Steam Locomotives of the Alaska Railroad
The
Panama Moguls
by
Mike Gerenday
In the first half of 1915, the Alaska Engineering Commission began construction of a railroad that would tie the ice free port of Seward to the gold rich interior city of Fairbanks, hopefully solving the problematic transportation issue in Alaska. During this time, the AEC opened it's headquarters in Ship Creek, where Anchorage is today. In the south, the old Alaska Northern Railway which was bought by the AEC in 1914 used antiquated equipment, most from the late 19th century. The AEC used some of this equipment over the construction period but more locomotives and rolling stock would be needed. Throughout 1915 the AEC purchased surplused locomotives, steam shovels, and rolling stock as well as other material for railroad construction from the Panama Canal as it was too a project built by the U.S. Government. The Panama Canal was completed in 1914. All the equipment had to disassembled prior to shipping to Alaska, then reassembled in the new yard at Ship Creek. The first locomotive from Panama was photographed on October 12, 1915 in Ship Creek, a stripped down boiler with three drivers under it. The locomotives from Panama were all 2-6-0 Moguls and were soon given the moniker Panama Mogul.
Now before I continue I have to explain that there are two different types of Panama Moguls, the Alco-Cooke built, and Alco-Brooks built.
The Panama Moguls were all built in 1906 for the Isthmian Canal Commission and were built to be used on the 5' gauge track used in the Panama regions. Remember that standard gauge is 4' 8 1/2''. When the canal was finished some equipment was used for various purposes and tasks while other equipment sat awaiting a new chapter. Soon after, the next chapter opened and many locomotives, rolling stock and other material was sent to Alaska. 18 Alco-Cooke Moguls rostered in the 200 series were acquired in 1915, with shipping and assembly gong on from late 1915 into 1916. All 200 class locomotives were in service by 1917. The last 7 Panama Moguls came in 1922 and were the 600 series.
In 1915-16 the Ship Creek yards were packed full of all kinds of railroad material, some areas had standard gauge wheels for converting the rolling stock. Converting steam locomotives from one gauge to another is a monumental and costly chore, and if you're building a railroad with a sort of timeline this task is not feasible. Instead wide tires replaced the original tires on the drivers so that the locomotives could be used on standard gauge track. The pony truck would be an easy conversion and the tender would receive new trucks. But the wide tires did have their own issues...
The Panama Moguls wore their same numbers as they did in Panama and not all were in numerical sequence. The 200 class were unique as they had slope back tenders, while the 600 class had standard tenders. Another spotting feature is if you look at the drivers, you will see the overhang of the wide wheels of the 5' gauge wheels with standard gauge tires. These extra wide tires made for rough rides and derailments as the wide tires could ride up over ice, switches, and crossing planks. By the time the Panama Moguls came to Alaska, they were already pretty well used and needed repairs in some form or another but kept soldiering along until retirement. The 200 class were retired in various stages in the 1930s and 40s all being retired and scrapped by 1947. The 600 class is largely unknown but it is safe to assume by 1947 all were scrapped. The Panama Moguls dominated the Alaska Railroad for years though sharing the rosters to other locomotive types such as the Mikados and Mountains. Of course the onslaught of WWII saw the arrival of one class of steam locomotive that might possibly be more famous. But that's another edition.
I will include a link on the Panama Moguls that gives a blanket discussion on these locomotives.
Page created 2/21/21 and last updated 2/21/21