Martin,
Thank you for the kind words and for posting those pictures.
A few notes and accolades on the restoration, if I may, but first an important correction.
The Shirley Construction connection appears to be in error, first stated by Mallory Farrell. SVRR has in its possession a photocopy of the original Whitcomb build order for our unit, c/n# 13013 with Sumpter Valley Railway listed as the customer. They bought it new, attached is the work order to Baldwin Locomotive Works for the special-order sliding coupler mechanism. The Shirley Const. Lokie was apparently a sister unit, c/n#13015.
A LOT of people were essential to this restoration. Some are listed here, in no particular order:
J.R. Simplot: The 96-year old Idaho industrialist whom “Fortune” magazine called the “Wildest Billionaire in the West”. Mr. Simplot, who made his first fortune in ranching has often stated that he plans to leave as his public legacy some sort of grand Western Agricultural/industrial Museum. He had hung onto Whitcomb #100 in hopes of restoring it himself and using it as an operating display, but when approached by SVRR he said “take it, it’s yours”.
The late Ron Yanke: Friend and contemporary of Jack Simplot, he donated transport for #100 to his Boise machine works and instructed his staff to offer us every assistance in our efforts to restore it to operation. The Yanke Works performed most of the heavy machining for the project, all free of charge. When I asked Mr. Yanke about tax-deduction paperwork for the project he said “don’t worry about it, all I want is a turn at the throttle when you get ‘er back to Sumpter”. Sad to say, he died of leukemia in 2003 and never got the chance but his sons, Mark and Dan, who share their father’s passion for ancient iron made sure our project didn’t founder after his death.
The late Jim Lethlean, the late Ron Brinton, and Nils Christensen, SVRR Founder (who is still with us): These gentlemen made the initial contact with a retired J.R. Simplot Co. employee which led to the discovery that #100 was still extant and might be available, and personally secured the donation from Simplot Co.
The late Jim Witherell: Jim worked tirelessly on the restoration from the beginning until his untimely death in Jan. 2003. In spite of poor health and a busy writing schedule he made every work session and still found time to guide Tom and me on several fascinating field trips chasing local “ghost railroads” (Intermountain Ry, Owyhee Dam Railroad, Table Rock Incline, Boise Valley Interurban). Jim was a veritable fount of knowledge in matters of arcane railroad history and did a great deal of research in connection with the restoration project. Wish I’d taken more notes, but then I thought he’d be around for years.
Tom Young: More responsible than anyone for the fact that #100 is in operation today. Talk about your busman’s holidays! Tom is a professional heavy equipment mechanic; after a day of busting his knuckles on assorted lift trucks, cranes and hoists he would pull his well-equipped service truck into place beside our lokie then spend a relaxing evening (or weekend) busting knuckles on #100. He knew how to do everything and had the right tools to do it. Tom doesn’t talk much but says a lot when he does. I like that in a man. He’s been modeling for years in S-gauge, lovely old American Flyer stuff that he’s had since he was a kid. I think we convinced him that working on the real thing is even better.
John Jantz and Tom Sharpe: Respectively the general manager and shop foreman at Yanke Machine. I suspect there were times these gentlemen wished their boss had never taken on this particular project, but they were unfailingly polite and helpful. Consummate pros both, they were always generous with their time, tools and advice.
A few others: Roland Courtenay, Engineer and shop foreman for shortline IN&P who removed and rebuilt the air compressor and loaned us a steam cleaner, his brother Robert who took a lot of pictures and hosted a web page detailing our progress. Andrew Handzel who always stopped by and helped when he was home from college, Jerry Huck who could always be counted on to dig up spare parts from the SVRy bone yard, and some guy named Jim who took the heads off the old Climax engine and disappeared for a year, but returned them clea ned, machined and planed to perfection.
And a personal note: I’ve always had a thing about critters, and had been eyeballing this one for years as I drove by the Simplot plant on Hwy. 19. Jim Lethlean had heard rumors that this was the lost SV lokie a long time before the ’99 Railfair contact. Once years ago he asked me to check it out since I lived in the area and knew a few of the Simplot people. Talking when I should have been listening, I told him I was pretty sure from the outline that the Simplot lokie was a Porter product and he was chasing a false lead. When the true identity finally came to light and #100 was donated to SVRy, I contacted Ron Brinton (SVRy president at the time) and said I’d like to help out with the move and restoration. Ron’s casual response was “Nobody else has time to work on it, You’re the project lead. Cripes! I’m no mister goodwrench and never will be, but we managed to enlist the help of a number of remarkable people. In the final 18 months or so of the project several personal, financial and family crises forced me to withdraw from active participation. I did so knowing that the restoration was in the omni-competent hands of Tom Young, who is far more capable than I could ever hope to be. Tom was the real brains behind the project all along, and when called on to do so he brought it to completion almost single-handedly. Any and all credit for this fine restoration goes to him and the others named here (and some who didn’t get mentioned).
What a fine thing to see this critter back on its own turf and running on home rails after 60+ years!
Jeff Acock
Adrian Oregon
Picture below: The original Sumpter Valley Critter Crew.
Bottom row, L - R, Jim Witherell, Andrew Handzel, Roland Courtenay
Top row, L – R, Jeff Acock, Tom Young
