Black Hills & Northwestern 2-6-2 "Prairie" Locomotives in the USA

Class 7 (Locobase 13290)

Data from Baldwin Locomotive Works Specification for Engines as digitized by the DeGolyer Library of Southern Methodist University, Volume 34, p. 284. See also the Roots of Motive Power's engine history at [], last accessed 25 October 2011; and Bruce P Evans, "Mason County Logging No 7 Centennial" in Roots of Motive Power, Inc. Highline, Volume 28, No 1 (April 2010) [], last accessed 27 Februry 2021. (Thanks to Chris Hohl for supplying the fuel capacity.) Works number was 34666 in May 1910.

Also bound for western Washington, this wood-burning logging Prairie tank was sold to Mason County Lumber Company of Bordeaux for its BH&N two years after the Western Washington Logging Company engine described in Locobase 13284. Two differences were the slightly higher weights and the use of a link motion instead of the WWLC locomotive's Walschaert constant-lead radial valve gear. Fuel capacity for the 7 was a modest 1 cord of wood.

In 1928, the 7 was sold to the Port of Olympia as their #2 and operated on switching duty until 1955. From then on, the locomotive operated on behalf of several preservation railroads and was substantially overhauled to current FRA standards in 1999-2001 by the Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad.