California State Railroad Museum- Sacramento

Boy, I sure hope you took some nice photos of the locomotives INSIDE.  The CSRM is one of the finest RR museums in the would.

Hot Water,

A docent was saying that they have an additional 80+ locomotives in the old SP shops, which will eventually become their museum of railroad technology. All it takes is $

Thought you guys might dig some more pictures...

My job used to take me to that area before they closed the air base in Sacramento...

which is a great place to visit, with the museum (which I only took time to go through

once), Old Town, Highway 49 gold country, Yosemite, etyc. all in easy reach.  Hated

it when they closed that base and left some....uh..less desireable to visit, open..

...mentionting nothing of the Santa Fe engine shoved out along the river...

Hello Cabrat4449..............

As far as I know the S.F.5021 and 2925 is still out there rusting away.

the woman who loves the S.F.5011,2678,2003,200

Tiffany

 Sorry guys! Couldn't get any closer than the 80....

More videos. I'm still learning how, please bear with me!

The CSRM is everything right and everything wrong with a big RR museum. A first class collection of equipment displayed very nicely. At the same time, they were over-whelmed with the Santa Fe collection, delivered in running condition and almost display ready. With no place to put the equipment and no plans/money to do anything, they just let the collection rot, rusting away, vandalized and parts stolen.   

All it takes is money.  Send them some - they give you free passes.

Now that CA is, again, awash in money...perhaps Governor Jerry Brown will cancel that bullet train and restore those Santa Fe steamers to their original glory.

I wouldn't count on either.

I note that San Diego raised six million to build a reproduction of the 16th Century San Salvador, a 111' Spanish Galleon.  Six million is no longer much money, but it might have been enough to preserve those Santa Fe locomotives.  Apparently all this was done without taxpayer support.

I believe one million would be enough to restore our Harriman ten-wheeler.  It kinda depends on how ardent the fund raisers are, and how interested the population is.

I had not heard before that those steamers arrived in operational condition in Sacramento, unless that means only that wheel bearings were ok.

You're right.  However, the engines had been carefully stored, and they were delivered at no cost to the museum, after which the museum effectively spit in the eye of the Santa Fe.

I was Road Foreman of Engines at Barstow at the time, and accompanied the movement from Needles to Barstow, and I can verify that great care was taken to do no damage in transit, so that a large and unique collection of equipment could be delivered in good condition for display.  Some of the equipment could have been made operable with little more than new batteries and Federal inspection, whereas some (including the steam engines) would have required some work.

But enough complaining about the museum's shortcomings.  They do have a nice display inside.

Just because a steam locomotive has some surface rust, that in itself is no indication on it's overall condition.

Anyone can sandblast something and paint it. That doesn't mean it's in good operating condition. So many people get hung up on what a steam locomotive looks like as opposed to what they should really be focused on; how good of mechanical condition it's in.

What a great web site, Lee! You do so many interesting things.