(This page printed from UtahRails.net, Copyright 2000-2012 Don Strack)

Heber Valley Historic Railroad Equipment

Compiled by Don Strack

This page was last updated on January 24, 2012.

Additional Information

Steam Locomotives
Diesel Locomotives
Passenger Cars
Freight Cars and Cabooses

Steam Locomotives

(listed in numerical order)

Sacramento Valley & Eastern No. 2

Yosemite Lumber Company Shay No. 4

State Belt No. 4

Pacific Lumber Company No. 35

Jeff Terry wrote on January 3, 2010:

The 35 was the second locomotive the Wasatch Mountain Railway (A.K.A. the “Heber Creeper”) acquired back in 1971. It had been sold to a private owner in 1967-8 and stored in California after the Pacific Lumber Company stopped using it. He sold it to the Wasatch Railway Museum & Foundation in 1971, and after a trip via flatcar to Provo and unloading at Olmstead, it ran to Heber City under its own power hauling ex-Rayonier 2-6-6-2T 110 dead in tow. That was the last train over the line before the connection with the D&RGW was severed.

No. 35 was painted up the first season (1971) in a red and white paint scheme, and then for 1972 it was painted yellow – like you see now – thanks to General Manager Ed McLaughlin; the train was painted up the same way. The tender logos were originally plywood – later painted on.

Some of the guys at Heber, especially Doug Brown, have told me some great stories about this locomotive. They used to put the current year in the number boards , and it wore “1776” in 1976.

Doug was the last to run it, and it was quite worn out when he parked it in 1977. I climbed on it as a kid, and was sorry to see it go in 1993 – that’s the year that the Wasatch Mountain Railway sold its equipment to the Nevada State Railroad Museum. The current Heber Valley Railroad tried to buy it, and made an offer, which was later accepted…but only after 35 had been trucked all the way to Boulder City. “No thanks, I’ll be too expensive to bring back” was the response.

Note that it’s an oil burner. The principal person behind the Wasatch Mountain Railway also owned a Conoco dealership in Heber City, and gave himself a kickback (or so I’ve been told) on the oil they burned in 35. As such it was the preferred power on the ‘Creeper in the 1970s, over coal-burning ex-UP 618. She was parked after the White Mountain Scenic engines arrived…never turned a wheel at Heber after that.

Sierra Railroad No. 36

Great Western No. 75

As far as number 75 goes, she is going through an extensive 1472-day inspection. In addition the the boiler work, she is getting a brand new tender. The cab is having more than half the steel replaced, only a little more than just the roof will be orginal (if you want to consider the cab as orginal - the current cab was built 100 percent new in the 1940's). The running gear is having some heavy attension as well. Boxes, crown brasses, journals, spring rigging pins and bushings, lead truck journals, new liner in bottom of smokebox, smokebox front door ring, and yes - we did cut the forward 18 inches off the smokebox, new tender wheels, completely new air brake system ... the list goes on. We would like to have the locomotive out running sometime in later 2006. The date is not cast in stone, you cannot ever predict what other "hot projects" may fall into your lap that need attention. (Michael Manwiller, posted to Railway Preservation News, November 30, 2005)

Santa Maria Valley No. 100

Rayonier No. 110

UP No. 264

Columbia Seel Corporation No. 300

UP (OSL) No. 618

U.P. 618 was nearing the end of her 1472 service days. After the current 1472 service days were consumed, the locomotive was required by federal law (CFR part 230) to be fully inspected. (Michael Manwiller, posted to Railway Preservation News, November 30, 2005)

SP No. 1744

SP 1744 was purchased by Rio Grande Pacific Corporation from Fort Worth and Western Railroad on May 21, 1999, for service on their subsidiary New Orleans and Gulf Coast Railway. A full and thorough restoration and rebuilding of the locomotive was begun in January 2000. The locomotive was fired up on August 29, 2000, and approved by the FRA for service on September 19, 2000. It was moved on a flat car from Fort Worth to New Orleans, for service pulling the "Big Easy Steam Strain." (SP Trainline, Winter 2001, page 4, "The Mail Bag")

