In 1912, Port Alberni was incorporated with the arrival of the Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway, and planned arrival of the Canadian National Railway, and the trans-Pacific telegraph cable at Bamfield. The Alberni Pacific railway began operations in 1912 into Port Alberni, and today, exists as a working tourist railway running between the station located at the Port Alberni harbour and the McLean Mill National Historic Site.
I managed to get a ride aboard a train pulled by the railways 1929 Baldwin 2-8-2T, the “No.7”.
This locomotive was purchased new by the Campbell River Timber company as their #2 and was later purchased by the Alberni Pacific Lumber company and became #7 . After Alberni Pacific abandoned railway logging in 1953, #7 was acquired by MacMillan Bloedel and became #1007 at the Franklin River division.
Renumbered as #1055 the locomotive saw mainline service in Ladysmith until 1969 and as a switcher until 1971. The BC government acquired the locomotive in 1975 and kept it in storage at Ladysmith until In 1991, when it was donated to The City of Port Alberni and subsequently restored to running condition.
Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-8-2 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels on one axle, eight powered and coupled driving wheels on four axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle. The notation 2-8-2T indicates a tank locomotive of this wheel arrangement where feed water for the boiler is carried in tanks mounted on the locomotive, rather than in an attached tender. These locomotives are commonly referred to as Mikados.
The Canadian National Railway and the Canadian Pacific used Mikado locomotives for passenger and freight trains throughout Canada. Most worked in the Rocky Mountains, where the standard 4-6-2 Pacifics and 4-6-4 Hudsons could not provide enough traction to handle the steep mountain grades.
Baldwin Locomotive Works was an American builder of railroad (railway) locomotives. Although the company was very successful as a producer of steam locomotives, its transition to the production of diesels was far less so – the company stopped producing locomotives in 1956 and went out of business in 1972.
- No: 7 (1055)
- Built as: Baldwin #60942
- Built: 1929
- Weight: 90 tons
- Classification: 2-8-2T
- Gauge: 4′-8½”
- Length overall: 36’10”
- Operated by: Alberni Pacific Lumber (M-B)