The Old Hero
Peppersass - No. 1
This is the first engine used on this road. Weight only 4 tons. Cost but $3,000.00. Was brought here in sections through the woods by ox teams from Fabyan Place. It has carried a load of 60 persons up the mountain at once and has worn itself out in the service.
Built by Sylvester Marsh, Projector of the Enterprise
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Animals • Industry & Commerce • Railroads & Streetcars.
Location. 44° 16.22′ N, 71° 21.027′ W. Marker is in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, in Coos County. It is in Marshfield Station. Marker is on Base Station Road, 6.2 miles east of U.S. 302 when traveling east. Marker and subject locomotive are located at the Mount Washington Cog Railway Depot, northeast of the parking lot, overlooking the railroad tracks. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3168 Base Station Road, Bretton Woods NH 03575, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Mount Washington Cog Railway (approx. ¼ mile away); Mount Washington Summit (approx. 2.3 miles away); Northern Peaks of Presidential Range (approx. 2.4 miles away); Crawford House (approx. 4.7 miles away); Crawford Depot (approx. 4.7 miles away);
this page online
More about this marker. This is a tall, painted, wooden "billboard-style" marker.
Regarding The Old Hero. The first locomotive built for the Mount Washington Cog Railway, "Old Peppersass" was designed specifically to climb extremely steep gradients. The engine received its nickname when one of Marsh's friends observed, "Looks like a peppersass bottle doesn't she, Sylvester?" The resemblance came from the engine's upright boiler which was angled to keep it nearly vertical while the locomotive was on steep grades, in order to keep the water level in the boiler as even as possible. "Old Peppersass" continued in service until 1893 when it was replaced by newer engines. It was subsequently exhibited at the World Columbian Exposition and at the Field Museum in Chicago, Illinois. It is now on exhibition at Base Station of the Mount Washington Cog Railway.
Also see . . .
The railway was built by Sylvester Marsh, who came up with the idea while climbing the mountain in 1852. His plan was treated as insane. Local tradition says that the state legislature voted permission based on a consensus that harm resulting from operating it was no issue — since the design was attempting the impossible — but benefits were guaranteed. He was putting up $5,000 of his own money, and that, plus whatever else he could raise, would be spent locally, including building the Fabyan House hotel at nearby Fabyan Station to accommodate the expected tourists. The railway is sometimes called "Railway to the Moon", because one state legislator remarked during the proceedings that Marsh should be given a charter, not merely up Mount Washington, but also to the Moon. (Submitted on October 22, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 16, 2023. It was originally submitted on October 20, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 189 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on October 22, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. 7, 8, 9. submitted on October 23, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
