Southern Pacific No. 5021

The Southern Pacific No. 5021 is a American class SP-2 three-cylinders 4-10-2”Reid Tenwheeler”Southern Pacific-type steam locomotive. It is the sole survivor of forty-nine 4-10-2 locomotives built by ALCO between 1925 and 1927 for the Southern Pacific (#5000-#5048) known as the Southern Pacific SP 4-10-2’s
==History==
Built by ALCO in 1926 for the Southern Pacific, the locomotive initially hauled passenger trains over the Sierra Nevadas, but was soon moved to fast freight.
Its last years were spent working largely in the northwest on the Portland Division, remaining in service until 1955.
After retiring from service in 1955, the 5021 was donated to the Southern California Chapter of the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society's collection by the Southern Pacific the following year.
In the early '60s, the California Chapter began operating the 5021 on their small spur of track during local fairs. This continued until the Society was sent a cease and desist notice from Southern Pacific lawyers, asking them to stop operating the engine. After contacting the president of the Southern Pacific at the time, Don Russel, they found out that the lawyers had made the letter on their own volition, without talking to the higher ups. Mr. Russel gave permission to the Society to continue operating the engine and to ignore the cease and desist order.
In 1976, while moving the 5021 by crane to its current location, it derailed while negotiating the curves leading to the entrance of the museum grounds. In order to rerail the locomotive, a crane was brought in to lift it back onto the track. However, the way the rerailing was achieved was not correctly carried out. The crane company put the cable under the smokebox instead of the frame, leading to all of the weight tugging down from the bottom of the smokebox front from the front of the frame. Witness anecdotes say that the locomotive's rivets between the smokebox saddle and the smokebox made a popping noise as it was lifted, with one person remarking, "Well, that engine will never run again".
Today, the locomotive is part of the collection of the Southern California Chapter of the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society.
===Design===
5021 is one of only six known surviving US built three cylinder locomotives and one of four US built locos with conjugated valve gear. The center piston is connected to the second coupled axle. A clearance crank is installed on the first coupled axle to prevent the axle fowling with the center connecting rod while in motion.
==Trivia==
*The locomotive was featured in "Boppin' with the Biggles" in Little Red Caboose with Union Pacific No. 4014.
*A small scale live steam locomotive of No. 5021 was built and used as the Ghost Train in the 1991 horror film "Sometimes They Come Back". Its whistle was recycled from Norfolk and Western No. 1218 in the same film.
==External Links==
*Rail Giants Site Article
==Gallery==
click here for full gallery
File:34806EB4-E7D2-433C-B3B6-326BA9CF61A5.jpeg
File:4AABDE46-6448-4C05-B876-8552DE2259F0.jpeg
File:14-08-02 rail-gaints-0539-3 uxga.jpg|No. 5021 with ATSF No. 3450
Category:Steam locomotives
Category:Tender locomotives
Category:ALCO locomotives
Category:Southern Pacific locomotives
Category:American locomotives
Category:Ten-coupled locomotives
Category:Built in 1926
Category:Locomotives featured in media
Category:4-10-2 steam locomotives
Category:4-10-2 locomotives
Category:Locomotives
Category:Preserved locomotives
Category:Sole survivor
Category:RailGiants Train Museum
Category:Preserved steam locomotives
Category:American steam locomotives
Category:Standard gauge locomotives
Category:Standard gauge locomotives of the United States
Category:4 foot 8 1⁄2 inch gauge