National Register of Historic Places

Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway Steam Locomotive

Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon
Listed
January 25, 2006
Type
Structure
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
05001557

About this property

Spokane, Portland & Seattle 700 is the oldest and only surviving example of the class E-1 4-8-4 "Northern" type steam locomotive and the only surviving "original" (not purchased used from another railroad) Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway steam locomotive. It was built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in May 1938. Nearly identical to the class "A-3" Northerns built for Northern Pacific Railway, it burns oil instead of coal. After years of running second-hand equipment, the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway (SP&S) was allowed by its parent companies, Great Northern Railway and Northern Pacific Railway, to purchase its first new locomotives. These included three Northern E-1 class locomotives (700, 701 and 702) for passenger service and six Z-6 class Challengers (4-6-6-4s) for freight service. After retirement from service in 1956, the SP&S 700 was donated to the City of Portland, Oregon in 1958. It was on static public display near Oaks Amusement Park at Oaks Pioneer Park until 1987, then moved to private quarters (the Southern Pacific Roundhouse at Brooklyn Yard) for the continuation of work to restore it to operating condition. It began making occasional excursion runs in 1990. In 2012, the 700 was moved to a new facility where it can again be viewed by the public, the Oregon Rail Heritage Center.

Location

2250 SE Water Ave.
Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon
45.49138, -122.64582

Categories

TRANSPORTATIONENGINEERING
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Buckler-Henry House
Industrial
0.9 mi
Mizpah Presbytarian Church of East Portland
Industrial
1 mi
Poulsen, Johan, House
Industrial
1 mi
Ladd's Addition Historic District
Listed
1.3 mi
Bartman, Gustave, House
Industrial
1.3 mi

Questions about this property

When was Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway Steam Locomotive listed on the National Register?

Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway Steam Locomotive was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 25, 2006.

What type of historic resource is Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway Steam Locomotive?

Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway Steam Locomotive is classified as a structure in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway Steam Locomotive?

The period of significance for Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway Steam Locomotive is recorded as the industrial era.

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