West Side Lumber Co. No. 12 Operating At the Colorado Railroad Museum, 2009
West Side Lumber Co. No. 12 is a 3-truck Shay type 36" narrow gauge steam locomotive built by the Lima Locomotive Works in 1927, originally for the Swayne Lumber Co. in Oroville, CA as No. 16. In 1940, it was sold to West Side Lumber Co. in Tuolumne, CA and renumbered to 12.
At some point, the locomotive was then sold to Francis Cottie to become West Side & Cherry Valley Railroad No. 12, and then in 1986, it was sold to the Georgetown Loop Railroad between Georgetown and Silver Plume, CO where it used to be put in operation. As of today, No. 12 is now at the Colorado Railroad Museum where it is put in storage, but it is not actually owned by the museum.
Most recently, on January 20, 2026, it was announced that No. 12 has been acquired by the Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad in Fish Camp, CA, marking its official return to the state of California for the first time since its last run on the West Side & Cherry Valley Railroad. The Colorado Railroad Museum recently did a hydro test on No. 12 in preparation for the movement, which later occurred on February 3rd. Once No. 12 arrives at its new home, it will be fully restored to operating condition by the Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad in order to operate alongside their other two former West Side Lumber Co. 3-truck Shay locomotives, Nos. 10 and 15.
Trivia[]
- No. 12 operated at the Colorado Railroad Museum from 2009 to 2012 because D&RGW No. 346 was having to be repaired in order for No. 346 to operate excursion trains. No. 346 was the only steamer at the museum to pull excursions prior to the restoration of both D&RGW No. 491 in 2014 and RGS No. 20 in 2020.