Southern Pacific No. 4449 approaching Terrebonne, Oregon with an Amtrak P42DC on October 20, 2012.

(Drew Jacksich from San Jose, California Republic, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)

SOUTHERN PACIFIC 4449

Southern Pacific 4449, also known as the Daylight, is the only surviving example of Southern Pacific Railroad's GS-4 class of 4-8-4 Northern type steam locomotives and one of only two streamlined GS class locomotives preserved, the other being GS-6 No. 4460 at the National Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri. GS is an abbreviation of General Service or Golden State, the latter of which was a nickname for California, where the locomotive was used to operate in revenue service.

No. 4449 was built by Lima Locomotive Works (LLW) in Lima, Ohio for the Southern Pacific Railroad in May 1941; it received SP's signature red-and-orange Daylight paint scheme for the passenger trains of the same name which it hauled for most of its service career. No. 4449 was retired from revenue service in 1956 and donated to the City of Portland, Oregon in 1958. The city then put the locomotive on static display near Oaks Amusement Park, where it remained until 1974.

After this, No. 4449 was then restored to operation for use in the American Freedom Train, which toured the 48 contiguous United States as part of the nation's 1976 Bicentennial celebration. The locomotive has operated in excursion service since 1984.

The locomotive's operations are now based at the Oregon Rail Heritage Center in Portland, Oregon where it is maintained by a non-profit group of volunteers named "The Friends of SP 4449". In 1983, a poll of Trains magazine readers selected No. 4449 as being the most popular locomotive in the United States.

No. 4449's replica builder's plate and American Freedom Train plaque.

(Sam Churchill from Portland, Oregon, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)

History

Revenue service

No. 4449 was the last member of the Southern Pacific Railroad's (SP) first order of GS-4 locomotives. No. 4449 was placed into service on May 30, 1941, and spent its early career assigned to the Coast Daylight, Southern Pacific's premier passenger train between San Francisco and Los Angeles, California, but it also pulled many other of the SP's named passenger trains.

After the arrival of newer GS-4s and GS-5s, No. 4449 was assigned to Golden State Route and Sunset Route passenger trains. 4449 was reassigned to the Coast Division in the early 1950s.

On October 17, 1954, No. 4449 and sister locomotive No. 4447 pulled a special Railway and Locomotive Historical Society excursion from Los Angeles to Owenyo, California, and return. In late 1955, after being one of the last few Daylight steam engines in Daylight livery, No. 4449 was painted black and silver and its side skirting (a streamlining feature of the Daylight steam engines) was removed, as no longer needed due to dieselization of the Coast Daylight in January of that year.

No. 4449 was then assigned to Southern Pacific's San Joaquin Valley line, occasionally pulling passenger trains such as the San Joaquin Daylight between Oakland and Bakersfield as well as fast freight and helper service. No. 4449 was semi-retired from service on September 24, 1956, and was kept as an emergency back-up locomotive until it was officially retired on October 2, 1957, and was stored along with several other GS-class engines at Southern Pacific's Bakersfield roundhouse.

On display

In 1958, when most of the GS class engines had already been scrapped, No. 4449 was removed from storage and donated to the City of Portland, Oregon on April 24, 1958, where it was placed on outdoor public display near Oaks Park. No. 4449 was not specifically chosen for static display, rather, it was picked only because it was one of the desired 4000 series locomotives and the first in the deadline and could be removed with the fewest switching moves.

While on display at Oaks Park, No. 4449 was repeatedly vandalized and had many of its external parts stolen, including its builder's plates and whistle. As a result, the locomotive quickly deteriorated. However, Jack Holst, a Southern Pacific employee and member of the Pacific Northwest Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society, looked after SP No. 4449 along with two other steam locomotives, Spokane, Portland and Seattle 700 and Oregon Railroad and Navigation 197. Holst kept the engines' bearings and rods oiled in case they were ever to move again. Holst passed away in 1972 and did not get to see his efforts come to fruition with No. 4449 returning to operation three years later in the spring of 1975.

American Freedom Train

In 1974, No. 4449 was evaluated for restoration after becoming a candidate to pull the American Freedom Train, as its size, power and streamlining made it a good fit for that Bicentennial train. After the evaluators determined that 4449's bearings and rods remained in good condition, they selected the locomotive for that task.

No. 4449 was removed from display on December 13, 1974, and restored at the Burlington Northern Railroad's Hoyt Street roundhouse in Portland. The locomotive returned to operation on April 21, 1975, wearing a special paint scheme of red, white and blue.

As part of the 1975-1976 bicentennial American Freedom Train, No. 4449 pulled the display train through most of the contiguous United States. The 4449 only pulled the Freedom Train in the Western portions of the country, whereas in the Eastern portions of the train were pulled by Reading 2101, which had recently been restored by Ross Rowland, and in Texas the train was pulled by Texas and Pacific 610. The 4449 pulled the American Freedom train for a total of 82 of 138 stops for the bicentennial event.

