "Whistles IN The Woods" recording. Stan covers Rayonier #14, #90 and #120.

If anyone does not have the record or the CD they don't know what they are missing!

On the subject of Sierra #38's whistle, here is a photo of her on the engine in 1967 and how she looks today.

Martin



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/04/13 09:30 by LoggerHogger.

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I wonder who's drivers are shown in the far left of the pic....

Could #38 be turned on the wye in Tuolumne?

Somewhere I heard that #38's purchase was arranged by BLW salesman John Kirkland as a stop-gap measure to eliminate helpers up Dry Creek Canyon (allowing Sierra to scrap unpopular soak #24) until they relaid the mainline with enough heavier rail to support the S-12's

The driver set in the second photo is likely from the #38 herself. It looks like they have #38 over the drop-pit.

#38 could be turned on the Tuolumne Wye and she was turned on it on the one and only known trip she took to Tuolumne on a railfan excursion.

Sierra #24 was not retired and sold to the scrappers until 1955, after #38 herself was retired and being sold to Rayonier.

Martin



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/06/13 14:18 by LoggerHogger.

Sierra #24 was retired from freight service in May, 1954, and never used again after that date.

Huh, strange that the Sierra kept her around for almost a year until she left for SFO. Maybe they figured she might be needed if one of the other locomotives broke down (she could cover for 34 if needed, as she was more powerful than her). Poor girl was a sad sight for ol' Manny Marshall when he worked for State Belt at that time.

- Mike N.