V&T Survivor: DAYTON. Of the 29 steam locomotives that served the Virginia & Truckee during its life as a common carrier, 9 have survived in preservation. This beautiful, 1873-vintage 4-4-0 is Number 18, Dayton. Unlike many of her sisters, she didn't come from back east. She was built in Sacramento, in the shops of the Central Pacific Railroad. With a weight of 78,000 lbs on the drivers, she and sister Columbus were the heaviest locomotives yet purchased for the new Nevada shortline. A wonderfully ornate locomotive, she served the line for roughly 65 years, being most noted for her role as "the snowplow engine". Numerous photos exist of this engine pushing an enormous wedge plow. In 1938, she was purchased by Paramount Pictures, and over the next 30 years, she appeared in numerous Hollywood productions. During the Golden Spike Centennial, in 1969, she was used as a stand-in for the long-since-scrapped Union Pacific 119....which was kind of ironic, considering her origin. Dayton was finally sold by the movie studios to the State of Nevada in 1974. With her boiler deemed unsuitable for an operating restoration, she was cosmetically restored to her 1882 appearance and went on display at the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City in 1982. In 2005, she became the centerpiece for the newly opened Comstock History Center in Virginia City, where she resides today. It is interesting to note that nearly all of the 9 V&T surviviors are difficult to photograph and Dayton is no exception. She is displayed in a long, narrow hall that is rather dark and windowless at one end and nearly all windows at the other. About the only decent angle is what you see here, shot at 10mm. The tracks do extend outside the museum and apparently, the engine was winched outside on one occasion for a local celebration. The Museum Curator indicated that it was such a pain getting her in and out that there are no plans to try that again anytime soon.
