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The Southern Pacific GS Series is a series comprised of eight classes of GS 4-8-4 "Northern" Type steam locomotives built by Baldwin and the Lima Locomotive Works between 1930 and 1943.

About the Class[]

SP-4449

Southern Pacific No. 4449 is the example of the GS series.

The GS Series was built in between 1930 and 1943 by Baldwin Locomotive Works for only the first and the last two classes and Lima Locomotive Works for the rest of the four classes. They were commonly referred to "Golden State" or "General Service" depending whoever you asked.

Today, there are two GS locomotives that are preserved. #4449 is currently in active service and #4460 is on static display at Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri.

The Entire Story[]

In 1930, the SP designed a locomotive similar to those Mountains that had a very large firebox (90.4 sq ft) and a four wheel trailing truck to support it. Thus, evolved the Southern Pacific 4-8-4 which was designated Class GS (Golden State) by the SP.

The first 10 "Golden States", Class GS-1 (road numbers 4400 through 4409), were built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1930. They were oil burners with 73.5" drivers, 27 x 30 cylinders, and 250 psi boiler pressure, which resulted in a tractive effort of 62,200 lbs. They weighed 448,400 lbs and had 266,500 lbs of weight on the drivers.

In early 1937, six more "Golden States" arrived but this time from the Lima Locomotive Works. These were designated Class GS-2 and assigned road numbers 4410 through 4415 and were identical to the Class GS-1s except for the exterior styling, color scheme plus they weighed 6000 lbs more. The color scheme used bright orange, red, black and silver. The orange was applied to the pilot and in a broad band along the skirting and the tender. The red was applied in a band above the skirting and above and below the orange band on the tender. The rest of the locomotive was black except for the smoke box door, which was silver, and the hand rails, which were cadmium plated. The six Class GS-2s were purchased for brand new trains that updated passenger service between Los Angeles and San Francisco. They sported a "Daylight" emblem and regularly hauled "The Coast Daylight".

Late in 1937, 14 more "Golden States" (road numbers 4416 through 4429) were delivered from Lima. This group, Class GS-3 was similar in appearance to the GS-2s. However, they were designed for higher speeds with 80" drivers, 26 x 32 cylinders, and a boiler pressure of 280 psi giving them 62,800 lbs of tractive effort. They weighed 460,000 lbs and had 267,300 lbs over the drivers.

The Southern Pacific ordered 28 more Class GS-4 "Golden States" from Lima and took delivery of twenty (road numbers 4430 through 4449) in April and May 1941 and the other eight (road numbers 4450 through 4457) in March and May 1942. These were similar to the GS-3s except they had "all-weather" vestibule cabs and had a smaller cylinder diameter (25.5) with a higher boiler pressure (300 psi). They weighed 475,000 lbs and with 275,700 lbs on the drivers had a tractive effort of 64,800 pounds.

Two additional "Golden States" (road numbers 4458 & 4459), designated Class GS-5, were delivered from Lima in June 1942 and were similar to the GS-4 except they had roller bearings on all axles and weighed 8,200 pounds more.

During World War II, the SP like most railroads were in need of more motive power and it wanted more GS Class 4-8-4s, but the War Production Board would not permit SP to build more "GS" passenger locomotives. The Southern Pacific redefined "GS" to stand for "General Service" instead of "Golden State" and specified that this group would be used for freight as well as in passenger service. The board then approved the purchase. From then on "GS" officially meant "General Service". Due to wartime shortages, these last 10 Class GS-6 (road numbers 4460 through 4469) Locomotives were built without skirting and were void of the orange and red paint and were delivered from Lima in July to August 1943.

