RailNews

Southern Pacific 2479 will be restored to service in the coming years. The locomotive is seen arriving at Niles Canyon this week. Photo Courtesy of Niles Canyon Railway.

SP 4-6-2 Arrives at Niles Canyon Railway

By Railfan & Railroad Staff

SUNOL, Calif. — Southern Pacific 4-6-2 2479 arrived at its new home, the Niles Canyon Railway, this week where it will eventually be restored to service.

In 2021, California Trolley & Railroad Corporation announced that it had forged a deal to move the steam locomotive and a roundhouse — brick by brick — from Santa Clara County to Niles Canyon Railway, which is owned and operated by the Pacific Locomotive Association. Upon arrival, ownership of the locomotive was to be transferred to Niles Canyon. The California Trolley & Railroad Corporation has been restoring SP 2479 since 1989 and it is now 80 percent complete.

Locomotive 2479 was built by Baldwin in 1923. It ran on SP passenger trains until the 1950s when it was retired after being used in commuter service in and out of San Francisco. It was later donated to the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds in 1958. It is one of three surviving SP 4-6-2 locomotives, the other two being 2467 and 2472, both of which have run in the preservation era. Locomotive 2472 is stored on the Northwestern Pacific and 2467 is currently on display at the California State Railroad Museum.