Iron Rails and Silver Dreams

Iron Rails and Silver Dreams. . Echo was midway between the Union Pacific division points of Ogden and Evanston. Echo was a logical choice for the railroad to develop because it was at the bottom of a steep climb up Echo Canyon. At Echo, the coal burning steam engines needed to take on coal, water and sand for traction. , , The railroad constructed a large coaling tower, water-tower, turntable, four-stall engine house and other servicing facilities. Water was plentiful but other supplies were brought in by rail. "Helper" engines, stationed at Echo, were attached to eastbound trains to assist them up the steep canyon climb. , , Echo soon became Summit County's center of commerce with warehouses full of groceries, hardware and dry goods. The discovery of silver in Park City and coal in Coalville spurred the construction of branch lines. With four to six engines stationed in Echo and hundreds of men needed to maintain the equipment and roadbed, it looked like Echo might pulse into fame. , , The railroad grade threading Weber and Echo Canyons was a consideration for almost every locomotive the Union Pacific has ever operated. In the age of steam, Echo was an important stop, servicing several dozen engines every day. , , A locomotive's first stop would be the inspection pit where workers would crawl over and under it to look for worn or broken parts. Before leaving the pit, the lube reservoirs were topped off and moving parts greased. , , Next, the engine was moved to the water tower where its tender was filled with hundreds of gallons of water. At the coaling tower, the tender was loaded with tons of coal. Dry sand was added to tanks above the engine's boiler. The engine then moved to the ash pit, and the thick layer of cinders and ash from the firepan were dumped. Finally, the engine was placed on the ready track for its next assignment, weeks later.