Re: SVR #50

I have to admit I got lazy processing photos as I have been doing a lot of scanning the last couple days, so am just attaching a few that I did not have to reduce. This photo is purported to be #50 arrinving on a std. ga. flat car from Baldwin. There is a second photo of this scene which shows engine #15 coupled to a couple of idler flats pulling this engine off of the std. ga. flat.
This and the following photo are a real mystery. These are from a collection of prints kindly donated by Martin E. Hansen to SVRR Archives. This is the ruins of the Austin engine house without question. I have not been able to determine a date nor any other details. The engine without a cab is likely a former Tonapah mogul. The engine with a steel cab may be #50. Prior to the Jan. 1921 round house fire at S.Baker, the only engines with steel cabs were Mikado's 16-20 and #50. So far as I know all of the wood cabbed engines were at Baker and in that fire except #14. This makes it very likely that the date of this fire was prior to Jan 1921 as the damaged engines in Baker received steel replacement cabs. The steel cabbed engine in these photos could possibly be one of the Baldwin Mikes as well. The AFE's indicate that the Austin engine house was constructed in 1916, just prior to valuation as no original AFE# for construction is shown. So, likely the Austin engine house fire was sometime between 1916 and 1921. I have looked at on line newspaper archives for a report of the fire, but so far no luck.

This photo from the Baker County Library Collection is presumably on the S.Baker dead line.
This is also from Baker County Library with #50 posing in front of the S.Baker offices of Oregon Lumber Co. and Sumpter Valley Ry. The ivy covered stone single story building was originally constructed as a company store, but was later turned into additional office space in conjunction with the 2 story brick building built along side.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/09/2014 05:00PM by J.B.Bane.