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cerro gordo


 
Southern Pacific Narrow Gauge Railroad

carson n colorado

Rolling Stock
Paintings
SPNG in the Movies

southern pacific lines



All material courtesy of Rich McCutchan unless otherwise noted.
See USE NOTICE on Home Page.
train and tower


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A number of feature length Hollywood films have been made in the Owens valley, and several have included the narrow gauge. The line has appeared in "B" westerns with such stars as Gene Autry and Roy Rogers. Keeler has become "Crazy Horse, Nevada for a 1942 production. [RKO Studios] The narrow gauge played an important role in "Three Godfathers," starring John Wayne. The movie was made in the valley in 1949 and featured SP 9, flatcar 259 and combine 400. The film's train arrives at the fictional "Apache Wells, Arizona" tank. Film crews built the water tank and "weathered" the train to make it look even more dusty than usual. [Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer] The Slim Princess was also used in the 1950's television series "Annie Oakley," [The Cinder Trail] "Bad Day at Black Rock' used scenes filmed on the "Jawbone line," and at Laws, while the 1965 Steve McQueen Paramount film "Nevada Smith" used Laws and the narrow gauge display train..

cindar trail
Annie Oaklie - The Cinder Trail (Season 1/Episode 10)
March, 1954
Gail Davis / Jimmy Hawkins / Paul Burns


three godfathers
3 Godfathers - 1948
John Wayne / Harry Carey Jr. / Ward Bond

sinister journey sinister journey sinister journey
Sinister Journey - 1948
(There is as LOT of Slim Princess and Keeler Depot action in this movie!)
William Boyd / Andy Clyde / Rand Brooks

bad day at blackrock
Bad Day at Blackrock - 1955
Spencer Tracy / Robert Ryan / Ann Francis / Dean Jagger /
Walter Brennan
Lee Marvin / Earnest Borgnine / Russell Collins

nevada smith
Nevada Smith - 1966
Still action at the Laws RR Museum
Steve McQueen / Karl Malden / Suzanne Pleshette / Martin Landau

saga of death valley
Saga of Death Valley - 1939
Roy Rogers / George "Gabby" Hayes / Ann Meredith
flame of barbary coast
Flame of Barbary Coast - 1945
John Wayne / Ann Dvorak

Film, Television, and the Southern Pacific Railroad

PDF File, Excel File
Courtesy of David Coscia's Southern Pacific Railroad Website

blazing sun
The Blazing Sun - 1950
Gene Autry / Lynne Roberts / Anne Gwynne
greed
Greed - 1925
Gibson Gowland / Zasu Pitts /Jean Hersholt

slim princess
3 Godfathers - 1948
John Wayne / Harry Carey Jr. / Ward Bond

slim princess
Somebody at Keeler Station filming a western.


annie oakley
Annie Oaklie - The Brass Collar (Season 1/Episode 1)
January, 1954
Gail Davis / Jimmy Hawkins / Brad Johnson

new 12/22
hollywood outtakes
Hollywood Outtakes
from Annie Oakley: The Brass Collar
Airing on Season 1, Episode 1 - January, 1954
Many thanks to Speed Graphic Film and Video for putting this outtake together.

The Gene Autry Show - Steel Ribbon (Season 3 / Episode 11)
September 1953
Gene Autry / Gail Davis
A variety of "B" Westerns starring Gene Autry and Roy Rogers

new 01/23
joe kidd
Clint Eastwood's 1972 Malpaso Company's production of "Joe Kidd" - Here the gang is at SP Jawbone Branch Wee.

Starring - Clint Eastwood, Robert Duval, John Saxon, Stella Garcia, Don Stroud, James Wainwright, Pepe Hern and a host of other.
Filmed in the Alabama Hills, Sherwin Summit, Buttermilk Country, and Inyo National Forest. There is even a scene somewhere along the SP Standard Gauge tracks between
Lone Pine and Owenyo where Duval's gang crosses over the SP tracks.
Though not filmed in Owens Valley, I love the scene near the end of the movie where Joe Kidd drives the locomotive clean through a building into a bar where he then shoots a few of the bad guys.


