Nostalgia & History > BN F3 9762 & North Coast Hiawatha at Yakima Aug '71

F3 #9762 is making its Eastward stop at Yakima, Washington, with Amtrak's "North Coast Hiawatha" in August of 1971. The train is a mixture of colors from BN's predecessor roads with 9762 being a former NP unit. The train would now head to Pasco and then up to Spokane and then thru Idaho and Montana.

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excellent...I've got a few slides of that train at Yakima...brings back good memories
upbuddyboy

Drew, you always post something that sits me back in the chair.
Thanks again for another greath photo
Art in DC

Not the best but the 9772 on #10 going through Drummond, MT in 70 or 71

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Another intriguing photo from the past. How did the NP operate the steam boilers? Did they have controls and pass thru steam piping in the lead unit? Or did they have another set-up?
Happened across a post in the NP Yahoo discussion group about the two NP FP-7's staying in Minnesota area for most of their time, not the NCL mainline action. Although after Amtrak most of the assignements changed.

TCnR Wrote:
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> How did
> the NP operate the steam boilers? Did they have
> controls and pass thru steam piping in the lead
> unit?

Basically, yes.

Thanks for the photos. I always love looking at the BN / Amtrak rainbow trains from that era.

Just a minor clarification, depending on what day of week this was taken on, the first picture taken in Yakima was either a combined North Coast Hiawatha and Empire Builder (three days per week) or just the Empire Builder (four days per week). If the day of week schedules were the same for the NCL in August, 1971 as shown in my 1972 timetable, if this was taken on a Monday, Wednesday or Friday, it would have been the two trains combined, otherwise it was only the Empire Builder. You don't happen to know the exact date or day of week the photo was taken by any chance?

Friday, August 20th

<Friday, August 20th>

Then it would be the combined train.


<Not the best but the 9772 on #10 going through Drummond, MT in 70 or 71>

Regarding the Drummond picture, if it was taken after June 1, 1971, then it was Amtrak #10, the North Coast Hiawatha, which would have been passing through Drummond at about 7:30 or 7:45 am if it was on time. It was not scheduled to stop there. It could not have been taken in May, 1971 since the NCH had not been instituted yet. If it was taken before May 1, 1971, the date Amtrak started up, then it was either train #30, the Burlington Northern's eastbound Seattle - St. Paul Mainstreeter, which was scheduled to stop in Drummond at 12:04 pm, or train #26, the Burlington Northern's eastbound Seattle - Chicago North Coast Limited, which was scheduled to pass through (but not stop at) Drummond at about 7:00 am. The BN merger took place on March 3, 1970 so it was some time after that date since the NP logo has been removed from the locomotive, but interestingly not off the station which leads me to believe this may have been taken in 1970 within a few months of the merger (BN was pretty aggressive in removing old logos). It appears the sun is high in the sky based on short shadows, so my vote goes for the Mainstreeter #30. But it could have also been a late running North Coast Limited (or North Coast Hiawatha if it was after June 1, 1971, which I doubt), or maybe I'm looking at the shadows wrong and it is earlier in the morning than my first impression. One thing that would help - do you recall if the train stopped at Drummond when you took the picture? If so, it was definitely the Mainstreeter, if not it was the NCL or possibly the NCH.

Isin't the engine number for BN locos? And it's an FP7, a little rare in that neck of the woods to boot.

<Isin't the engine number for BN locos? And it's an FP7, a little rare in that neck of the woods to boot.>

Yes it is a BN number, forgot to mention that.

The lead locomotive in the first picture at Yakima (BN 9762) is an F-3, former NP 6502A. The locomotive in the second picture at Drummond, BN 9772, is an F-7A, former NP 6507C. NP had quite a few of these in passenger service, and thus they were definitely not "rare" in this area. You are correct that an FP-7 would have been rare since NP only had two of those (6600A and 6601A), which spent most of their lives in Minnesota (no dynamic brakes so they didn't like to use them in the mountains). Their BN numbers were 9792 and 9794.