Northern Pacific Mikes

Northern Pacific Mikes

The NP Mikes were the real backbone of the Northern Pacific's freight operations. First appearing in 1904, the NP was a very early user of this wheel arrangement. They stuck with the Mikes to the very end of steam. Around the Tacoma area, classes W, W-1, and W-3 were to be seen everywhere in the mid 50's.

1682, a W-1, along Puget sound south of Tacoma. About 1950, probably the same job as described below, but 8 or 10 years earlier. Photo by F. B. Thompson (61K)

I remember seeing a few of these engines, but I was only 7 when the last run on the Tacoma Division happened. One of the very last is a great memory. Dad, still a young head end brakeman with a growing family and no money, forgot his lunch. We met him on the outskirts of Tacoma at a little town named Titlow. He climbed down from the cab, took me in hand, and said "Stevie, this is probably the last steam engine you'll see running."

In about 1966, I responded to an ad in Railroad Magazine for NP negatives for sale. They were located west of Portland, OR, in Troutdale. Dad got me a pass, and I rode the train to Portland and took a buss out to the general area. A half mile walk and the emptying of my wallet ($45.00) got me about 100 negs! Here's one of my favorites.

Class W, 1533 helping #2254 somewhere in Montana in the late 30's, photographer unknown. (132K)

The Tacoma roundhouse was a wonderful place to visit when I was a boy. I guess I called it the Houndrouse and was scared of the airpump side of the engines till I was about 4 years old!

W #1507 and W-1 #1675 outside the Tacoma roundhouse in the mid 50's by the late NP engineer T. C. Miller. (85K)
The 1675 was one of the regular engines assigned to the Ft. Lewis Local as noted from the ring mark around the top of the stack.
Conductor Thompson explains,"The routine varied a litle day to day depending on the consist . On arrival at Nisqually, while the conductor registered, the crew picked up any up cars for Ft. Lewis, then backed (always) up the hill to Ft. Lewis. Usually did the Ft. Lewis and Wegoe business before going to DuPont.
Just about 100 ft from the switch to DuPont was a gallows with the spark arrester hanging from it. The engineer would spot the stack right under it then the fireman shut his fire off and went out the cab window and up to the stack. With a cooperating (nearly all) brakeman on the winch to lower it, he placed it over the stack, turning the four set screws to keep it in place below the lip of the stack. In order to set these (not tight) and not to have to scramble around the smoke box it was much easier to simply turn the arrester----that's why the scratch marks on the stacks of engines that worked this local. Most of the times when I worked it we had the 1694."

This shot of W #1632, is from a Postcard, probably in Montana in the teens or 20's. (93K)

Gleaming fresh paint on this shot of 1525, makes her look great! Another of the negs I bought, so no story. (71K)

W-3 1766 has just taken water at Kyro Wash. and is working hard to get moving. A GN train is pulling up to the water plug behind. Photo by F. B. Thompson. (51K)

W-3 #1745 and a Q-6 stopped for water in the late 1940's. Photo by F. B. Thompson. (75K)

W-1 #1677 on a work train in the early 50's. Photo by F. B. Thompson. (71K)

Mike pulling a load of 42 huge timbers bound for a canal project in canada. Wilson photo from the Thompson collection. (69K)

Northern Pacific 10 wheelers

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A great place to find NP memorabilia for sale

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