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Re: What about WP&Y #70 ?

June 24, 2000 09:47PM
My old boss, Frank Coffey, brought the 70, 71, and the running gear from 72 from Alaska to Tennessee in the spring of 1977. They came by water to Knoxville, TN and were trucked to Sevier County. Frank was the CMO and railroad brains behind Tweetsie Railroad. Tweetsie had built the park that is now Dollywood in 1961 as Rebel Railroad. At the time the 70 class engines came back the park was owned by Silver Dollar City (as it still is, but Dolly Parton has a 20% share of it). They had the USA/White Pass 192 when they opened. It was rebuilt in the Smoky Mountain Railroad shop in Sevierville, TN before it came to the park.
The 192 was a sister to Tweetsie's 190 and when Frank brought the engines back in 77 he wanted to trade the 190 to Silver Dollar City for the 70, 71, and the remains of 72. That way each park would have twin locomotives. The Tweetsie management would not go for it, though, so 190 stayed with the ET&WNC 12 in Boone.
When Frank brought the 70 class engines back he packed the tanks, cabs and smokeboxes with tons of parts. He had one tank slap full of ringstock. A brand new superheater header and a complete front end throttle was in the mix as I remember.
Not too long after that, the Silver Dollar management had the notion to "clean up the junk at the train shop" and they literally buried in a dump almost all those parts as well as air pumps. dynamos, and tires that Frank had gathered up to keep the engines running. Sad but true.
To get back to your question, the boys at Dollywood cut up the frame last year and I think the wheels that are now under the 70 came from 72. I stripped the oil burning equipment from 71 and found a heater on the 72 remains in 1987 when we converted the Missippian 77 to burn oil.
Subject Author Posted

#40 arrives

John Bush June 23, 2000 07:11AM

Re: #40 arrives

El Coke June 23, 2000 11:28AM

Re: #40 arrives

John Bush June 23, 2000 12:57PM

Re: #40 arrives

Tim Bain June 23, 2000 08:06PM

Re: #40 arrives

Tom Fisher June 24, 2000 01:32AM

Unloading #40

John Bush June 24, 2000 05:38AM

Thanks for the info John (NM)

Tim Bain June 24, 2000 06:48AM

What about WP&Y #70 ?

El Coke June 24, 2000 03:50PM

Re: What about WP&Y #70 ?

Kelly Iverson June 24, 2000 08:20PM

Re: What about WP&Y #70 ?

Ken Riddle June 24, 2000 09:47PM

Re: What about WP&Y #70 ?

Rick Steele June 25, 2000 06:53AM

Re: What about WP&Y #70 ?

Ken Riddle June 25, 2000 09:21AM

Re: What about WP&Y #70 ?

Bob Yarger June 25, 2000 12:27PM

Re: What about WP&Y #70 ?

Ken Riddle June 25, 2000 12:32PM

Re: What about WP&Y #70 ?

Bruce R. Pier June 25, 2000 01:08PM

Re: #40 arrives

Les Clark June 23, 2000 03:02PM

Reunion

Mike Trent June 24, 2000 08:15AM



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