| No. 119 | |
|---|---|
| No. 119 replica at Golden Spike N.H.S. | |
| Power type | Steam |
| Builder | Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works (original) O'Connor Engineering Laboratories (replica) |
| Build date | November 1868 (original) 1979 (replica) |
| Configuration | 4-4-0 |
| Gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
| Career | Union Pacific Railroad |
| Number | 119, renum 343 in 1882 |
| Official name | Union Pacific No. 119 |
| Disposition | scrapped; replica built |
The No. 119 was a 4-4-0 steam locomotive which made history as one of the two locomotives (the other being the Jupiter) to meet at Promontory Summit during the Golden Spike ceremony commemorating the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad.
No. 119 was built by Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works of Paterson, New Jersey in 1868 along with numbers 116, 117, 118 and 120.
Contents |
No. 119 was stationed in Ogden, Utah, when a call came from Thomas C. Durant, traveling to Promontory, who needed an engine. Similar to Leland Stanford and the Jupiter, previous misfortunes allowed No. 119 to take her place in history. Durant, the vice president of the Union Pacific Railroad was traveling on the so called Durant Special for the ceremony at Promontory. A swollen river had washed away some supports to the Devil's Gate Bridge. Durant's engineer refused to take the current engine across but did consent to nudge the lighter passenger cars across the bridge. The bridge held, the cars made it across but Durant and his entourage were left without an engine. Durant's plight was answered when No. 119 was sent from Ogden to take the Durant Special the short distance to Promontory where it came nose to nose with the Central Pacific's Jupiter.
In Andrew J. Russell's famous photograph of the Meeting of the Lines, No. 119 is seen on the right with its engineer, Sam Bradford, leaning off the pilot holding a bottle of champagne up to Jupiter engineer George Booth. Bradford and Booth would later break a bottle of champagne over the other's locomotive in celebration.
No. 119 had a similar story to the Jupiter on its entrance into history. Both engines had a similar epilogue. The 119 continued as a freight locomotive, being renumbered the 343. In 1903 it was scrapped for $1,000.
Detailed engineering drawings (over 700 of them) and replicas of the Union Pacific No. 119 and Central Pacific Jupiter were created by O'Connor Engineering Laboratories in Costa Mesa, CA in 1975-79 for the National Park Service's Golden Spike site at Promontory, UT. The Park Service initially approached Walt Disney to see if his organization, which had built steam engines from scratch for Disneyland, would be interested in the project. Disney declined but recommended Chadwell O'Connor. Disney animator and steam engine owner Ward Kimball did color matching and original artwork for the Jupiter and No. 119.[1][2]