Hey, Becky, railroads are folklore - but I think I'll move this to the non-music section, nonetheless.

I feel I have a unique privilege, being able to look out the window and see the westbound tracks of this engineering marvel of the 1860's (the eastbound tracks are in a tunnel). I have to say, though, that this area and its railroad and its mines did not generate as many traditional songs and one might think it should. Most of the songs about this area were of commercial origin - John A. Stone (Old Put) was the most prolific producer of Gold Rush songs.

This area's most significant locomotive was the Southern Pacific Cab Forward design. Because of the many tunnels and snow sheds on this Donner Pass route, they wanted the crew at the front of the locomotive and the smokestack at the back, so the crew would be ahead of the smoke. The last Cab-forwards were built in the 1940's, so they're in the same era as the Union Pacific Big Boys and Challengers and the UP 844. Now the UP owns the railroad, and the Southern Pacific is no more.

There are no operating Big Boys or Cab Forwards. Click here for a great photo of a Cab-Forward at the roundhouse at Roseville, California - not far from my home. Click here for another. Location is not identified, but most probably it's in my area, too. The Southern Pacific Daylight, No. 4449, is one steam locomotive we still see operating in these parts.

-Joe Offer, Colfax, California-