Steam & Excursion > Looking Back at Time, Change and Circumstance.

On February 24st 1962 the Santa Maria Valley Railroad exited steam powered railroading with a last run billed as the Final Run of Engine 21. As the only locomotive built new for the SMVRR, No. 21 was special to the road’s owner, Captain Alan Hancock. She emerged from Baldwin in April 1925 as construction number 58638 and Captain Hancock was the first engineer to take the throttle of the well-proportioned 2-8-2.

In the days leading up to No. 21’s last run the local press described the event as a gala and noted that two special guests would accompany Captain Hancock in the cab as he ran the engine on a 5-car excursion from Santa Maria to Guadalupe and return. One was Walt Disney who would act as assistant engineer and the other Major Joseph J. Presto, commanding general of the 1st Strategic Aerospace Division at Vandenberg Air Force Base. Also in the cab would be Manuel Phillips, the fireman who had accompanied Captain Hancock on the first run of the engine.

In the wee hours of February 23, buddy Chris (engine 3420) and I accompanied Morris Abbowitz in his faded blue 1951 Plymouth Cranbrook from North Hollywood to Santa Maria for the great event. We arrived in time to witness the servicing of the locomotive and wandered freely about the engine house and yard along with numerous other railfans. Safety and liability issues issues were less of a concern in those days, and to a 16-year-old railfan this freedom was heady stuff! Alas, at the time I knew nothing of the Santa Maria Valley, much less that they were one of a rapidly dwindling number of California short lines still operating steam in addition to a growing diesel fleet. For me, the trip was simply to see a steam locomotive in operation.

Typical of the Central Coast in February, the morning was cold and gray with intermittent rain showers, but by the time the excursion and its dignitaries arrived in Guadalupe most of the clouds had given way to the sun. Now, having already exhausted the film in our Brownies, we milled about with the crowd until the train was ready to depart. During this time I acquired a couple of souvenirs, one being the Clearance Card, which was graciously autographed by Captain Hancock, Walt Disney and two other crew members. The other was one of the day’s Trainorders. Later that afternoon we followed No. 21 and her five SP Harriman coaches back to Santa Maria before heading back home.

Today, I don’t have very many photos of myself from my wild eyed teenage days, but Chris did catch me unawares in the cab of No.21 at Santa Maria, as seen in photo number 3. However, earlier this year I received a very pleasant surprise when Tom Moungovan sent me a John Hungerford slide taken that day of No. 21 in the yard at Guadalupe. To my amazement, there, between the main line and the first yard track, just below the Guadalupe station sign is yours, truly in all his blissful ignorance! In addition, Chris can be seen just entering the frame on the extreme left.
Looking back, it is still amazing to me that just under a half century later I would find myself living just a few miles from Mr. Hungerford’s photo and the souvenirs would come be back home, so to speak, as the result of a 1997 move from Southern California to Nipomo, just ten miles way from both Santa Maria and Guadalupe.

A few days ago, while looking at the John’s picture, it suddenly struck me that perhaps I should make a quick run down to Guadalupe and see just how much has changed since 1962. The classic SP Common Standard No. 22 depot has been gone for years, but what other elements from the 1962 scene might have remained?

As to be expected, a lot has changed over the years and today one has to look hard to find traces of the 1962 view. The tracks seen in John Hungerford’s photo are slowly disappearing into the dirt. The area where the station stood is now part of Union Pacific’s yard office and MOW facility, featuring a tin building supplemented with some containers for storage. Guadalupe does still have a passenger station, albeit an open front Spanish style shelter for Amtrak customers waiting on the Pacific Surfliner and it’s supporting coastal service busses. Still, fifty-two years later one local tie to the past does remain – almost unchanged. Across the street from the station stands the Guadalupe Hardware Co. It is still selling Fuller Paints under the same sign seen in 1962!

Also, No. 21 survives in Astoria, Oregon and is undergoing restoration to operation by the Astoria Steam Train Association.

Life is good.

Cheers,
Jack

1. Santa Maria Valley Railroad No. 21 in 1933, still appearing pretty much as she was delivered from Baldwin. Photo is an eBay find, back stamped Collection of J.C. Hammond.

2. No. 21 outside the engine house on the morning of February 24, 1962.

3. Yours truly, in the gangway. Photo by Chris Stark – aka Engine 3420 on TO.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 09/22/14 08:52 by africansteam.

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4. Front of Clearance Card for 2/24/1962.

5. Reverse of card showing the signatures of Alan Hancock, Walt Disney (signature inverted), D.W. Jones and (Ivan Beall?) fireman.

6. T.O. from the last run.

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7. Scene at Guadalupe from the camera of John Hungerford. Note the fuller Paints sign on the hardware store in the background.

8. The same scene today with train 790 about to depart for Lompoc/Surf

9. The hardware store today.

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What a great story and photo essay. I remember that trip as a friend, the late Jim Mahan who was the second to last leverman at Glendale Tower on the day it closed, called and asked if I wanted to go up there with him. I declined for who knows why or you and I might have met much sooner than we eventually did. I don't know if Jim went either.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/22/14 08:40 by masterphots.

One of the best personal stories I've read in a long, long time. Thanks for the inside story and images.

Here is a shot of the crew of #21 on that day. You can see Disney signing autographs.

Martin

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Great photos! Note, with interest, the air horns on top #21's cab. Were all of their steam engines so equipped? Notice you made mention of my friend Tom Moungovan. I've known Tom since the 1960s when he used to ride with me on Simpson's railroad in Shelton, but haven't talked to him since he moved.
Pete Replinger

Thanks Jack. Best photo essay on here in quite some time.

-M

Mike Massee
Tehachapi, CA
Photography, Railroading and more..

fehorse1 Wrote:
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> Great photos! Note, with interest, the air horns
> on top #21's cab. Were all of their steam engines
> so equipped? Notice you made mention of my friend
> Tom Moungovan. I've known Tom since the 1960s
> when he used to ride with me on Simpson's railroad
> in Shelton, but haven't talked to him since he
> moved.
> Pete Replinger

Pete, I don't know if any other SMV locos were similarly equipped. If you look closely you will see that two of the horns appear to be pointed perpendicular to the track. I am wondering if this was designed to alert field hands working close to the tracks.

Cheers,
Jack

Great story Jack. Your comparison photo looks spot on for the Hardware store. Always enjoy your posts
Dave

africansteam Wrote:
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> fifty-two years later one local tie to the past
> does remain – almost unchanged. Across the
> street from the station stands the Guadalupe
> Hardware Co. It is still selling Fuller Paints
> under the same sign seen in 1962!

Thank you for crediting the photographer. J C Hammond was my uncle and was a very active rail photographer during the thirties, forties and fifties. He fell on hard times and had to sell most of his collection and he commented his biggest regret was seeing his photographs credited in publication's to other people.

Thanks for providing the date of the last steam run on the SMVRR. I came through there on my way to Berkeley (long story) in Sept. 1967. I took a little detour to get photos of the engine house and yard, and noted that the standpipe for filling tender water tanks was still in place, although no steamers were in evidence.

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A couple of things I find interesting in the first 2 pics:
1. It appears the smoke box is lagged.
2. #100 appears in the background of pic 2. She moved east to AZ a year or so later.