Locomotive Rosters[]

GS-1 (Nos 4400-4409, 4470-4473 for Texas & New Orleans)[]

Locomotive Numbers Image Date Built Date Scrapped Notes
No. 4400 4400 1st R SF 7-14-53 DS Richter -L May 1930 March 23, 1954 Loaned to T&NO as No. 708 from 1943 to 1952. Returned to the SP as No. 4470 in March 1953 and renumbered again as No. 4400 in July of that year.
No. 4401 June 1930 June 8, 1955 Used for evaluation of various burner arrangements and different usage grades of oil in Sacramento, California in September 1946 until late 1951.
No. 4402 June 1930 April 24, 1959 Rebuilt in February 1932, after being involved in a boiler explosion at Richvale, California on December 25, 1931.
No. 4403 June 1930 August 15, 1955 Loaned to T&NO as No. 709 in 1943. Returned to the SP as No. 4471 in 1952 and renumbered again in July 1953 as No. 4403.
No. 4404 File:SP Class GS-1 No. 4404.jpeg June 1930 ? Sold to T&NO as No. 710 in 1943
No. 4405 SP20440520late200103 June 1930 May 27, 1957 Vacuum brakes added in February 1957.
No. 4406 July 1930 ? Sold to T&NO as No. 704 in March 1941.
No. 4407 July 1930 June 1, 1955 Loaned to T&NO as No. 705 from 1941 to 1952. Returned to the SP on April 20, 1953.
No. 4408 July 1930 August 15, 1955 Loaned to T&NO as No. 706 from 1941 to 1953. Returned to the SP on April 20, 1953. Used as an official portrait of this locomotive class.
No. 4409 July 1930 September 6, 1955 Loaned to T&NO as No. 707 from 1941 to 1952. Returned to the SP on June 11, 1953.
No. 4470 May 1930 May 31, 1956 Originally No. 700 from T&NO in December 1952 as SP's second No. 4403 replacement in March 1953. Renumbered again as SP's second No. 4470 in July of that year.
No. 4471 May 1930 January 20, 1956 Originally No. 701 from T&NO in January 1953, became SP's second No. 4471 in July of that year.
No. 4472 June 1930 July 9, 1956 Originally No. 702 from T&NO in January 1953, became SP's second No. 4404 in April of that year. Renumbered again as No. 4472 three months later.
No. 4473 June 1930 February 15, 1955 Originally No. 703 from T&NO in January 1953, then became SP's No. 4406 replacement in April of that year. Renumbered again as No. 4473 three months later

GS-2 (Nos. 4410-4415)[]

Locomotive Numbers Image Date Built Date Retired Date Scrapped
No. 4410 SP4410 January 1, 1937 All of them were retired in 1955. All of them were scrapped in 1958.
No. 4411 SP 4411 No,43 Californian 1948 - Brian Black Collection January 1937
No. 4412 12185235 10203996447310107 4732764435609493083 o January 1937
No. 4413 SP4413 January 1937
No. 4414 SP4414 January 1937
No. 4415 SP4415 January 26, 1937

GS-3 (Nos. 4416-4429)[]

Loco No. Image Build date(s) Current status Notes
4416 12998590n November 3, 1937 Scrapped
4417 frameless 1937 Scrapped
4418 Sp4418 1937 Scrapped
4419 Southern Pacific No. 4419 1937 Scrapped
4420 Southern Pacific No. 4420 1937 Scrapped
4421 12108832n 1937 Scrapped
4422 SouthernPacific4422 1937 Scrapped The one wheel from the #4422, the first axle, right side, was rescued just before scrapping. It was donated to the RailGiants Train Museum at the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds in Pomona, California where it is today placed on display.
4423 Southern Pacific No. 4423 1937 Scrapped
4424 SP 4424 GS-3 - Pre-war - Eddie Sims Collection 1937 Scrapped
4425 SouthernPacific4425 1937 Scrapped
4426 frameless 1937 Scrapped
4427 frameless 1937 Scrapped
4428 04AC48B3-D461-4521-9DBC-19A4C05A7EFB 1937 Scrapped
4429 frameless December 30, 1937 Scrapped

GS-4 (Nos. 4430-4457)[]