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slim rails

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slim rails
Owens Valley vestige - Engine No. 9

slim rails
Sunset Water Stop

southern pacific

sp narrow
Southern Pacific 1 derrick at Mina - circa 1936

sp narrow
Southern Pacific 1-A wheel car.



sp narrow
Combine 1-B - housed the wrecking crew.

sp narrow
Water tank car 350.

sp narrow
Baggage Car 12 being used as crew quarters in Keeler - circa 1946

sp narrow
Southern Pacific Flanger 108 at Laws - circa 1940



sp narrow
Number 7 combine.

sp narrow
Business Car 20 - 1936

sp narrow
Caboose 467 - circa 1940 in Keeler


sp narrow
Southern Pacific Baggage-Mail Caboose 12 - circa 1940 in Keeler

sp narrow
Flanger 108 in Owens Valley

sp narrow
Combine-caboose 401 - circa 1951


sp narrow
Combine-caboose 12 in Owens Valley

sp narrow
Southern Pacific freight cars at Owenyo - circa 1939

sp narrow
SP 1 freight car - 1948

sp narrow
SP 2 freight car - 1954

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boxcar
SPNG boxcar.
(Text and Photo courtesy of eBay)

sp narrow

Flat car 253 transformed into a tourist car with two outhouses


sp narrow
Box car 2 at Keeler

sp narrow
Southern Pacific "A" frame hopper 232 used for transferring materials from the narrow gauge to the standard gauge at Owenyo - circa 1954

sp narrow
Stock car 177

sp narrow
Southern Pacific "A" frame hopper 232

sp narrow
Southern Pacific "A" frame hopper 339 used for transferring materials from the narrow gauge to the standard gauge at Owenyo.


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Southern Pacific - Carson & Colorado railroad art courtesy of John Coker

john coker
Carson & Colorado Railroad

john coker
Crossing the Owens River

john coker
Laws, CA turntable

john coker
The Slim Princess at Owenyo


john coker
The Slim Princess at Kearsarge Station


john coker
The Slim Princess at the Owenyo transfer trestle.



new 08/24
eric smith

SPNG No. 18 crossing over a bridge on the Owens River
[Photo courtesy of Eric Smith]

lone pine mural

Mural in Lone Pine, CA of the Carson & Colorado RR in Owens Valley going to Keeler
[Photo courtesy of Ray DeLea]

bishop mural

Mural of the Slim Princess in Bishop
[Photo courtesy of Ray DeLea]

mural

Mural of the Slim Princess in Bishop, CA
[Photo courtesy of Ray DeLea]
Howard Fogg
[Howard Fogg painting]

auction item
1985 Carson & Colorado painting
(E-Bay auction item)

farnsworth painting
W. M. Farnsworth Carson & Colorado painting
(E-Bay auction item)

fred bonn

Fred Bonn painting of the "Slim Princess"
(E-Bay auction item)

mike pearsal
"From Nowhere to Nowhere" by Mike Pearsall

slim princess

SP narrow gauge #9 rolling towards Owenyo. A commission by the Southern Pacific Historical and Technical Society for a book cover.
(Text and Photo courtesy of Dennis Burke)
heading for laws
"Heading for Laws" by Jan Rons


desert run
"Desert Run" by Mike Pearsall

new 12/24
ferguson's last run
"Ferguson's Last Run" by Patrick Michael Karnahan
Painting is available for sale by contacting Patrick Michael Karnahan

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slim princess
Caboose coach built in 1880 and retired in 1939.

sp narrow

Tank car 61 at Keeler.

sp narrow
Southern Pacific water car at Owenyo - circa 1954


sp narrow
SP 1-D crew car at Mina in 1936


keeler

Southern Pacific narrow-gauge boxcar number 2 in Keeler. This ancient piece of equipment was photographed, I believe, around 1948 based on the service date on the air reservoir. Notice the somewhat unusual Southern Pacific Lines logo on the "B" end of the car.
(Photo and text courtesy Mark Van Klaveren)

owenyo

February 22, 1954 at Owenyo.
(Photo courtesy of Mark Van Klaveren)

sp501

Photo of combination/caboose #SP401 before a crew member partially fell through the clerestory roof ine 1953 and the entire roof was rebuilt resembling a box car style roof
(Photo & text courtesy of Dennis Burke)

ebay

Southern Pacific Narrow Gauge Caboose 467 at Keeler, CA - 1942

owenyo

SP car #20 at Owenyo

new 08/21
rolling stock
SP car #467 at Owenyo
(Photo courtesy of Dennis Burke)

