There’s an interesting photo on eBay of a Porter 45
ton centre cab with a Burlington Route
herald on the side and numbered 7186. In October 1930, the CB&Q purchased
one of these units which was variously numbered #111 / 9111 / 8902. The
photographer is shown as Liljequist of Omaha.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/B-W-SMALL-LOCOMOTIVE-TRAIN-PHOTO-BURLINGTON-ROUTE-LOCOMOTIVE-MEN-/370788738410?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5654bb256a
Looking at the information on page 6 of Bulletin #6, this
was an early photo (assuming it was 111 / 911) as the builder’s shield
and Westinghouse circle are in the original location on the side of the cab, the
exhausts are in the original locations, and the hood doors match the earliest
photo. Ken Martin has identified the number as being the Porter serial
number.
My first impression was that this was an official handover
photo as the unit is so clean, but Omaha is a
long way from Pittsburgh - I am assuming, of
course, that the photo was taken at Omaha.
Bulletin 6 notes that Porter built three very similar units as demonstrators,
one diesel and two gasoline. Could this be from that period, which would
account for the use of the serial number as opposed to a regular Burlington number?
There are also no road numbers in the side lens of the headlights, as there were
later, and the bottom edge of the Burlington
Route herald passes under the top of the Porter
shield, as it does in the Bulletin photo. That might suggest that, having
trialled the demonstrator unit, the Burlington
decided to keep it.
Rupert Gamlen
Auckland NZ