Eureka Hill Railway Locomotives

The report that Shay engines 2, 3, & 4 went to "International Smelting Co." in 1926, and in 1936 to Anaconda Copper Co., apparently comes from the list in Koch, does not appear to be correct. Eureka Hill Ry. (and therefore, its equipment) remained a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Knight Investment Co. into 1930; there was an agreement between Knight Investment Co., and North Lily Mining Co., dated July 2, 1929, calling for the merger of the two companies, upon which merger several Knight properties (including E.H.Ry. Co.) to be conveyed to the new North Lily Mining Co., dated July 25, 1930, called for the carrying out of the terms of the agreement of July 2, 1929. Items in Eureka Reporter newspaper, dated July 10, 1930 and July 31, 1930, indicate the merger and transfer were then carried out, and therefore the E.H.Ry. was transferred in about July 1930 to North Lily-Knight Corp., which apparently was at least in part, backed by International Mining & Smelting Co.

Regardless, however, of titular ownership of the railroad company, the railroad company owned the locomotives for at least as long as the company existed; Board of equalization reports, for at least as late as 1934, show the locomotives as Eureka Hill Railway. "Ownership" of the locomotives after the 1937 dissolution of E.H.Ry. Co., which is not at present certain, is somewhat irrelevant, since they were not in use any later than 1931-1932, and apparently scrapped (at the enginehouse) in late 1942, after at least a decade of non-use.

Eureka Hill Railway incorporation was filed on February 6, 1907, with Charles W. Nibley as President, and Trustee holding 494 shares of the 500 shares of E.H.Ry. stock; and with David Eccles as a Director of E.H.Ry. At the same time, David Eccles was President of the Sumpter Valley Railway, and of the Oregon Lumber Co., with Charles W. Nibley as Vice President of the Sumpter Valley Ry., and a Director there of, as well as "closely connected" with the Oregon Lumber Co., and had been since 1890. That Knight made Nibley President, and Trustee, of his E.H.Ry. indicates a long association between Knight and Nibley. (Nibley was Presiding Bishop of The LDS Church from December 1907 to May 1925)

It would be most entertaining to know the actual date of order for Shay c/n 1983, to see how that relates to the date of incorporation of the E. H. Ry. (which was February 2, 1907), and the obvious possibility that the engine was ordered by Eccles prior to the incorporation of the E. H. Ry., and thereupon (or shortly after) "diverted" to Eureka Hill Ry.; but I do not know of anything showing the order date, as distinct from the date shipped, which latter we do have---25 July 1907.

"Actually, we have fairly concrete evidence in paper work from McKim and Co., a locomotive dealer/foundry/machine shop in Baker Ore., which was forwarded to Lima that this engine was not scrapped in Nev. but had another life from about 1921-1926 or 27 on the Oregon Lumber Co. logging liines. Still looking for photographic evidence to further back this up." (Trainorders.com, February 21, 2016)

New firebox, May 1920.
Removed top six flues (reducing flues to 150), May 1920.

New flue sheet in September 1916.
Removed top six flues (reducing flues to 150), September 1916.

One new axle and wheel centers on June 19, 1917.
New pop valves on December 9, 1921.
New steam pipe elbow on July 18, 1925.
New cylinders on Lima order 6476, no date.
Removed top six flues (reducing flues to 150), no date.

THE FATE OF EUREKA HILL SHAY LOCOMOTIVE NUMBER 1

By Stan Jennings with the help of Greg Maxwell

Greg Maxwell found a newspaper reference to the Nevada Short Line buying a two truck Shay from a Salt Lake City, Utah equipment dealer which arrived on the property July 2, 1915.

Sam Bass and I had no solid information on the fate of Eureka Hill Railway Number 1, but it was the only two-truck Shay in Utah that could have been sold at that time, so Greg and I corresponded. He e-mailed me a copy of his July 14, 1915 photo of the Nevada Short Line Shay after it had rolled. After receiving the copy, it was all I could do to keep from calling Sam at an inappropriate time in the morning (I work nights). All the identifiable features of the Nevada Short Line Shay matched my photo of the Eureka Hill Shay, including the Number 1 plate on the smokebox.

Starting at the front, note the unusual coupler pocket On the Nevada short line there is a Janey-type coupler installed but on the Eureka Hill it has a link and pin coupler. The pocket looks like the position of the coupler could be adjusted side-to-side and up and down, perfect for a dual gauge railroad. The pilot and all related attachments - footboard brackets, poling pockets and had rail - look the same. Of course, there is the Number 1 plate on the smokebox. The headlight bracket is the same. The steam dome is the same shape. The air tank looks the same between the two. And the "fence" on the tender looks identical. Both Greg and Sam Bass feel that both photos depict the same class of Shay. as small as 24-2 but no larger than 28-2.

George Pitchard found that the Eureka Hill Railway Shay Number 1 was on the railroad's tax rolls in 1914, but not 1915. This is not proof, but the locomotive was available. The newspaper articles originate with an interview with A. A. Codd, president of the Nevada Short Line, printed in the Reno, Nevada Silver State June 25, 1915 in which Mr. Codd mentions the Shay being bought in Salt Lake. The article was reprinted in the Winnemucca, Nevada Humbolt Star June 28, 1915. The July 2, 1915 Lovelock, Nevada Review-Miner reported that the Shay arrived in Oreana (aka Nunzel), Nevada.

Shays were pretty much one-of-a-kind machines, so having so many details in the two photographs match makes it quite likely that the two photographs are of the same locomotive. Then add the evidence of the newspaper articles it seems almost certain that the Eureka Hill Shay was sold to the Nevada Short Line.

David F. Myrick in his Railroads of Nevada and Eastern California, Volume 1, Page 59 states, "Then the Shay locomotive, which was nursing two cars of rails and ties up the grade, ran away. It didn't go far before landing in a ditch surrounded by the scattered remnants of its train. The locomotive was so badly damaged it had to be sent to the SP shops in Sparks for major repairs." This is pretty certainly the wreck captured in the photo of the Nevada Short Line Number 1. The Number 1 was repaired at the SP shops in Sparks, but on November 30, 1915 it was destroyed in an engine house fire with the hulk being sold for junk in February 1917.

We can now be quite certain of the fate of Eureka Hill Shay Number 1, but what about its origin? It would seem so easy, but it is not. The locomotive was purchased used and was on the Eureka Hill property in August 1907, but despite much research, the serial number is unknown. Michigan-California Lumber Company's superintendent Searle developed a bracket to better support the cylinders and bearings which was put into production by Lima in early 1905 or late 1906 (sources differ) with serial number 1628 being the first production locomotive to receive the bracket. Eureka Hill Shay Number 1 has this bracket (see Utah Ghost Rails, Stephen L. Carr & Robert W. Edwards), so it has to have been constructed later then s/n 1628, late 1905-early 1906, and, obviously, before August 1907.