new 08/21
rolling stock
SP car #467 with locomotive #22 at Laws.
During the 1946/47 renumbering of SPNG equipment caboose #467 was renumbered 402 per our SP car registry but it was never stenciled for #402
(Photo courtesy of Dennis Burke)

new 03/22
burke
S.P. 54
(Photo courtesy of Dennis Burke)

new 03/22
burke
Tank car being filled with water
(Photo courtesy of Dennis Burke)


new 03/22 sp133
S.P. 133
(Photo courtesy of Dennis Burke)

new 06/22
491
This is SPNG caboose #401 when she was MofW 1 B taken at Mina with a fresh coat of paint and stenciling. She looks good here.
(Photo and text courtesy of Dennis Burke)

new 06/22
dennis burke
Here is a very interesting image of combine/caboose #401 sitting on the old Owenyo turntable spur in 1947 after the turntable had been removed years prior and a dirt berm was set to block the end of track. Notice in this image #401 is sitting on two different trucks. One a 5 ft passenger truck and and the other a leaf spring thielsen truck. Prior to this photograph being taken she was involved in a derailment that was either caused by the missing passenger truck or another reason and the one passenger truck was damaged and replaced by the thielsen truck. Anyhow, she sat on this spur for a short time while combine/caboose #400 took over the caboose duties. Soon #400 was in too bad of shape to continue on and the remaining passenger truck on #401 was replaced with a 2nd thielson and was put back into service. In 1953 one of the crew members stepped or fell through the clerestory roof and it was replaced at Owenyo with a box car style roof. The car was donated to the County of Inyo in 1960.
SPNG combine/caboose was constructed in 1883 by the Carter Brothers for the San Joaquin & Sierra Nevada RR, later to become the Nevada Northern Ry. After that she spent time on the South Pacific Coast RR before she was sent over the the Nevada & California RR (SPNG) as their #8. While on the SPNG she carried several numbers one of them being 1-B when she was part of the MofW train with the derrick car, wheel car 1-A, and others.

(Photo and text courtesy of Dennis Burke)

new 06/22
dennis burke
Here is an image of the SPNG Derrick car MW1 that Brian Norden had spoke of taken at Mina. She is coupled up the the MW train which consisted of the Derrick car, wheel car 1-A, 1-B which we have already covered, box tool car 1C, and crew car 1D.....Note that box tool car 1C is now in Independence owned by the C&CRy..also the metal remains of wheel car 1-A is at the NCNGRR Museum.............It is very interesting that the Derrick car is actually an ex Central Pacific standard gauge derrick that was no longer needed on the mainline and was transfered to the SPNG and NG trucks placed under her.......She never made it to the Owens Valley as she was to large,wide, to make it through the Montgomery Pass tunnel. She was an hand cranked derrick. Not very heavy duty rated....Coupled to the derrick car is wheel car 1-A.
(Photo and text courtesy of Dennis Burke)

new 06/22
sam antil
1-A.
(Photo courtesy of Sam Antell)


new 06/22 dennis burke
Weathered SPNG box cars
(Photo courtesy of Dennis Burke)

new 08/22
andrew brandon
Rolling stock in Owenyo
(Photo courtesy of Andrew Brandon)

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Speeders on the SPNG
(Photos courtesy of Mark Van Klaveren)

mark

mark

mmark

mark
mark

mark

mark
mark

mark
mark



new 09/21
spng
SPNG boxcar #2
spng
SPNG boxcar #7

spng
SPNG car #12

spng
SPNG car #12

spng
SPNG boxcar #44

spng
SPNG boxcar #52

spng
SPNB boxcar #55

spng
SPNG stockcar #161

spng
SPNG tank car #354

spng
SPNG car #401

259
SPNG flatbed car #259 - used for hauling telephone poles.


Paul Gomez writes:

A memorable photo. The house in the background with the partially white picket fence was my grandparent's home for many years. I spent many wonderful hours visiting them in their "boxcar" house. My grandfather retired from Southern Pacific RR Company after 30 years. His last place of employment with SP was Owenyo until the narrow guage line was abandoned in 1960.

