No. 4 is the only known surviving steam locomotive from the State Belt’s roster and, by sheer coincidence, was also among the most unusual of the bunch. It was built for the Board of State Harbor Commissioners in 1911 by Vulcan Iron Works (of Wilkes-Barre, PA) and switched freight cars along San Francisco’s Embarcadero through the ‘Teens and Twenties. After being sold off in 1932, the locomotive had a remarkably diverse career on various shortlines and industrial railroads throughout Central California, and even a stint for Uncle Sam before being hidden away for 30+ years in a Stockton scrap yard. No. 4 changed hands several times since then and traveled as far as Utah, but has now returned to the San Francisco area once more for restoration to operation!
Locomotive Overview
0-6-0
Vulcan c/n 1759, Jul 1911
| Driver diameter (in) | 51 |
| Cylinders (bore × stroke, in) | 19×24 |
| Weight (lb) | 118000 |
| Boiler pressure (psi) | 175 |
| Tractive effort (lbf) | 25270 |
History
- Built as Belt Line Railroad #4, San Francisco, CA
- Sold 1932 to Modesto & Empire Traction as #5, Modesto, CA
- Sold 1938 to A.D. Schader, San Francisco, CA
- Sold or leased to Permanente Cement as #400, Permanente, CA
- Sold to U.S. Army as #6596, Lathrop, CA
- Sold to M. Davidson Scrap, Stockton, CA
- Donated to NRHS, Salt Lake City, UT
- Shipped 1971 to Wasatch Mountain Railway, Heber, UT
- Sold 1988 to Golden Gate Railroad Museum, San Francisco, CA
- Transferred 2005 to custody of San Francisco Trains, Brisbane, CA