Steam & Excursion > This Was A Grim Sight For Any Steam Crew To See In The Yards!

You can only imagine what the train crews thought when they came back from their day's run and were greeted by this sight.  While they were out making their runs that day, the wrecking crew had gone about their somber task of retrieving the remains of an unfortunate steam crew and thier locomotive from a horrible wreck.

Here we see Union Pacific 4-8-4 #841 after she has suffered a terrible wreck at speed in 1956.  Even though she was only 12 years old when this wreck occurred, her damage is such, it is unlikely she will be repaired since the steam era on the UP is already winding down.

Martin



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/19/20 02:43 by LoggerHogger.

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Somber indeed.  You know that someone probably died or was severely injured. 
We lived close enough to the Frisco Lindenwood roundhouse to hear the RH whistle.  Dad would ignore it when it blew for shift changes, but it would also blow a signal when the wrecking crew was called.  One signal for the Rolla Sub main line and a different one for the River Div.   You could see the apprehension on him.  Maybe one of his fellow engineers could be involved.

Do you happen to have a date for this wreck? I checked the ICC Accident reports for 1956 and 1957, and nothing is shown for Union Pacific. I also checked online newspapers (Newspapers.com; Publishers Extra), and no mention is made of a wreck involving a steam locomotive.

In case the date is recorded wrong, there were three UP wrecks in 1955, but none involved steam locomotive no. 841.

UP's own Equipment Record ledger book shows that UP 841 was retired in March 1957, with "W.O." in the Remarks, meaning worn out. Attached is a screen capture of that portion of the ledger page.

Obviously, the locomothive was wrecked, but it's strange that there is nothing in newspapers, or in government reports.

Don Strack

 

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donstrack Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Do you happen to have a date for this wreck? I
> checked the ICC Accident reports for 1956 and
> 1957, and nothing is shown for Union Pacific. I
> also checked online newspapers (Newspapers.com;
> Publishers Extra), and no mention is made of a
> wreck involving a steam locomotive.
>
> In case the date is recorded wrong, there were
> three UP wrecks in 1955, but none involved steam
> locomotive no. 841.
>
> UP's own Equipment Record ledger book shows that
> UP 841 was retired in March 1957, with "W.O." in
> the Remarks, meaning worn out. Attached is a
> screen capture of that portion of the ledger
> page.
>
> Obviously, the locomothive was wrecked, but it's
> strange that there is nothing in newspapers, or in
> government reports.
>
> Don Strack
>
>  

You never heard of pencil whipping?

I don't have any info on this wreck.  I looked for it, but could not find any.  The negative sleeve is marked 1956.  That would be consistant with retiring her in 1957.  Are we sure the notation, "W.O." does not mean "Written Off"?

I was hoping someone here could fill in the details of this wreck

Martin

Can anyone identify where the photo was taken?  It's not Cheyenne--the hills in the background are not consistent with it being there.  Rawlins?  Ogden?  Laramie?



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/19/20 07:47 by WW.

No pony truck and she loks like she rolled over on the firemans' side. The only thing I've seen of an 800 being this badly wrecked was the runaway off Sherman Hill, but they rebuilt her and from what I read she was the best riding one of the bunch after her rebuild.

Here's a report involving the 841 in 1953. Even though both enginemen perished, no equipment derailed
and reading the details it seems hard to think the damage shown in the photo could have occurred as a
result of what the report details. Could 841 have been involved in both?
https://dotlibrary.specialcollection.net/Document?db=DOT-RAILROAD&query=(select+3541)

Charlie

Given that many railroaders were related by blood or marriage, or having had worked together, it could be rough. Often the cemetary at a division point town was the final resting place.

Victor A. Baird
http://www.erstwhilepublications.com

WW Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Can anyone identify where the photo was taken? 
> It's not Cheyenne--the hills in the background are
> not consistent with it being there.  Rawlins? 
> Ogden?  Laramie?

rawlins, green river, barstow?   could be rawlins  with those hills, it isn't ault, colo



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/19/20 14:04 by dan.

Charlie,

Thanks for finding this accident report.  I still wonder if this is the same accident.  The 70 mph speed make sense, but the damage looks too much for an engine that did not derail.

