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California Western No. 14 is a 2-6-2T tank engine steam locomotive that was built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1924 for the California Fruit Exchange.

Initially the Fruit Exchange moved logs to their Mill with a fleet of Mack trucks. but this proved unsatisfactory due to the truck technology of the time and the quality of the roads. To remedy this, the locomotive was ordered from Baldwin in 1924 and the Fruit Exchange began the construction of roughly 20 miles of railroad. It operated in their Plumas County operations at Graeagle, California, as the No. 1 of their fleet hauling pine, cedar, and fir logs to be made into fruit box shooks and crates. These would be later brought to the Western Pacific Interchange at Blairsden.

The railroad discontinued their logging operations in 1938 and the locomotive was then sold to the California Western Railroad (CWR) who had renumbered it to 14. No. 14 would work for the next 16 years in the Union Lumber Company’s Ten Mile Branch logging operations. The CWR’s more powerful locomotives at the time, No. 21, No. 22, and No. 23, would bring the logs to the mill in Fort Bragg with No. 14 spotting the log cars in the woods and assembling them into consists.

With the closure of the Ten Mile Branch logging line in 1948, No. 14 saw limited service with the CWR and was sold to a private owner in 1956 who had it stored away on their ranch for the next 35 years.

In 1991, No. 14 was donated to Roots of Motive Power where it is currently awaiting restoration.

Trivia[]

  • In 1938 No. 14 was chosen to pull a photographed excursion train on the Ten Mile Branch by the Pacific Chapter of the Railway and Locomotive Historic Society.

Gallery[]

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