McCloud Railway 18

McCloud Railway 18 is a 18 class 2-8-2 "Mikado" type steam locomotive, built in November 1914 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW).^[1][2][3] The locomotive was purchased new by the McCloud River Railway Company (MCR) in 1914 as a standalone purchase. ^[1][2] No. 18 was bought by the Yreka Western Railroad (YW) in 1956 and bought back by the McCloud in 1998.^[1][2] It was restored to operation for McCloud in 1998 and operated there until it was sold in 2005 to the Virginia and Truckee Railroad (VT).^[1][2]

McCloud Railway 18
No. 18 hauling an excursion train on the Virginia and Truckee Railroad on September 20, 2011
Type and origin Power type Steam Builder Baldwin Locomotive Works Serial number 41709 Build date November 1914
Specifications Configuration: ​  • Whyte 2-8-2  • UIC 1'D1' Gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) Driver dia. 48 in (1.219 m) Loco weight 178,400 lb (80.9 t) Fuel type Oil Boiler pressure 180 psi (1.24 MPa) Cylinders Two, outside Cylinder size 20 in × 28 in (508 mm × 711 mm)
Performance figures Tractive effort 39,667 lbf (176.4 kN)
Career Operators McCloud River Railroad Yreka Western Railroad McCloud Railway Virginia and Truckee Railroad Class 18 Numbers MCR 18 YW 18 VT 18 Retired 1956 (1st retirement) 1964 (2nd retirement) Restored 1957 (1st restoration) March 1998 (2nd restoration) Current owner V&T Railway Commission Disposition Operational
References:[1][2]

History

Revenue service

McCloud Railway No. 18 was built in November 1914 by the Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW).^[1][2] The unit was sent to the Panama–Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco during 1915. The display was jointly sponsored by McCloud Railway (MCR), Weed Lumber Company and Red River Lumber Company. The unit was then returned to McCloud, where it lived out most of its life.^[4] It was used in the film Water for Elephants.^[1][2]

First retirement

In 1956, as McCloud Railway was acquiring newer diesels from Baldwin, they retired their elderly steam locomotive fleet (including 18).^[2] The unit was sold (like many McCloud steam locomotives at the time) to Yreka Western Railroad (YW), a small, power-starved railroad also in Northern California.^[1] The unit was operated with 19 at Yreka until 1964, when the unit suffered a cylinder failure on a special trip and was sidelined.^[2] The unit languished in Yreka until 1998, when the McCloud Railway bought the unit to assist 25 in railfan trips.^[2]

Excursion service

The locomotive was restored to operation at McCloud in March 1998, and quickly became the favorite unit as it was bigger and stronger than No. 25 and handled the large grades on the road better.^[1] In 2005, with the imminent demise of the McCloud Railway as a financial entity, the unit was sold to Virginia and Truckee Railroad (VT) as an excursion unit.^[2] They acquired the No. 18 in 2007, and it has been in use since 2010.^[5] The V&T Railway is owned by the publicly owned V&T Commission should not be confused with the privately owned Virginia & Truckee Railroad.^[1][2] On November 3, 2023, No. 18 masqueraded as Northern Pacific No. 1770 for filming of an episode of the Paramount Network television series Yellowstone.^[6]

Gallery

• 
  MCRR No. 18 at the Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco, California in 1915
• 
  MCRR No. 18 with 2-6-2 No. 25 on the McCloud Railway, 2001
• 
  MCRR No. 18's last crew team on the McCloud Railway before its move to Nevada.
• 
  MCRR No. 18 pulling a tourist train along the Virginia and Truckee Railroad in 2011

See also

• California Western 45
• Columbia River Belt Line 7
• Polson Logging Co. 2
• Robert Dollar Co. No. 3
• Sierra Railway 28