Here is part of the report:

"No. 18 stopped with the front of the engine 1.39 miles east of the point of accident. No unit of the train was derailed. The engine and tender were somewhat damaged as a result of the collision. The tank of the semi-trailer was broken open, escaping road oil became ignited, and the engine and tender and all cars of the train were damaged by fire."

The engine in my phot may have been burned.  Where is the lead truck?  If this was torn off in the wreck it would have derailed.  The cab looks to damaged for a grade crossing wreck.  Still, it may be the same.

Martin

LoggerHogger Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Charlie,
>
> Thanks for finding this accident report.  I still
> wonder if this is the same accident.  The 70 mph
> speed make sense, but the damage looks too much
> for an engine that did not derail.
>
> Here is part of the report:
>
> "No. 18 stopped with the front of the engine 1.39
> miles east of the point of accident. No unit of
> the train was derailed. The engine and tender were
> somewhat damaged as a result of the collision. The
> tank of the semi-trailer was broken open, escaping
> road oil became ignited, and the engine and tender
> and all cars of the train were damaged by fire."
>
> The engine in my phot may have been burned. 
> Where is the lead truck?  If this was torn off in
> the wreck it would have derailed.  The cab looks
> to damaged for a grade crossing wreck.  Still, it
> may be the same.

And the report states that the front portion of the oil tanker 
was dragged to the stopping point; which may account for the 
obvious fire damage we see in the photo. If this was the same
event; what a horrible way those men died. I'd say the engine 
and tender were more than "somewhat damaged" as a result
of whatever the 841 collided with on that day.

Charlie 
 

WW Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Can anyone identify where the photo was taken? 
> It's not Cheyenne--the hills in the background are
> not consistent with it being there.  Rawlins? 
> Ogden?  Laramie?

Possibly near the point of the collision; Ault, Colorado. See following posts regarding a 1953 accident involving 841.

Given the front end colision in the report, I would exped to see more damage to the pilot.  Also, how did the cab get so mangled so far from the impact point?

Martin

Robert Darwin’s “History of the Union Pacific in Cheyenne” notes that the 841 was involved in the encounter with a tanker truck in Colorado was repaired and returned to service. Some months later, ‘’the engine threw a side rod at high speed and was severely damaged (pg. 149)’’. He then notes that the engine was subsequently retired and sold for scrap.

So, was this photo taken at the scrapper, perhaps the one in Utah?

NathanNon-Lifting Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Robert Darwin’s “History of the Union Pacific
> in Cheyenne” notes that the 841 was involved in
> the encounter with a tanker truck in Colorado was
> repaired and returned to service. Some months
> later, ‘’the engine threw a side rod at high
> speed and was severely damaged (pg. 149)’’. He
> then notes that the engine was subsequently
> retired and sold for scrap.
>
> So, was this photo taken at the scrapper, perhaps
> the one in Utah?

The locomotive in the picture above cannot be the 841. Looking at the same book, the 841 does not have the degree of damage shown in Martins' picture. In the picture on pg 149, it's pretty clear the engine threw a rod and there is no cab or tender damage on the firemans' side as in the picture above.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/19/20 13:18 by Txhighballer.

The side rods in my photo are intact.  This was not a side-rod accident.  The engine in the photo I posted is indeed UP #841.

Martin
 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/19/20 13:45 by LoggerHogger.

LoggerHogger Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The side rods in my photo are intact.  This was
> not a side-rod accident.  The engine in the photo
> I posted is indeed UP #841.
>
> Martin
>  

Correct. What we have here is a mystery. This locomotive cannot be the 841, and the accident files are of no help. So the question is what locomotive is this and what happened to her?

Why do you say the engine in my photo can not be #841?

Martin

LoggerHogger Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Why do you say the engine in my photo can not be
> #841?
>
> Martin

The locomotive in your picture looks like she overturned on her left side, and the picture on pg. 149 of "Union Pacific Railroad in Cheyenne" shows the 841 and damage from a thrown rod. There is no cab or tender damage and the engine has her pony truck. In your picture Martin there is considerably more damage than would normally be associated with throwing a rod at speed. The book does NOT say that the 841 derailed, but the engine in your picture surely did so. Either one or two things happened:

1. The picture in the book misidentified the 841;

2. Your picture misidentified the 841.

3. This picture is from the book.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/19/20 14:08 by Txhighballer.