Spokane, Portland & Seattle E-1 4-8-4 700 will be under steam for the first time in nearly a decade this week, following an extensive overhaul. The locomotive, along with stablemate Southern Pacific GS-4 “Daylight” 4449, will be fired up and on display this coming weekend at the Oregon Rail Heritage Center for National Train Day.
SP&S 700 last operated in 2015 before being taken out of service for a federally mandated overhaul that cost nearly $500,000 and lasted almost 10 years. The engine was anticipated to be fired up and tested before Saturday’s event.
“We’ve got water and fuel in the tender,” said Jim Vanderbeck, a long-time SP&S 700 crew member and an Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation board member. “All we need is a match.”
Locomotive 700 was one of three 4-8-4s built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works for the SP&S in 1938, based on a design from its parent company, Northern Pacific. The primary difference between NP’s A-3 4-8-4s and SP&S’s E-1s was that the former burned coal, while the latter burned oil. Engines 700 and 702 were predominantly used in passenger service between Spokane and Vancouver, Wash., while 701 was used for freight. In 1953, 700 and 702 were displaced from passenger service by new diesels and continued to haul freights until they were stored in 1955. The following year, 700 led a “Farewell to Steam” excursion from Portland to Wishram, Wash., and back, marking the end of the steam era on the “Northwest’s Own” SP&S. In 1958, SP&S 700 was donated to the City of Portland to be displayed at Oaks Park alongside SP 4449 and Oregon Railroad & Navigation 4-6-2 197 (which was painted as Union Pacific 3203 at the time).
SP&S 700 under restoration at the Oregon Rail Heritage Center in 2020. Courtesy Photo.
In 1977, the Pacific Railroad Preservation Association was founded to restore 700. A small group of volunteers worked on the engine for over a decade before it finally returned to service in 1990. Since then, the engine has occasionally led excursions around the Pacific Northwest, mostly in Portland.
During this recent rebuild, SP&S 700 received work on its superheaters, air pumps, and firebox, among other items. The engine also benefited from a three-way trade involving Chesapeake & Ohio 2-8-4 2716 in Kentucky and Santa Fe 4-8-4 2912 in Colorado, which saw 700 get a new hot water pump.
Vanderbeck, along with PRPA President Randy Woehl and Vice President Steve Sedaker, expressed hope that with the locomotive back in service, they will soon find opportunities to run on short lines in western Oregon. They are also considering installing Positive Train Control on the locomotive. When the time comes for the engine to make another main line appearance, Vanderbeck said they are ready.
“We feel as if this locomotive is in as good as shape as it was back in the early 1940s,” he said. “And the SP&S took really good care of these locomotives.”
In addition to SP&S 700 and SP 4449 under steam, National Train Day on Saturday, May 10, will feature excursions behind Polson Lumber 2-8-2 2 and the recently painted UP 1616, an SD70M painted in tribute to President Abraham Lincoln. For more information, visit ORHF.org. —Justin Franz
