The Longhorn & Western Railroad
Texas Transportation Museum
11731 Wetmore Road, San Antonio TX 78247
(210) 490-3554
LOCOMOTIVES
(Click on images to enlarge)
The Longhorn and Western railroad has four locomotives. We have two steam engines and two
diesel electrics. Three of them were made by the Baldwin Locomotive Company.
#6, a 1911 Baldwin "Consolidation" class 2-8-0 locomotive
These two images are unusually large for this site and will be slow to download
Presented here are just two of the many original Baldwin Locomotive Company documents the museum
acquired along with the locomotives in 1971. It seems that the locomotive was returned to Baldwin
around 1929, to be converted from being wood fired to oil fired. The documents state #6 was built in
January 1911 for the company. More documents in our bulging files are from the Interstate Commerce
Commission in Washington D.C. requesting updates on the locomotive for their files since the originals,
filed in 1911 were missing. In addition, all subsequent work, modifications and repairs were voluminously
documented. The engine was relatively trouble free, according to the inspection reports.
Both the towns of Moscow and Camden, being so small, are hard to find on most maps. They are
6.8 miles apart in Polk County, southwest of Lufkin, near to Livingstone, not too far from the
Louisiana border. The railroad never actually made it to the town of St. Augustine. The railroad was wholly
owned by the W.T. Carter & Brother Company, and existed to serve its logging operations out there in the lush red dirt woodlands.
Southern Pacific had a depot in Moscow and freight would be transferred between the two railroads. Although the service was entirely a freight operation,
a passenger car would be added for the benefit of tourists, and the revenue accruing from such sightseers. The M.C. & S.A. is still in
business to this day, and it still offers limited passenger service, but, of course it uses diesel electrics now to power its trains.
Locomotive #6 was built by the Baldwin Locomotive Company in 1910. It is a Consolidation class engine
with a 2-8-0 wheel configuration. It was given its number by it's one previous owner, the C.W. Carter
& Brothers Lumber Company. It was operated as a switcher on the Moscow, Camden & St. Augustine railroad.
The company changed ownership and even name but #6 soldiered on. Old film footage of this locomotive
at work exists.
The locomotive was acquired from the US Plywood-Champion Paper Company, of Camden, East Texas, the latest incarnation of the long
established paper and wood by-products company. The locomotive was the "best of the bunch" of quite a few old,
abandoned locomotives in their possession. It weighs 55 tons and was last operated by the M C & SA RR in 1953. It has exceptionally low "chassis"
miles for a steam locomotive - only 90,000. It's riveted boiler construction is illegal in Bexar County, following a
catastrophic boiler explosion in 1925, so the whole boiler and ancillary arrangements would have to be re-made in order
to make it run, legally, again.
Though it was acquired by the museum as far back as 1971, #6 did not arrive at the museum until 1984. It spent the intervening years
in Georgetown, Texas. The agreement, it seems was that the folks up there would rebuild the locomotive and many San Antonio volunteers
trekked up to Georgetown to help out. The facilities in Georgetown were better than what was available at the still new museum. The plans are vague and lost in the mists of time, so suffice it to say that the folks up there did not do
much with it, the agreement expired and the locomotive was returned to its owners, namely the museum.
During it's time in Georgetown it was featured in a movie. It was "dressed up" as the M.K. & T.
736, for its role. To enable it to produce smoke while it was moving, tires were burned in the
fire box. The smoke was expelled through the stack due to normal convection as the wheels turned,
producing a most realistic effect. A hidden diesel at the rear of the train provided the real motivation.
No one at the museum seems to know what the movie was called. It was probably a forgettable
western. As it was retired in 1956, some of the images included here may be stills from the film,
judging by at least one car in the background and the higher quality of the pictures. #6 was
immediately returned to its correct identity upon its arrival at TTM. It has been painted
several times since, due to the powerful nature of the sun in Texas. It has been installed as
the head piece of our static display. It also is a very prominent feature of our Christmas Extravaganza.
Vital statistics and significant dates
#6 was built in 1911 for the C.W. Carter & Brothers Company who operated it on the Moscow Camden & St. Augustine Railroad
Builder's plate number - 35816
Converted from wood to oil burning in 1929
Light weight - 110,000 lbs
Operating weight - 155,000 lbs. (93,000 - locomotive, 62,000 - tender)
2 - 8 - 0 wheel arrangement, with 44" drivers, 24" front truck wheels.
Two pistons, 16" diameter, 24" stroke. Operating pressure - 170 lbs psi.
The boiler is 54" in diameter, with 116 2 inch diameter, 12 foot long tubes
# 6 has 20,000 lbs of tractive effort
The tender holds 3,000 gallons of water and 1,200 gallons of fuel.
Last operated by MC&SA RR in 1956
Acquired by TTM in 1970
1971 - Transported to Georgetown, Texas, for rebuild and possible use on a tourist railroad, which
never materialized.