Loco No. Image Manufacturer(s) Build date(s) Batch type Retirement date(s) Restoration date(s) Status Notes
4430 Southern Pacific 4430 locomotive Lima Locomotive Works April 1941 1941 Batch October 1958 - Scrapped Around 70 mph, 4430 hit a tanker truck and making it derailed, leaving it damaged around the skyline casing and the front. It is unknown if it was repaired or scrapped. But it is most likely that it was repaired, then scrapped later on after the locomotive was likely taken out of service.
4431 SP4431-1 Lima Locomotive Works April 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4432 Southern Pacific 4432 Lima Locomotive Works April 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4433 SP4433-2 Lima Locomotive Works April 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4434 Southern Pacific 4434 Lima Locomotive Works April 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4435 Southern Pacific 4435 Lima Locomotive Works April 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4436 Sp4436 Lima Locomotive Works April 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4437 Sp4437 Lima Locomotive Works April 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4438 Southern Pacific 4438 Lima Locomotive Works April 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4439 SP 4439 Half-Daylight Eddie Sims Collection Lima Locomotive Works April 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4440 Southern-pacific-railroad-4440-8 1 1f544d8a267f806581615e8ccdbb5c8d Lima Locomotive Works May 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4441 Southern Pacific 4441 Lima Locomotive Works May 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4442 Southern Pacific 4442 Lima Locomotive Works May 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4443 File:SPNo.4443.jpg Lima Locomotive Works May 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped This is the first ever GS-4 locomotive from the Southern Pacific Railroad to be appeared in the movies.

No. 4443 pulled one of the final steam excursions on the Southern Pacific in 1957. A GS-4 pulled its last passenger train in October 1958, and they were all retired by the end of the year.

4444 Southern-pacific-4444-gs4-morning-daylight-san-francisco-steam-locomotive-rob-gates Lima Locomotive Works May 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped The tender of the locomotive was rebuilt by the SP and used as a "hammer car" to test impacts on hydracushion boxcars before it was scrapped in the early 1970s.
4445 IMtfg7122 Lima Locomotive Works May 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4446 Lima Locomotive Works May 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped Involved in a collision with the Lark in a siding at Donner Pass, repaired, put back into service and was scrapped afterwards.
4447 Southern Pacific 4447 Locomotive Lima Locomotive Works May 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped One of 4447's career highlights occurred on October 17, 1954, when SP 4447 and her sister Southern Pacific 4449 pulled a special 10-car train for the Railway and Locomotive Historical Society from Los Angeles to Owenyo, California.
4448 Southern Pacific 4448 Lima Locomotive Works May 1941 1941 Batch - Scrapped -
4449 144449Untitled Lima Locomotive Works May 20, 1941 1941 Batch October 2, 1957 (revenue service) April 21, 1975 Operational, based in The City of Portland, Oregon Currently under ownership of the Oregon Rail Heritage Center
4450 Lima Locomotive Works March 1942 1942 Batch October 1958 - Scrapped -
4451 SP4451 Lima Locomotive Works March 1942 1942 Batch - Scrapped -
4452 4452-1 Lima Locomotive Works March 1942 1942 Batch - Scrapped -
4453 SP4453-3 Lima Locomotive Works March 1942 1942 Batch - Scrapped -
4454 SP4454-1 Lima Locomotive Works April 1942 1942 Batch - Scrapped -
4455 Sp4455o Lima Locomotive Works April 1942 1942 Batch - Scrapped -
4456 SP4456 Lima Locomotive Works April 1942 1942 Batch - Scrapped -
4457 4457 Lima Locomotive Works April 1942 1942 Batch - Scrapped -

GS-5 (Nos. 4458 & 4459)[]

Locomotive Numbers Image Date Built Date Retired Date Scrapped Notes
No. 4458 4458-2 May 1942 Both of them were retired in 1958 and scrapped later in same year. They are well-known experimental GS-4 locomotives being used for rollerbearings for high speeds. 4458 used rollerbearings from Timken Company but 4459 used from SKF brand.

The roller bearings on the two GS-5s were so successful that when both No. 4458 and No. 4459 were scrapped, they were examined and showed minimal wear. Just like many other GS classes, they started out as Daylight paint scheme then repainted to black and silver for the final years of service before retirement and scrapped afterwards.

