What with all the turmoil about Gray Davis, here's a different California Governor, named Stanford, defrocked and working as a lowly switch engine. Be sure to click on the other links at the lower left of the photo.

http://cprr.org/Museum/Locomotives/I_ACCEPT_the_User_Agreement/images/locomotive_stanford.html
ryarger@rypn.org

I recall reading in trains a year or so ago about a particular surviving locomotive of similar vintage being used as a fire fighting engine. Would it have been Gov. Stanford? She appears to have fire hose mounted on her tenhder, and a couple of currious fittings just forward of the sand dome.

david_ackerman@yahoo.com

> I recall reading in trains a year or so ago
> about a particular surviving locomotive of
> similar vintage being used as a fire
> fighting engine. Would it have been Gov.
> Stanford? She appears to have fire hose
> mounted on her tenhder, and a couple of
> currious fittings just forward of the sand
> dome.

That "curious fitting" is a simplex (Knowles?) steam pump. The steam engine end is facing the stack, the pump end with the air chamber facing the sand dome. The bell bracket is mounted on the "steam lizard" itself; a neat feature.

Does the "Governor Stanford", now at the CA State RR Museum, still have this lizard mounted on top? This arrangement is similar to the one on V&T 2-4-0 #3 "J. W. Bowker" at the same museum, and it still has it's pump.


Steam Lizards
james1@pernet.net

> That "curious fitting" is a
> simplex (Knowles?) steam pump. The steam
> engine end is facing the stack, the pump end
> with the air chamber facing the sand dome.
> The bell bracket is mounted on the
> "steam lizard" itself; a neat
> feature.

> Does the "Governor Stanford", now
> at the CA State RR Museum, still have this
> lizard mounted on top? This arrangement is
> similar to the one on V&T 2-4-0 #3
> "J. W. Bowker" at the same museum,
> and it still has it's pump.

The "Gov. Stanford" does not have the fire fighting equipment. This appearently was removed prior to donation to Stanford University in 1899. The engine has been restored to the 1899 appearance. For a brief view see the opening page for CSRM. For some reason the photos on the information page about the locomotive are not displaying.

California State RR Museum
bnorden49@earthlink.net

> The "Gov. Stanford" does not have
> the fire fighting equipment. This
> appearently was removed prior to donation to
> Stanford University in 1899. The engine has
> been restored to the 1899 appearance. For a
> brief view see the opening page for CSRM.
> For some reason the photos on the
> information page about the locomotive are
> not displaying.

Thank you Brian; I realized after I sent my response that below the picture on the original webpage is a link labeled "Where is it now?". If you click on it, you see a nice picture of it at the CSRR Museum. A very nice restoration, indeed.

The link labeled "Restoration" has a nice writeup on her. They mention that "From 1873 until its retirement in 1895, the locomotive served as a switcher and fire engine (outfitted with a water pump and hose to extinguish small fires along the track) in the Sacramento area."

-James Hefner
Hebrews 10:20a


Original webpage, again
james1@pernet.net

> The link labeled "Restoration" has
> a nice writeup on her. They mention that
> "From 1873 until its retirement in
> 1895, the locomotive served as a switcher
> and fire engine (outfitted with a water pump
> and hose to extinguish small fires along the
> track) in the Sacramento area."

The restoration of the engine was very will done! My friend that knows Air Brake technology and its developement has pointed out that the style of glad hand and clamping on the front air hose -- and even the air hose -- is typical of the 1899 era.

Brian



bnorden49@earthlink.net

all of us in preservation owe a lot to pioneers line Fred Stindt and Gerrry Best, who got the saving of old hardware started back in those pre World War II years.

As it happens I am going to a railroadiana show in Sacramento this weekend, so I will give the State Railroad Museum a wave for you.

My favorite loco there is the SONOMA; after 60 years she still had her original walnut cab! Baldwin sure could build things to last!

ted_miles@nps.gov