Diesel Locomotives

(listed in numerical order)

UP NW2 No. 1000 (WP 607)

UP NW2 No. 1011

Pacific States Cast Iron Pipe NW2 No. 1043

U. S. Army 44 ton No. 1218

U. S. Army MRS-1 No. 1813

U. S. Army RS4TC No. 4028

Passenger Cars

The Heber Valley Historic Railroad has two D&RGW 1006-1010 series modernized heavyweight coaches. (Steven Seguine, email to D&RGW group at YahooGroups, May 20, 2007)

Five large passenger cars were sold to Tarantula Corporation in Texas at the same time as SP 1744, in December 1989.

Two former DL&W cars (trailers) came to Heber in the early 1990s from Great Smoky Mountain Railroad. (S. C. Lewis)

Former Delaware Lackawanna & Western 2568, 2571, 2593 (3 cars) built in 1930-1931; to Erie-Lackawanna 3568, 3571, 3593 in 1961; to Conrail (same numbers) in 1976; to New Jersey Transit (same numbers) in 1979; to Knox & Kane Railroad in (?); to Heber Valley Historic Railroad (Heber City, Utah) in 2005.

Car Number Notes
UP 1006 UP 1006 was built as UP Observation 820 in 1914; to UP Cafe Observation 1521 in 1915; to UP Cafe Observation 1506 in 1932; to UP Chair Observation 1006 (2nd) in 1943; to Diesel Instruction Car 03163 (1st) in 1949; to Diesel Instruction Car 207 in 1955; retired in 1973; to Promontory Chapter-NRHS (Salt Lake City, Utah) in 1974; to private party, displayed at Independence Hall, a private office building in Murray, Utah, painted dark green; sold to Heber Valley Historic Railroad, Heber, Utah in (?) (as of late August 2007)
UP 2700 UP 2700 was built as UP Baggage Chair Combination 670 in 1910; to UP Baggage Chair Combination1069 in 1915; to UP Baggage Chair Combination 2700 in 1935; vacated in 1970; donated in December 1970 to Promontory Chapter NRHS; moved to Heber City, Utah as part of Heber Creeper collection; to Heber Valley Historic Railroad in July 1992 (previously shown in error as being donated to Stuhr Museum at Grand Island, Nebraska)
UP 5340 UP 5340 was built as UP Lightweight Chair 5340 in 1942; vacated in 1966; donated to Promontory Chapter NRHS (date?); moved to Heber City, Utah as part of Heber Creeper collection (date?); to Heber Valley Historic Railroad in July 1992

Freight Cars and Cabooses

The Heber Valley Historic Railroad has several pieces of ex D&RGW rolling stock, including two former Conoco tank cars with bogus paint schemes, two 70 ton three bay hoppers painted Rio Grande, and a 70 ton GS gondola in Rio Grande paint with a road number for a 50 ton car. (Steven Seguine, email to D&RGW group at YahooGroups, May 20, 2007)

The following list of cabooses at Heber comes from Roger Kirkpatrick's listings:

UP caboose 25069 was moved from Salt Lake City to Heber on Monday May 18, 1992. Due to clearance problems in Parleys Canyon, the caboose was moved on board a truck that traveled from Salt Lake City north to Weber Canyon, through Echo to Heber City. Although Union Pacific records show that the caboose was donated to the State of Utah in August 1982, the Heber Valley Historic Railroad purchased it from the Promontory Chapter of National Railway Historical Society for $500. (Salt Lake Tribune, May 19, 1992)

In August 1992, Heber Valley Historic Railroad received several pieces of track maintenance equipment from Kennecott Copper, along with an old Kennecott caboose. (Salt Lake Tribune, August 7, 1992)

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