A historic steam locomotive based in Prineville is getting a permanent home at the Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation in Portland.

The Mount Emily Shay No. 1 locomotive was built roughly a century ago, according to the Oregon Historical Society. While there were nearly 3,000 manufactured, fewer than 115 still exist today. Even fewer are still operational.

Here is more information from an OHS statement.

The Mount Emily Shay was originally purchased by the Hofus Steel & Equipment Company of Seattle, Washington, then sold to the Independence Logging Company of Independence, Washington. It was eventually sold to, and named after, the Mount Emily Lumber Company, located in the city of La Grande in eastern Oregon. The Mount Emily Shay was owned and operated by the company until it was retired in 1957 and donated to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) for use at its facility in Washington Park. When it couldn’t safely be transported to Washington Park, ownership was transferred to OHS in 1958.

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The Mount Emily Shay went on long-term loan to the state of West Virginia beginning in the 1970s. The borrower restored the engine to working order (twice — it was damaged once due to fire), and the locomotive was operated on the Cass Scenic Railroad. In the mid-1990s, OHS, with the guidance, expertise, and help of train enthusiast Martin E. Hansen, recalled the locomotive from West Virginia to be of service educating and thrilling Oregon constituents. From several choices, the City of Prineville Railway was chosen as the new borrower/caretaker/operator of the Mount Emily Shay. From its return from West Virginia in 1994 to the present, the City of Prineville has housed and operated the Mount Emily Shay for excursions and fundraising programs. 

The City of Prineville requested an end to the loan agreement, and, since OHS is not equipped to house nor operate a locomotive, the organization sought a new steward. A request for proposals was released in April 2022, and the Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation was selected to be the new owner of the Mount Emily Shay on September 1, 2022.

Once physically transferred, the locomotive requires a federally mandated inspection before it can be operated again. ORHF plans to use the Mount Emily Shay to operate holiday and some weekend excursions between their museum location near OMSI to Oaks Amusement Park and back. Keep your eye on their website for updates!

OHS Deputy Museum Director Nicole Yasuhara says of the transfer, “The Oregon Historical Society sincerely appreciates the support of the City of Prineville in stewarding and operating the Mount Emily Shay for decades. We are thrilled that the Mount Emily Shay will have a new, permanent home at the Oregon Rail Heritage Center, where it will be on view and used for excursions, balancing preservation and access to this important piece of Oregon history.”

“The Mount Emily Shay will allow the Oregon Rail Heritage Center to show the public the important role logging railroads played in the development of the timber industry in Oregon,” said Roy Hemmingway, president of ORHF. “Specialty locomotives like the Shay, which could operate on steep and rough track, were able to access timber not available by other means  Shays were key to bringing logs to the mills and developing Oregon’s timber economy,”

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