Sunday, March 27, 2016

Waterville's First Engine

Courtesy of Harold Badten.

Steam engine was on loan from the Great Northern. No idea as to why the tender is lettered "UR."


Wednesday, March 23, 2016

Last Train At Douglas

March 2, 1985

Anita Sprauer photos. Courtesy of Harold Badten. 

Darrin Nelson, over at his fine blog "Great Northern Railway Mansfield Branch Line (1909-1985) and the Waterville Railway Co. (1910-1954),"  has the folks in the first photo identified as such:
"Some of these people were on the Douglas County Historical Society at the time.  L to R:  Forrest Barnes (1912-2002), Alice Jacobsen (1925-2013), Roxanne Viebrock (1912-2004), person unknown, Edna Slusser-George (1907-2003), Glorian Eggers (1925-2008) and Nadra Betcher.  "





Darrin says: "The two men on the left and center are unknown and the man on the right is Oliver Ruud (1899-1994)."



Darrin says:"Scotty Watson (Central Washington Grain Growers' Manager at the time), Alice Jacobsen (local farmer) and Edna Slusser George (local historian)."


Friday, March 18, 2016

1962 Bluestem Depot

Photos courtesy of Len Robertson.



Looking west towards the start of double track.





Thursday, March 17, 2016

Relay Rail At Bluestem

From the "Spokesman Review."

February 21, 1951

Article misspells Lamona as "Ramona." Guess the staff writers didn't get outside much then either.


Saturday, March 12, 2016

MRL 290

Former Great Northern SDP40 321, as the Montana Rail Link 290, leased to the Eastern Washington Gateway and seen in Coulee City, on March 7, 2016. This locomotive is notable in that it was one of 6 built for the GN in 1966 as a passenger engine.

Note in the first photo there are a few telegraph poles still standing here, along with a flanger sign (the dark grey/black sign near the left of the photo) which told plow crews where to raise the plow to avoid hitting crossings and such. In the right hand center background of the photo can be seen the grade which ran straight past this location, heading south to Adrian. This section was abandoned in 1953.





Crossing county road J NE.


Entering Coulee City. The former depot, seen on the right, has been the Senior Center since 1977. The red building on the left once belonged to the Potlatch Lumber dealer.



Building the train by pulling cars from the south track first. 



Starting the pull to leave town. The concrete silos were constructed in the wake of the abandonment of the nearby Mansfield branch. On the left of the train is the former Centennial Mills crib elevator, steel tanks, and warehouse.