Finally arrived at TTM on 8/4/1984
8/5/1984 - the MK&T numbers put on #6 for a movie were painted over
For more images of #6, some on active duty on the MC & SA taken from
movies shot in the 1960s, and some more recently taken at the museum,
click •#6 •
#1, a 1925 Baldwin yard switcher 0-4-0 locomotive
These two images are unusually large for this site and will be slow to download
Presented here are just two of the many original Baldwin Locomotive Company documents the museum
acquired along with the locomotives in 1964. #1 is appropriately named for TTM, as it is one of
the museum's first acquisitions. It was also one of the first things that we were able to use.
Firing it up again at the brewery in San Antonio in 1965 turned out to have an unexpected consequence. The locomotive had not been used
since the late 1920's and belched out such an amount of smoke and soot that museum volunteers were obliged
to wash cars and windows for blocks all around the scene of the "crime." The boiler passed
inspection quite easily, as it had been so little used in New Braunfels and had been so well
cared for.
From the beginning the saddle tank switcher, with builder plate number 58555,was
destined always to be #1. The purchase order indicates it was be to be 'lettered and numbered' as:
COMAL POWER COMPANY, NO 1. It has 2 pairs of 30" diameter coupled wheels. It's boiler is 32 inches in diameter,
and it has 73 1 3/4 inch tubes that are 9 feet 2 1/4 inches long. It has two 11 inch diameter cylinders with
a 16 inch stroke, and operates at 180 lbs of pressure. With an operating weight of 47,000 lbs, it
has a tractive effort of 9,870 lbs. It holds 700 gallons of water and 120 gallons of fuel. It
has always been an oil burner.
Locomotive #1 is a 0-4-0T switcher. It was also built by Baldwin, in 1925. It served in the railroad yard
of the Comal power plant in New Braunfels, TX. It came to TTM in 1964. It weighs 60 tons and is 33 feet
long. The small engine only had a very brief service life. A couple of years after being acquired, it was
"retired," and put on display. Every year, for almost forty years, it would get another coat of shiny silver
paint. This had a "cocooning" effect and kept the engine very well preserved. Within a year of being acquired
by the museum it was back in service. Back then the museum was located at the old Pearl Brewery, and ran trains
on the one and a third mile long track that serviced it. This short line had the rather awesome name of
'Texas Transportation Company.' The early volunteers adopted the name and called their organization the
Texas Transportation Museum.
After 1968, when it was moved to the museum's current location, the small locomotive went back
to semi-retirement. It would not be fired up again until 1981, when new volunteers decided to
get it running again. #1 is one of the museum's very first acquisitions and it was a red letter day
when it was able to be used again. At that time we had no diesels, so it was the only moving engine we
had. But, once again, its period of active duty was very short. A new attempt to get it running came,
unfortunately, to naught. It is currently in pieces and is not on exhibit to the public. As of this date,
August 2002, its prospects have brightened again, with the arrival of a few new volunteers who are not
only keen to get it running again but also have some experience and knowledge to help make it happen.
GREAT NEWS IN 2004 !!!!
In December of 2004, steam was raised in this locomotive and, for the first time since the early 1980s,
it moved under its own power once again. It was a low key affair, but we were lucky that these
pictures were taken to record the event. It was run again in January 2005. More work needs to be
done to get it ready for use with the public but this is truly a red letter day for the museum.
#1 moving under its own power in December 2004
For more pictures of #1 operating under its own power,
click •#1 Under Steam•
Project update, March 2008. Progress towards returning this steam locomotive is taking
much longer than anyone would like. With about 95% of the restoration work completed, We ran
into a major technical difficult with the newly installed boiler flues. Finding the correct
tool to flare, bead and seal the tubes, which are very small by modern standards, has caused
delays but there is light at the end of the tunnel and we look forward to reporting good progress
soon. All the inspections on the boiler have been completed and paperwork submitted to the state
to get the boiler certified and given a pressure rating. This is one of the very last hurdles,
we are delighted to say. In the mean time, here are two recent snaps of #1, taken in March 2008.
1942 General Diesel Electric 44 Tonner
This is our 44 Tonner, now known as the "Green Hornet." It was built by GE in 1942 and served with the
USAF as # 7071, until its retirement. During WW2, it was shipped to England, and moved troops and material in preparation for D
Day in 1944. It ended its Air Force service in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It was bought by TTM and was our main
service locomotive for many years. It is a diesel electric with two 150 HP Cummins diesel engines and
two electric traction motors.
These file pages are large and may be slow to download
TTM acquired the 44 tonner in 1983, fourteen years after moving to the Wetmore Road location. It was bought through the Texas Surplus Commission, which allows Not-For-Profit organizations to
acquire surplus equipment from the military and other state agencies at costs much lower than are available on the open market. It's arrival inspired a doubling of main line
trackage. This was accomplished almost single handedly by museum volunteer, Rick Henderson. With the addition of this diesel electric and the longer track, offering rides to
visitors became a much easier proposition.
