35 Minutes
St.
Louis Southwestern Railway, better known as The Cotton Belt had some
lovely 4-8-4 dual service locomotives. One such locomotive number 819
was given to the city of Pine Bluff, Arkansas and was restored back to
operating condition in 1986. The engine was only used for a few special
appearances over the course of 2-3 years. So at the urging of one of our
customers we made a trip to Arkansas for the once per year event held
in Fordyce, Arkansas.
The day before the
run, we are at the Cotton Belt shop where 819 was restored and kept. We
then see the preparations, and the fire-up. Then we view action shots of
the train running from Pine Bluff to Fordyce. We see it cross the
Saline River bridge, and a photo runby among other shots. There is a day
off between the two runs, and Sunday we are back at Fordyce. The engine
is pulled out of the siding along with the passenger coaches. The train
has to head southwest to a wye where the engine will be turned for the
trip back to Pine Bluff. This allows us a couple of extra shots. We then
chase the train back to Pine Bluff which includes a brief pacing scene.
This was all shot during April of 1988. This was trackage owned by
Southern Pacific.
