Considering that the little town of Wishram, Washington, with a population of just 342 (per the 2010 census) and only 1.3 square miles in size, is an Amtrak stop, it is easy to miss as one travels on Washington Route 14 along the northern bank of the Columbia River. In fact, one can see Highway 14 high upon the hill in the background of this photo. If one weren't looking for this town, and its railroad yard, one might miss it. The Portland & Seattle Railway (later renamed Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railroad) built their line along the northern bank of the Columbia in the first decade of the 1900s, including a small yard at Fallbridge (renamed Wishram in 1926 in order to honor the Wishram tribe of Native Americans, who had a settlement here long before Lewis and Clark explored this area in 1805). The SP&S was merged with three other railroads (CB&Q, GN and NP) in 1970 to former the Burlington Northern, and in 1995 the BN merged with the Santa Fe to become the Burlington Northern Santa Fe, renamed the BNSF Railway in 2005. On August 24, 2015, BNSF Guaranteed Service Intermodal train Q-SPOPTL1-23 passed through Wishram as it made its way from Spokane WA to Portland OR, with ES44C4s 8378 (just three-months-old) and 7969 (six-months-old) for power. The Fallbridge Sub's gentle grade - just .028% - allows trains to operate with fewer locomotives.