August 2021


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new 12/22
SPNG Rolling Stock
(Photos courtesy University of Nevada Digital Archives - Photographer: Hugh Lee)
SPNG
SPNG Combine No. 401 being used as a caboose (1950)
SPNG
SPNG boxcars No. 130 and No. 1 (1950)

SPNG
SPNG baggage car lettered s "SP&W No. 12" at Owenyo (1950)

SPNG
SPNG Combine No. 401, at Laws, that had been used as a caboose (1950)

SPNG
SPNG freight cars at Owenyo (1950)

SPNG
SPNG boxcars at Owenyo (1950)
SPNG
Last remaining Carson & Colorado passenger coach - 1939
SPNG
SPNG Combine No. 401 sits as a freight train switches a boxcar (1950)

soda plant
Soda plant on the shores of Owens Lake near Keeler

new 01/23
rolling stock
By looking at the ground around these box cars I would say they either just washed the cars or there was a recent down pour.
(Photo and text courtesy of Dennis Burke)


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new 03/25
box car
Gene Kille photographed Southern Pacific narrow gauge boxcar No. 34 at Laws, Claifornia on January 14, 1942.

No. 34 is one of the former Florence & Cripple Creek cars that were purchased by the Nevada-California-Oregon Railway in 1915. On the N-C-O and the F&CC this was boxcar No. 549. Fifteen of these box cars arrived on the Southern Pacific during October and November of 1928 from the N-C-O and were numbered 26 thru 40. They were 20 ton cars and all were 30'-3" long. The cars were constructed by the American Car & Foundry Company.

One of the prominent features of this car is the black circle of the SP's circular herald; just about all of the white lettering and circles has weathered away. Elsewhere on the car, at the top of the door, a remnant of the N-C-O initials is barely visible.

The car was weighed at Keeler during October, 1932. The journal boxes were repacked 4-28-39 at Owenyo and the air brake was service 10-28-040, also at Owenyo. The carmen dutifully added the initials SP next to the servicing datges, the same as required on all SP standard gauge cars.

All but one of the cars were scrapped in Owenyo in 1955. The one survivor, SP No. 26, went to Universal Studios in 1955 and later made its way to the Nevada County Narrow Gauge RR Museum where she has been fully restored as NCNGRR No. 142. The NCNG never had a boxcar numbered 142, the fictional number representing the next number in the series of former F&CC/N-C-O boxcars operated on the railroad.

(Photo and text courtesy of the Journal of the Southern Pacific Narrow Gauge Historical Society)


stock car
On September 23, 1942, Gene Kille found Southern Pacific stock car No. 162 at Zurich station. Zurich was an original depot on the Carson & Colorado name "Alvord."

The car started out as C&C flat car No. 72. The C&C rebuilt it into a roofless stock car, retaining the same number. In 1916 the car was rebuilt at the Sparks, Nevada, shops of the Southern pacific into the car shown here. It was re-numbered 162.

At the end of the narrow gauge in Owens Valley it was sold to William Harrah (Harrah's Auto Museum) and relocated to the grounds of his auto Museum in Sparks, Nevada. After Mr. Harrah's death in 1978, the auto collection along with some of the railroad equipment was sold in a series of auctions between 1984 and 1986. The remainder of the railroad equipment, including No. 162, was donated in 1986 to the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City.

Although the car was stored at the Museum out of the weather, it suffered from previous outdoor storage in Reno. NSRM dismantled the car in the spring of 2019,and over the next year restored it as operable C&C Flat Car No. 72. During the summer of 2021 the museum converted the car into a riding car for use behind the C&TL&F Glenbrook and other narrow guage locomotives.

(Photo and text courtesy of the Journal of the Southern Pacific Narrow Gauge Historical Society)

tank car
SP tank 58, originally SP/NRy flat car 661 built in SP Sacramento Shops, to SP tank car 661 in 1903. SP/N&C 58, retired in 1940.
(Photo and text courtesy of the Journal of the Southern Pacific Narrow Gauge Historical Society)

boxcar
SP boxcar 51 (SP/NRy 80 N&C/SP 365, rebuilt as 20 ton 30 foot car in 1924, SP 51 in 1946) and caboose 401 (former SJ&SN combine 1, SP/NRy 1009) in the Owens Valley in the 1950s.
(Photo and text courtesy of the Journal of the Southern Pacific Narrow Gauge Historical Society)

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