Nostalgia & History > Uncle Oliver (#24): …a shiny Northern!

I was born too late to experience the every day steam era in American railroading. But sometimes I can look at a black & white image and get some sense of what it must have been like to be there in person and taste the living color sights, sounds & smells of such a magnificent engine! This is one of those times…

1. AT&SF 3765 looking all shiny & spiffy in Topeka, KS in September of 1949.
Photo by William A. Gibson Sr, from the Oliver Gibson collection via Art Gibson

Thanks for looking back!
Lance Garrels (santafe199)
Art Gibson (wag216) … in honor of Uncle Ollie

Added 12-11-'17: It has come to my attention that this image was actually taken by William Oliver Gibson's long time friend & fellow Santa Fe employee, Bill Gibson (WAG Sr). I have duly edited the photo credit. As was the habit of many railfans in the black & white days, Bill (Art's father) shot an extra negative which he traded to Oliver (Art's honorary uncle). Both images are now in the Art Gibson (WAG Jr) collection. So in effect we have (are you ready for this... ;^) a very unique, 3-way collaboration by 2 WAGs & a WOG...



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 10/25/22 04:56 by santafe199.

---

If that engine was rebuilt or overhauled there at Topeka, it must have been one of the very last, I think they stopped doing that kind of work there in 1949.

Class locomotive, I believe.

Wow, didn't see one in service looking THAT great (except for today's restored locos.)

Somebody tell me what’s on top of the cylinders? Can’t seem to remember?. Poppet valves?

SD45X Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Somebody tell me what’s on top of the cylinders?
> Can’t seem to remember?. Poppet valves?

I believer those are the Wagner drifting valves. Pretty sure only Santa Fe locomotives used them.

I like how the side rods were outlined in with white edges. Thanks for posting, Lance.