The locomotive is unusual in that although it is a diesel electric, it still has side rods connecting the driving wheels. As a 0-4-4-0 locomotive, it has two 150 HP
Cummins diesel engines and two General Electric traction motors. However, all of its 34 inch wheels are considered to be drivers. One axle apiece on the front and rear
trucks are directly connected to the traction motors, and the side rods then transfer effort to the second set of wheels. Both engines have six 4 7/8 inches cylinders,
with a 6 inch stroke. The locomotives maximum speed is 20 MPH.
The locomotive is 28 feet, 4 inches long and weighs 90,000 lbs. It is 9 feet, 6 inches wide, and twelve feet high. It holds 165
gallons of fuel. It also carries up to 750 lbs of sand, to help with traction, when necessary. The museum acquired any number of technical manuals along with the locomotive, including parts catalogs, repair and
maintenance guides and, of course, an operating manual. This just may be the only manual we have which includes instructions on how to destroy the piece of equipment. (Of
course, not everyone needs this help.) It advises which parts to remove, and how to disable the locomotive so that it causes maximum inconvenience to the enemy
while causing the smallest amount to our own side.
Nicknamed the "Green Hornet" following a green and yellow paint job in 1995, the locomotive has proved to be more than adequate for the museum's purposes. However,
we have had our fair share of issues with the locomotive. It is no longer possible to use both diesels at the same time, due to difficulties with
synchronizing engine performance. The original system for controlling both at the same time is irreparably broken and it is a challenge, to say the least, finding a replacement system. Parts
are simply not available to repair what we have, and the set up is now so long in the tooth, modern systems don't seem to be effective. The paint that was put on in 1995
has peeled badly, maybe due to the chemicals we had to use to strip off the more than forty layers of old paint that had accumulated over the years. But #44 remains
a historic piece in and of itself. It was designed to serve the armed forces overseas and hence had to be small enough to transport yet strong enough to get the job done.
Interest in restoring the 44 Tonner and placing back into regular service began to increase in
the latter part of 2007. There are a number of issues that need to be addressed. One of the
engines either needs to be rebuilt or replaced. An identical replacement Cummins Diesel engine
has been located and we are mulling our options. An incorrect alternator was installed many, many
years ago on the defective engine so the remaining engine has to run on battery power. A correct
alternator will need to be located and installed. Plus the paint job applied in the mid 1990s has
not fared well under the Texas sun. The locomotive will have to be completely repainted. While
everyone seems to agree on making sure its original US Air Force number, 7071, should be put back
on the locomotive, a polite debate is ensuing regarding what color to paint it. Some advocate
a return to air force blue while other favor black, the traditional color for yard switchers. Here
are some pictures of the locomotive back in action in March 2008.
1954 Baldwin yard switcher 0-4-4-0 locomotive, #4035
These file pages are large and may be slow to download
This is the 4035, a 61 ton 0-4-4-0 locomotive, a RS-4-TC 1A, built by the Baldwin Locomotive Company in
August of 1954. It has a 500 HP, 8 cylinder Caterpillar diesel, with a bore of 6.7 inches and a stroke of 7.5 inches, supplying electricity to four traction motors, one per
axle. It was rebuilt and upgraded to have an EMD control stand, and its engine was detuned to match the
generators. Its original wheel trucks, which could be widened or narrowed to fit other
rail gauges, were also replaced.
Some 74 of these locomotives were built, and they were some of the last ever constructed by the old firm of Baldwin.
44 were designed for foreign use and had special axles which allowed the wheels to be easily moved to fit a variety of
gauges. Those built for domestic use were numbered 1247-1276, those for foreign use were numbered 4001-4044. All were designed to be operated
in areas with low clearances. "Foreign" units such as the 4035 are slightly longer than the domestic version at
39 feet 2.5 inches. Engine heaters were installed to allow for operation in temperatures as low as minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
Maximum safe speed is 51 MPH, with a tractive effort of 15,650 pounds at 7 MPH. The wheels are 40 inches in diameter. It can hold 500 gallons
of diesel fuel
There is no evidence to suggest that #4035 ever served overseas and its variable width axles were replaced when it
was refitted with a newer engine control system and generator. The result is a locomotive that is bigger and more powerful than the
older 44 Tonner but which is significantly easier to maintain. TTM acquired #4035 in July of 1995. While the cost of the
locomotive itself was nominal, but transporting it to the museum cost over $20,000. Only a mile or so was by road but it was the
most expensive element of it's delivery. The locomotive has been virtually trouble free since it's arrival. It does require
quite a lot of preventive maintenance but apart from that it has provided sterling service.
Further L & W RR Pages
•TTM Home Page•
•Hours of Operation & Location•
•Locomotives•
•Railroad Carriages;
•Cabooses•
•The Depot•
•Motor Cars•
•Miscellaneous L&W items•
Site Established: June 13, 2002
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