Steam & Excursion > As Night Falls The Last Steam Train On This Road Rolls Into Town!

We have here a very rare photo.  This photo shows night time in South Tacoma, Washington as Northern Pacific 2-8-2 #1776 brings in the very last steam passenger train ever run by the NP.  The date is December, 8, 1957.

This train had left Seattle on December 7, 1957 and proceeded to Olympia for the first day.  The next day, the 8th, the train went on to Centralia and then back to S. Tacoma where we see her that evening.

Just like that, the Northern Pacific was an all diesel road.  Just like that.

Martin



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/01/16 04:11 by LoggerHogger.

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I hate diesels.  Everything is crap now.

The way I remember it, Martin, the train made two round trips from Seattle to Centrailia and back, one on Saturday and one on Sunday.  One both days, they took the Gate line through Olympia and then switched off the main line at Tenino to take the Prairie Line back to Tacoma.  The Saturady trip was made in the rain while Sunday turned out sunny and beautiful.  I was fortunate enough to be with friends on Sunday and we followed the train as much as we could.  The 1776 didn't sound typical at all - they changed the whistle with one off a 2600 4-8-4 or something. 

Pete

The recording I heard the whistle sounded horribly out of tune. Hopefully that wasn't typical.

Posted from iPhone

I also thought it sounded terrible.  When I first heard it from a distance in the rain, I thouight what is this that is coming?

Martin,

Are you sure the photo was taken in South Tacoma?  It almost looks like Seattle?

Pete,

The photographer marked the negative sleeve as S. Tacoma.  That is all I can go off of.

Martin

I could be wrong, but that building in the background looks way to high for anything I've seen in S. Tacoma.

Besides, because of the 16 hour law, the crew wouldn't have had time to go back to Tacoma.