Steam loco No. 37

Strasburg Railroad specialists inspect locomotive No. 37 in October in a Delaware rail yard where it is currently stored.


The Pacific Lumber Company’s former steam locomotive No. 37 will soon be restored under an agreement signed recently by representatives of the Timber Heritage Association and the Strasburg Railroad Company.

The contract allows for the work to be done over a five-year period, which is estimated to cost $400,000.

Timber Heritage Association President Marcus Brown called the agreement another step forward toward the ultimate goal of having an excursion train in Humboldt County, according to a news release.

“We agreed to a five-year plan calling for Strasburg Railroad specialists to restore our locomotive as their time allows,” Brown said in a news release. “This guaranteed our group the lowest shop rate available while getting the work done by the best repair shop in the country.”

The Strasburg Railroad is a tourist railroad in Pennsylvania, which has a specialized mechanical department shop designed specifically for steam locomotive repair and restoration that has been doing that type of work for more than 40 years, according to the release.

The company has more than 250 years of combined experience in design, repair and construction of heritage and historical railroad equipment, according to Brown.

The locomotive No. 37 was inspected by Strasburg Railroad specialists prior to the restoration agreement, which was signed in October.

Locomotive No. 37 is currently in Delaware after it was purchased by the Timber Heritage Association two years ago and is scheduled to be moved to Strasburg in the spring to begin the repairs.

Timber Heritage Association representatives have indicated that significant fundraising will be needed to pay for this restoration.

The group’s annual dinner and auction is scheduled for April, and other events are being discussed.

“We are actively pursuing our goal of an excursion train in Humboldt County,” Brown said.

In addition to the steam locomotive, the Timber Heritage Association is currently restoring a diesel locomotive No. 101, a General Electric Diesel built in 1950 — one of three such locomotives once owned by the Arcata and Mad River Railroad — that was transported back to the area in June after several years of negotiations and planning.

Both locomotives are planned to be used for the association’s excursion train.

Louisiana-based MeadWestvaco had purchased the locomotive from the Arcata and Mad River Railroad in the early 1980s following its closure, but took it out of service in 2000.

MeadWestvaco agreed to donate the locomotive to the Timber Heritage Association if it also took a flatcar and two 25-ton diesel locomotives.

Locomotive No. 101’s restoration work is being done at Humboldt Flakeboard Panels in Arcata, where the 44-ton chunk of Humboldt County railroad history is currently being stored.

Courtsey The Eureka Reporter