If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 573

 

 

 

 

 

The “Empire” at California State Railroad Museum, Old Sacramento, California

 

Wolfgang Kohz took the color photograph identified: B11030 on this unused postcard distributed by Fritz Vibe Enterprises of Sacramento, California.  It is a Mike Roberts Color Production card.  There is a blurb at the lower left corner on the reverse:  “The ‘Empire’ at California State Railroad Museum, Old Sacramento, California.  Although numbered 13 when built in 1873, its number was changed to 15 by enginemen to ward off bad luck.  It was renumbered 501 in 1924.  The engine was acquired by the Pacific Coast Chapter of Railway and Locomotive Historical Society in 1938.”

 

Headquartered in Virginia City, Nevada, the Virginia and Truckee R.R .is a privately owned heritage railroad with a 14 mile or 23 km route between Reno, south to Carson City, and Virginia City.  Printed on the Virginia & Truckee R.R. logo was “Queen of the Short Lines.”  Tickets were issued by the larger Central Pacific Railroad Company.  The first section of the rail line went from Virginia City to Carson City and was built in 1869.  It was used for hauling ore, lumber and other supplies for the Comstock Lode silver mines.  After years of declining revenue, by 1950 the railroad was abandoned, much of the track was pulled up and sold, along with locomotives and cars.  Public interest in historic railroads in the 1970s initiated the effort to rebuild and restore a portion of the line from Gold Hill to Mound House.  The rebuilding was accomplished with public funding and private donations.  The track is still being extended and restored and is used as a tourist line. 

 

The locomotives from the Virginia and Truckee RR and other equipment have appeared in numerous Westerns.  Many of the pieces have been restored and are displayed in museums across the country.  The Empire engine is a 2-6-0 Mogul type built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1873.  It had a long life as a freight engine.  I was curious as to when the number was changed from #13 to #15 and discovered that happened in 1910 when the wood burner was converted to oil.  As the blurb on the card stated, later in 1924 the number was changed again, this time to 501.  In 1938 the locomotive was retired and presented to the Pacific Coast Chapter of the Railway and Locomotive Historical Society for preservation.  The Empire, beautifully restored and shown on the card, can be found today in the California State Railroad Museum, Old Sacramento, California. 

 

 The California State Railroad Museum is part of the state park system.  Twenty-one restored locomotives and railroad cars, some dating to 1862, are featured in the museum.  Next to the main museum building is the reconstructed 1870s Central Pacific Railroad passenger station and freight depot.  The museum operates a short 40 minute, 6 mile, round trip route along the Sacramento River between April and October. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_and_Truckee_Railroad

https://locomotive.fandom.com/wiki/Virginia_%26_Truckee_No._13_Empire

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_State_Railroad_Museum