BJWRR No.2

The BJWRR No. 2, also known as the 2-Spot, is a 18 inch Gauge tender 2-6-2 steam locomotive.
== History ==
BJWRR No. 2 was built in 1905 by Johnson Machine Works for the Venice Miniature Railway in Long Beach, CA. The locomotive operated alongside a twin, No. 1, until local opposition to the trains running through residential neighborhoods and blocking traffic saw the railroad shut down in 1924.
No. 2 eventually found its way to the docks of San Francisco, where it was to be shipped to Japan as scrap metal. An engineer of the Southern Pacific, Billy Jones, found the locomotive, and purchased it for $100; several hours after the transaction, the United States embargoed all steel exports to Japan, due to the latter using the steel for a massive military build-up preceding the Pacific Theatre of World War II.
By 1943, Jones had restored the locomotive to working condition, and repainted it in Souther Pacific "Daylight" colors. He ran it on his ranch in Los Gatos, CA on his Wildcat Railroad every Sunday, delighting children after they got out of church. Jones quickly gained attention from Walt Disney, who considered purchasing some of Jones' 19 inch gauge locomotives from the Overfair Railway, before switching to 3 foot gauge trains; the two became friends, and Jones was one of the engineers of the Disneyland Railroad on its opening weekend. In addition, one of Disney's "Nine Old Men", Ward Kimball, drew a cartoon mascot for the railroad, a smiling wildcat.
Jones died of leukemia in 1968. His daughters never understood his passion for trains, and planned to sell No. 2 for scrap, before a group of Jones' dedicated volunteers purchased the locomotive themselves. A new railroad was quickly laid at nearby Oak Meadow Park for the locomotive and rolling stock to run on, opening as the Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad on July 24, 1970. Initially, the railroad ran around a hill known as Squirrel Hill due to its large squirrel population, before a mile-and-a-half extension was built in 1972, bringing the railroad into Vasona Park and adding a working grade and 40-foot trestle. In 2021, a pair of volunteers performed an informal survey investigating the feasibility of extending the railroad around Vasona Lake; it was determined that it would involve several tunnels, bridges, and run into legal issues obtaining easements to cross county-owned roads and trails, as well as running directly in front of a spillway.
No. 2 was the railroad's sole locomotive until Al Smith, founder of Orchard Supply & Hardware, purchased a diesel locomotive for the railroad from the Chicago Locomotive Works in 1992. The locomotive failed a boiler inspection in 1994, and the locomotive was withdrawn for a major restoration, including a brand-new boiler. The diesel, No. 2502, became the mainstay of the railroad, running both passenger and work trains.
No. 2 finally returned to service on July 24, 2005, with Jones' daughters in attendance. In 2007, the locomotive's original boiler was put on display near the enginehouse. As of 2022, No. 2 is still in service, with the new boiler expected to last until at least 2065.
Category:Built in 1905
Category:Locomotives
Category:Steam locomotives
Category:Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad
Category:Venice Miniature Railway
Category:United States
Category:18-inch Gauge
Category:Tender locomotives
Category:2-6-2 locomotives
Category:2-6-2 steam locomotives
Category:Miniature locomotives
Category:Minimum Gauge