After the Freedom Tour ended, No. 4449 pulled an Amtrak special, the Amtrak Transcontinental Steam Excursion during 1977. After nearly two years on the road, 4449 was returned to storage in Portland, this time under protective cover and not exposed to the elements.

1980s

In 1981, SP 4449 was returned to its original "Daylight" colors for Railfair '81 and the opening of the California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, California, along with UP 8444 and UP 3985. Prior to this trip, a Southern Pacific 6 chime whistle from a Cab forward type locomotive was mounted on the fireman's side and would remain on the locomotive throughout most trips in the 1980s. In 1984, 4449 pulled an all-Daylight-painted train from Portland via Los Angeles to New Orleans, Louisiana and back, to publicize the World's Fair, with UP 8444 there too. The 7,477-mile (12,033 km) round trip was the longest steam train excursion in the history of the United States. However, this trip was not flawless. On June 11, No. 4449 was approaching Del Rio, Texas, still on its way to New Orleans, when the retention plate that holds the draw-bar pin in place somehow disconnected and fell in between the ties, allowing the tender and the entire consist to uncouple, while the locomotive accelerated all by itself. Fortunately, Doyle noticed this after checking the rear-view mirror and quickly applied the brakes. The locomotive backed-up, the fallen parts were recovered, the connections were quickly repaired, and No. 4449 and its consist proceeded to run only slightly behind schedule.

In 1986, No. 4449 went to Hollywood to appear in Tough Guys and pulled business trains for the Southern Pacific. 4449 had a notable moment in 1989 when it and another famed locomotive, Union Pacific 844, made a side-by-side entrance into Los Angeles Union Passenger Terminal in 1989 for the station's 50th-anniversary celebrations. The two locomotives then ran side by side on Santa Fe's and Southern Pacific's parallel main lines through Cajon Pass, although 4449 eventually had to stop due to an axle hot box.

1990s

On April 26, 1991, No. 4449 returned to Railfair '91 in Sacramento, again with UP 844 and UP 3985 and the newly restored Southern Pacific 2472. It attended the next year's NRHS Convention in San Jose with No. 2472 and Union Pacific 3985. On this trip, 4449 carried a member's Star Brass 5 chime whistle off a CB&Q M-4 class locomotive on the fireman's side.

The locomotive would return to Railfair once again in 1999, co-starring with Santa Fe 3751 and Union Pacific's 844 and 3985. This was the last time she traversed the route of the Shasta Daylight, whose tracks are now owned by the Union Pacific.

2000s

In 2000, No. 4449 was repainted black and silver for a Burlington Northern Santa Fe employee appreciation special. It was traditional for Southern Pacific to paint freight locomotives in black, and 4449 and other GS locomotives received this treatment when the diesels took over their passenger assignments. In the case of BNSF, a Class 1 freight carrier, No. 4449 was given old historical treatment. BNSF C44-9W No.4449 was lashed in to provide dynamic brakes when descending down grades. Many railfans agree it was rather humorous for BNSF to choose C44-9W No. 4449 as the dynamic brake unit given its shared cab number with the 4-8-4. Following the BNSF special, the BNSF emblems were removed and "Southern Pacific Lines" was added to the tender, a reminder of when No. 4449 was repainted to black with SP lettering in late 1955. No. 4449 was originally planned to remain in the black scheme for a few years. However, plans changed following the 9/11 attacks.

No. 4449 was repainted into the American Freedom Train paint scheme again in early 2002, after the events of the September 11 attacks. In the fall of 2004, No. 4449 returned to the classic Daylight paint scheme, this time in its "as-delivered" appearance. It appeared in the autumn of 2004 with the then-extant Montana Rockies Rail Tours company, pulling (with a diesel helper behind it) two summer excursion trips between Sandpoint, Idaho and Billings, Montana, including stops at the Livingston Depot.

On May 18 and May 19, 2007, SP 4449 made another appearance with UP 844 in the Pacific Northwest for the "Puget Sound Excursion", on BNSF Railway tracks from Tacoma to Everett, Washington, round-trip.

On March 24, 2009, it was announced that No. 4449 would attend Trainfestival 2009 in Owosso, Michigan from July 23–26 with an all-day excursion planned on the 23rd and 24th and a photo run-by planned for each trip. The engine was then placed on display for the rest of the event.

The historic 2,500-mile move from Portland to Owosso was arranged by the Friends of the 4449, Amtrak, Steam Railroading Institute of Owosso and the Friends of the 261. The Milwaukee Road 261 organization loaned some of its first-class passenger cars, including the former Milwaukee Road Super Dome No. 53 and the Cedar Rapids Skytop Lounge to join the 4449 and for other excursion trains at the festival.

Following a two-year hiatus needed to accommodate the locomotive's mandatory 15-year inspection and overhaul, SP 4449 returned to service on November 25, 2015. From 2016 to 2019, SP 4449 pulled several excursion trains during each year. In late 2019, the locomotive was scheduled to haul the annual 40-minute round-trip Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation "Holiday Express" fundraiser trains through the Springwater Corridor and along Portland's Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge, along the Willamette River, during November and December of that year.

