August 1981 CW Local Chase

Courtesy of Tom Carver.

August 15, 1981

The local had started the day at Almira, where the crew had outlawed the night before. Here are pictures that Tom has shared of that trip.

The Central Washington Local drops empties at Hanson, WA, on its westbound trip to Coulee City; will pick up loads on the return.

In a location where one would not expect to find three F-units and a Geep, the CW local's crew is turning the power for the return to Spokane from Coulee City. 

 At Coulee City, making up their train.

 

After outlawing the night before at Almira, WA, the engineer has the hammer down on his F-Units and a Geep, just after leaving Coulee City on the return trip east to Spokane with the CW Local. The gray dust trail is volcanic ash from the Mt. St. Helens eruption the year before.

Back at Hanson.

 It is about to pass under U.S. Route 2 in the scrublands near Govan.

The eastbound Coulee City Turn did not stop for any pickups in Almira, WA, on this trip back to Spokane. 

At Mondovi.

The CW Local has left the open prairie and wheat fields of central Washington State behind and is entering the far eastern part of the state which gradually becomes more forested, as seen here between Creston and Davenport. August 15, 1981.

"The engineer and agent are having a friendly chat while the CW Local waits at Cheney, Wash., for clearance to enter the main line from the CW Branch and proceed to Spokane. Three F-Units and a Geep are the power on a pleasant August 15, 1981."

Coach Fares CW Branch Spokane To Coulee City

 

1988 Chasing The CW Branch

Photos courtesy of Jonathan Fischer. 

May 26, 1988

Near Creston. 

Near Wilbur.

Near Wilbur

Wilbur

Wilbur

Wilbur

Govan

1979 BN Station Revenues-Spokane Division

 

Hand Drawn CW Map

Drawn by Robert Scott for a feature on the Eastern Washington Gateway he was working on at the time.

2019 Govan Derailment

Guest post by Rodney Aho.

"Five years ago a serious derailment occurred on the Washington Eastern Railroad just east of Govan, between Wilbur and Almira, about 70 miles west of Spokane. Seven loaded grain cars left the tracks, six of which were damaged beyond repair; hundreds of feet of track were ripped up. Thankfully there were no injuries. (I was not the engineer.)
 

"The cause of the accident was initially believed to be a broken rail. Our maintenance crew immediately began the arduous task of pulling the wreckage off the right of way and rebuilding the track so service could be restored.
 

"It was shocking to see how much damage occurred, even though the track speed limit at that location was just 10 mph. My back-of-the-envelope calculation suggests that if the kinetic energy of the train’s 27 cars was concentrated and released at that one spot, it would equal six tons of TNT.
The potential for accidents always lurked in the back of our minds; consequently we took great care to work safely and always adhere to the operating rules."

1983 BN Washington Grain Elevator Directory E-M

Courtesy of Aaron Schwarz and the PNRA.

1971 BN Consolidated Annual Station Earnings

Courtesy of Aaron Schwarz and the PNRA.

Will Erect 100,000 Bu Elevator Here

From the Coulee City "Dispatch."

March 28, 1940

July 30, 1942

NP AFE 1923 Culvert Replacement Between Govan And Odair

Courtesy of the NPRHA.

BN AFE Index Card-Govan

Courtesy of the PNRA and Aaron Schwarz.

1915 NP AFE Govan ROW Fence

Courtesy of the NPRHA.

See Double-you Saturday!!

Photo courtesy of Blair Kooistra.

Blair says:

"Burlington Northern's CW Local has minimal tonnage and no revenue in tow as it passes beneath US Highway 2 near Govan, Washington, on September 27, 1980. By the end of the day, though, a full train of boxcars and covered hoppers loaded with wheat will tax the gathered seven locomotives assigned to the train--an A-B set of F-units and five geeps.

"Amid all the former Great Northern and Northern Pacific F-units working for BN in the Pacific Northwest, the train is led improbably by a former Spokane, Portland & Seattle locomotive, 712, a late-version (November 1948) F3A built as SP&S 802.

"The 712 led a curious career following the 1970 BN merger, continuing to work passenger trains in the Pacific Northwest until Amtrak's start in 1971 as the BN 9752. In 1972, she and her five sister SP&S F-units were converted to rotary snowplow power plants and renumbered into the 97255X series, painted in mineral red. BN's motive power shortage brought on by growth of Powder River coal brought the snowplow units back to regular service in their red paint and original BN numbers in 1974; she received green paint and her final BN number, 712 around 1976, assigned to the Spokane area. It was retired about a year after this photo, and finally scrapped in Tacoma in 1982."

College Train To Big Bend In May

From the "Spokesman Review."

May 12, 1912

Galloping Goose

From the "Spokesman Review."

February 26, 1950