In August 1960, at the age of 11, I had the privilege of riding one of the Minnesota Railfan Association's excursion behind the Yellowstone below. The photo was shot on Kodachrome with a little Kodak folding camera that used size 828 film. I just happened across this slide today. God what memories.

Was this Yellowstone a survivor? Whenever I see a picture like this, I often think, here was a machine engineered to exacting specs, in hopes of making it as efficient and powerful as could be made. It was maintained and doted upon by men who were devoted to that particular machine. Now here, in the last months of service, well oiled, painted, and in perfect running order, in all likelihood, the future is to be destroyed to make room for another machine of less character and much less interest.

Thanks for sharing the photo and the memory.

No...unfortunately only 225, 227 and 229 still exist. I remember standing in the vestibule of a baggage car that was right behind the tender, and the sounds and smells as we ran through the woods.

Seems like only yesterday. Sigh.

I too rode behind the 222 in 1958. Not sure if it was on the same excursion or not. I had just graduated from high school that year and my first excursion experience was a three day weekend trip using Burlington O5a #5618 from Chicago to St. Paul, a regularly scheduled overnight Northern Pacific train from St. Paul to Duluth, then a roundtrip over the DM&IR behind 2-8-8-4 # 222, the overnight NP train back to St. Paul and then 4-8-4 # 5618 again for the trip back to Chicago. The 5618 only had 5 days left on her flues when she arrived back at Union Station in the Windy City. Obviously she never ran again. The Missabe fired up one of their 2-8-2's at an enginehouse somewhere for us (Virginia perhaps?) and had 4-6-2 # 400 on display for us at Proctor (although she was "cold"). I borrowed my dad's 8mm movie camera and had trouble with it the whole trip. Fortunately, some of the film DID come out, including a most memorable HIGH SPEED photo run with the 5618 on the return trip alongside the Mississippi River.

And then in 1962, I had the good fortune to make the three day trip again. The engine on the Burlington both ways was the famous O5b Northern # 5632 and the engine on the DM&IR was 2-10-2 # 514. No other Missabe steam was hot when we up on the Iron Range that day, but we had a side trip over the Duluth & North Eastern behind doubleheaded 2-8-0's numbers 14 and 27.

Thanks for submitting the photo of Yellowstone 222. It brought back some very pleasant memories.

Les

I went on one of those DM&IR fan trips in 1961 behind #225. We took a big circle route out northwest from Duluth, but I don’t recall it precisely. At the end, we took the D&NE into Cloquet. Just as impressive as the steam action was the 80mph run from Minneapolis to Duluth and back in the open baggage car behind an NP GP-9. Is #225 the one displayed at Proctor today?

RTK

Yes, the 225 is at Protor, 229 is at Two Harbors, 227 is in the Lake Superior RR museum, You can go in the cab, they have the drivers rigged so they turn, and there are sounds of the engine playing. Very impressive way of displaying a locomotive. I didn't get a good shot of the 227, but here are some of the others and the other engines on display in the area from my July 2004 trip the Duluth region. Rent a Kayak and go out on Lake Superior, almost as much fun as watching trains.

http://www.traincds.com/photo4rypn.html

And what was the reasoning behind scrapping the fourth survivor that was cut up in hte 80's or 90's?

What is the status of the Portugese trolley they used to run at the Duluth museum?