Due to its long rigid wheelbase and heavy weight, which were determined to cause excessive wear to the Oregon Pacific Railroad tracks being used, No. 4449 and stablemate SP&S No. 700 no longer pull the annual Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation Holiday Express trains. Another locomotive was substituted in 2022, and the trains will be pulled by a smaller locomotive for the foreseeable future. As of 2024, 4449 is usually housed inside the Oregon Rail Heritage Center, only fired up on occasion.

Preservation and maintenance

Since 1991, the SP 4449 is maintained by the volunteer non-profit group "The Friends of SP 4449", including Doyle McCormack, a retired Union Pacific engineer and locomotive collector. From 1981 to 2012, No. 4449 resided at Union Pacific's (formerly Southern Pacific) Brooklyn roundhouse in Portland, along with several other historic steam and diesel locomotives. The Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation, a partnership of non-profit organizations that owned or maintained historic rolling stock at the roundhouse, began a campaign in late 2009 to construct a permanent, publicly-accessible engine house for the City of Portland's steam locomotives.

Upon the closing of the Brooklyn Roundhouse in June 2012, in order to make the yard larger, the 4449 was moved with its stablemates SP&S 700 and OR&N 197 to the Oregon Rail Heritage Center (ORHC), a new restoration facility and public accessible center near the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) in southeast Portland. The ORHC opened to the public on September 22, 2012.

Other surviving locomotives

Only one other true Southern Pacific GS-class steam engine survives: Southern Pacific 4460, a GS-6, which is on static display at the National Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri. It was built during World War II. The GS-6 locomotives were never painted in the Daylight scheme, and were nicknamed "War Babies" and "Black Daylights". In preservation, 4460 has been referred to as the "Forgotten Daylight", due to her not running since the 1950s and seemingly in the shadow of its sister engine.

Film appearances

• 4449 pulled the Gold Coast Flyer train for Tough Guys, a 1986 film starring Kirk Douglas and Burt Lancaster. The creators built a full-size wooden replica of the locomotive for the crash scene.
• 4449's Daylight skirts (flat side panels) were removed again for its appearance in Come See the Paradise, a 1990 World War II film directed by Alan Parker. The locomotive and tender were given a coat of "false grime" to give the impression of coal soot when despite 4449 actually being an oil burner.
• 4449 was fitted with an IMAX camera in 2018, to be filmed for the IMAX film Train Time, directed by famed IMAX film director, Stephen Low.

Gallery

Overview

Type and origin
Power type: Steam
Builder: Lima Locomotive Works (LLW)
Serial number: 7817
Build date: May 20, 1941
Rebuild date: 1974–1975
Specifications
Configuration:
​• Whyte 4-8-4 Northern
Gauge: 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Leading diameter: 36 in (914 mm)
Driver diameter: 80 in (2,032 mm)
Trailing diameter: 45+1⁄2 in (1,156 mm)
Length: 110 ft (34 m)
Width: 10 ft (3 m)
Height: 16 ft 4 in (4.98 m)
Adhesive weight: 275,700 lb (125,100 kg)
Locomotive weight: 475,000 lb (215,000 kg)
Tender weight: 395,600 lb (179,400 kg)
Total weight: 870,600 lb (394,900 kg)
Fuel type: Fuel oil
Fuel capacity: 6,275 gal
Water capacity: 23,500 gal
Firebox: ​
• Grate area: 90.4 sq ft (8.40 m2)
Boiler pressure: 300 psi (2.07 MPa)
Heating surface: 4,887 sq ft (454.0 m2)
Superheater:
​• Heating area 2,086 sq ft (193.8 m2)
Cylinders: Two, outside
Cylinder size: 25.5 in × 32 in (648 mm × 813 mm) dia × stroke
Performance figures
Maximum speed: 110 mph (180 km/h)
Tractive effort Engine: 64,800 lbf (288.24 kN)
Tractive effort Booster: 13,850 lbf (61.61 kN)
Total: 78,650 lbf (349.85 kN)
Factor of adhesion: 4.16
Factor of adhesion: 4.286 with booster
Career
Operators: Southern Pacific (1941-1957; 1974-1996); Oregon Rail Heritage Center; BNSF Railway (Employee Event only)
Class: GS-4
Number in class: 28
Road Numbers: Southern Pacific 4449, American Freedom Train 4449, Portland and Western 4449, Willamette and Pacific 4449,
BNSF 4449, UPY 845
Nicknames: "The Daylight"; "The Queen of Steam"
First run: May 30, 1941 (revenue service)
Last run: September 24, 1956 (revenue service)
Retired: October 2, 1957 (revenue service)
Preserved: April 24, 1958
Restored: April 21, 1975
Current owner: The City of Portland, Oregon
Disposition: Operational

See Also:

4-8-4 Locomotives

Lima Locomotive Works

Southern Pacific Railroad