Historic Hood River
Oregon Logging Train
10-14-2016
Notes
No reason to believe this was taken in Hood River. But then again, no reason to believe it wasn’t! Around 1900 logging railroads pushed into the forests all over Oregon. When the trees were gone, rails were torn up and moved to other parts of the forest. Tales persist of locomotives abandoned in remote forests, but I’ve yet to see a documented case. I hope someone has a solid story to prove me wrong!
Stever
Well Good Morning all ! ….. Ken – Why it’s your day !!
Stever
Well Good Morning all ! ….. Ken – Why it’s your day !!
Kenn
Nice colorized photo, the logs are on the roll way to be loaded as empty cars are brought up. As smaller logs became the norm the development of cable loading was needed to stack them on the cars.
spinsur
looks like pine, probably east of us.
Buzz
Looks like the cook also doing a little posing. Probably a small bunkhouse and cook shack behind the train.
Arlen Sheldrake
appears that the log ends are shaped…..why? could they be destined for a trestle or piling? abandoned locos would need to be pretty remote to survive our multiple war scrap drives
spinsur
easier skidding. these still had to be skidded to the landing, horses?
L.E.
Is this a Shay locomotive? Willamette Iron Works built a locomotive similar to the Shay. In fact, they might have called it a Shay. I think that is what is on display at Klickitat, WA.
Arlen Sheldrake
loco in photo is not a geared Shay or Willamette….the current issue of The Port Quarter by the Oregon Maritime Museum features a excellent history of the Willamette Iron & Steel Company. shaping the ends for skidding makes a lot of sense….should have thought of that.
Buzz
By shaping the end of the logs, they wouldn’t have had to cut through so much wood with those "misery whip" saws.
Kenn
Logs are sniped for skidding either by oxen or later by steam donkeys. Logs were also later loaded by steam donkeys until replaced by diesel.
Arthur
From a 1914 book on logging: "Previous to skidding, the forward end of a large log is "sniped " or "nosed." This consists of rounding off the under side of the log so that it will not catch on obstructions. Where the ground is rough and the log is likely to roll over, the entire front end is sniped. This work may be done by a sniper or by one of the swampers. The sniper generally prefers an ax with a 5 to 6-pound head."
Kenn
Kenn rambles on – Arlen is correct the wood burning engine with the spark arresting balloon stack is definately a rod engine. This one has what appears to be at least 30" drive wheels which makes it good for about 30 MPH, the geared engines (Shay, Climax, Heisler and Willamette) normally operated a maximum of 10 MPH.
The sniped logs were cut this way to save tearing up the skid road made up of small cross logs. The skid road was kept greased and some of it shows on the angle cuts on these logs.