Locomotive No. 119

by Sue Smith

Title

Locomotive No. 119

Artist

Sue Smith

Medium

Photograph - Photography

Description

Replica of the Union Pacific locomotive No. 119 at Promontory Summit, Utah

During November 1868, Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works of Paterson, New Jersey, built Union Pacific locomotives No. 116, No. 117, No. 118, No. 119, and No. 120. Seven months later, No. 119 received the call to pull Union Pacific Vice-President Thomas Durant and his contingent of dignitaries to Promontory Summit. Durant originally chose a different locomotive to take part in the Golden Spike Ceremony.

En route to Promontory for the ceremony, which was scheduled for May 8, the Durant Special was forced onto a siding and stopped at the little town of Piedmont, Wyoming, not far from the Utah border. There to greet Durant were over 400 laid off tie cutters, who had been waiting for three months to be paid.

Durant’s coach was immediately chained to the siding, and after a delay of nearly two days, the men’s pay arrived. The delay caused Durant substantial embarrassment, cost his original locomotive her place in history, and moved the Golden Spike ceremony to May 10.

While Durant was delayed, the rain-swollen Weber River continued to rise. When the Durant Special reached the river at Devil’s Gate Bridge, the locomotive’s engineer saw the raging water had removed some of the bridge supports. This left the bridge unsafe for the heavy engine, and the engineer refused to cross. However, after assuring Durant that the bridge would support the lighter passenger coaches, the engineer gave each coach a push with his locomotive. The cars of nervous dignitaries then coasted across the unstable structure. Unfortunately, this action left Durant without a locomotive.

A hastily wired message to Ogden requested rescue. Sitting in Ogden were the five Union Pacific locomotives No. 116 through No. 120. It was No. 119 that was next to the main line and, therefore, rescued Durant’s Special and landed its place in history at the Golden Spike Ceremony.

After May 10, 1869, No. 119 continued service as a freight locomotive. In 1882, she was renumbered No. 343 and served out her days until scrapped in the early 1900s.

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May 22nd, 2017

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