No. 4459 Sp4459 June 1942

GS-6 (Nos. 4460-4469)[]

Loco No. Image Build date(s) Current status Notes
4460 Mo292 July 1943 On display at the National Museum of Transportation in St. Louis, Missouri. It was best known as the "Forgotten Daylight" because everyone fawns over the SP 4449 which is the main superstar while everyone thinks it is the last of her class, but has not been restored and partnered with it.
4461 S-l500-4 July 1943 Scrapped
4462 13620246n July 1943 Scrapped
4463 16329575965 0b7a84d68e b July 1943 Scrapped
4464 Rail-4464-deaver-orig-8 July 1943 Scrapped
4465 Number-4465-was-photographed-at-the-station-in-eugene-v0-ut6h1opwtdz91.jpg August 1943 Scrapped
4466 SP4466 August 1943 Scrapped
4467 1200px-USA 030 Oakland 9 August 1943 Scrapped
4468 SP4468 August 1943 Scrapped
4469 Tumblrnykfsv4NxS1ucj7u5o1r11280 August 1943 Scrapped

GS-7 (Nos. 4475-4481)[]

Loco No. Image Cotton Belt Route No. Manufacturer Operators Status
4475 Frameless **COMING SOON** Pine Bluff Shops Cotton Belt Route

Southern Pacific Railroad

Scrapped
4476 Frameless **COMING SOON** Pine Bluff Shops Cotton Belt Route

Southern Pacific Railroad

Scrapped
4477 Frameless **COMING SOON** Pine Bluff Shops Cotton Belt Route

Southern Pacific Railroad

Scrapped
4478 Frameless **COMING SOON** Pine Bluff Shops Cotton Belt Route

Southern Pacific Railroad

Scrapped
4479 Frameless **COMING SOON** Pine Bluff Shops Cotton Belt Route

Southern Pacific Railroad

Scrapped
4480 Frameless **COMING SOON** Pine Bluff Shops Cotton Belt Route

Southern Pacific Railroad

Scrapped
4481 Frameless **COMING SOON** Pine Bluff Shops Cotton Belt Route

Southern Pacific Railroad

Scrapped

GS-8 (Nos. 4485-4488)[]

Loco No. Image Cotton Belt Route No. Manufacturer Operators Status
4485 Frameless 815 Pine Bluff Shops Cotton Belt Route

Southern Pacific Railroad

Scrapped
4486 Frameless 817 Pine Bluff Shops Cotton Belt Route

Southern Pacific Railroad

Scrapped
4487 Frameless 818 Pine Bluff Shops Cotton Belt Route

Southern Pacific Railroad

Scrapped
4488 Frameless 813 Pine Bluff Shops Cotton Belt Route

Southern Pacific Railroad

Scrapped

See also[]

List of Southern Pacific GS Locomotives.
GS-1: Class GS-144004401440244034404440544064407440844094404447144724473
GS-2: Class GS-2441044114412441344144415
GS-3: Class GS-344164417441844194420442144224423442444254426442744284429
1941 Batch of GS-4s: 44304431443244334434443544364437443844394440444144424443444444454446444744484449
1942 Batch of GS-4s: 44504451445244534454445544564457
GS-5: Class GS-544584459
GS-6: Class GS-64460446144624463446444654466446744684469
Western Pacific Class GS-64: Class GS-64Western Pacific No. 481/Southern Pacific No. 4470Western Pacific No. 482/Southern Pacific No. 4471Western Pacific No. 483/Southern Pacific No. 4472Western Pacific No. 484/Southern Pacific No. 4473Western Pacific No. 485/Southern Pacific No. 4474Western Pacific No. 486/Southern Pacific No. 4475
GS-7: Class GS-74475447644774478447944804481
GS-8: Class GS-84485448644874488
Extinct: Class GS-1Class GS-2Class GS-3Class GS-5Class GS-7Class GS-8
Preserved: 44494460
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