Engine #18

Engine #18. . An oil burning steam locomotive, built by Baldwin in 1911, was purchased by the Southern Pacific R.R. in 1928 to haul passengers and freight along the 300 mile narrow gauge line, known locally as the “Slim Princess”. Jim Butler of Tonopah said, “It was the railroad that began nowhar, ended nowhar an stopped all night to think it over”., Originally known as the Carson and Colorado Railroad, the line was completed to Keeler, CA in 1883. The railroad had a profound affect on the economy of the Owens Valley. The hauling of ore and agriculture products, which took 10 days by mule teams, now could get to the markets of western Nevada in one day. The economy of the Eastern Sierra boomed, population grew and agricultural production rivaled the San Joaquin Valley., Unfortunately, this prosperity was short lived due to failing mines and a decline in farming because of the diversion of water to Los Angeles. Freight and passenger fares dropped to the point where the railroad was abandoned in 1960. , second panel: , Presented to the people of Inyo County, July 1955, by Southern Pacific Company.