Union Pacific Railroad in the Hanna Basin

Page by Bob Leathers with contributions from Paul McNulty and Randy Shipman

Old Carbon

1867

Building the Union Pacific Railroad in Eastern Wyoming in 1867. (University of Wyoming. Heritage Center)

Union Pacific Railroad construction using handcarts. (University of Wyoming, American Heritage Center)

Construction of the Union Pacific Railroad. (University of Wyoming, American Heritage Center)

During construction of the Union Pacific Railroad, land speculators and undesirables moved ahead of the construction crews and their military escorts to create pop-up towns. Benton and Brownsville were counted among these haphazard communities. The communities were located between the Fort and the current town of Sinclair.
The rough and tumble railroad communities were home to speculators who tried to anticipate the train depot locations. They hoped purchased land would increase in value as the railroad moved through. Others looked to make a quick profit providing goods and services to laborers building the railroad. Like many of the other "hell on wheels" towns that sprung up alongside the railroad, Brownsville and Benton lasted only a few months before their citizens moved on, in this case to Rawlins Springs. (Image from the Fort Fred Steele Historical Site. 2024)

Transcontinental Railroad - End of Track
from Wyoming PBS

End of Track is the story of the Transcontinental Railroad’s construction march across southern Wyoming and the growing pains of a state in its infancy. It’s a story of incredible engineering achievements and boisterous “Hell on Wheels” towns. A story of greed and corruption, murder and mayhem; of a clash of cultures and Native American retaliation. But it’s also a story of hope and ambition, determination and unimagined success. (Wyoming PBS)

The early history of the Union Pacific Railroad is long and complicated. To help with that take a few minutes to read the book listed below.

Read the early history of the Union Pacific Railroad. A report by G. W. Dodge, Chief Engineer of the railroad.

1868

Union Pacific Railroad's Dale Creek Bridge on Sherman Hill was built during the days Wyoming was a territory. It was completed on April 23,1868. A steel bridge replace the original wooden bridge in 1876. At the time is was the longest bridge on the Union Pacific railroad. The bridge was dismantled in 1901 when the Union Pacific Railroad completed a shorter route over Sherman Hill.

MASTER PHOTOGRAPHERS. No. 14 - The famous Dale Creek Bridge, which filled a chasm over 600 feet long, and proved safe despite one adverse report. Photograph by Capt.Russell. (Image from Daryl Billings. 2024)

1876

Dale Creek Bridge in Wyoming. The original wooden bridge was replaced in 1876 by an iron bridge. (Library of Congress)

1911

Postcard. Union Pacific Train on Fort Steele Bridge, Wyo.. (Postcard from Daryl Billings. 2024)

Dear John, I rode over that bridge last night. I was glad when I was over it. We are having a regular blizzard in Wyoming today. Love to all. (Signed Aunt Patti. Cheyenne, Wyo. Dec. 22, 1911)

1927

Old Carbon Steam Engines and Trains - Switch Engine 929 and Mail Engine 924

Old time switch engine at Carbon, Wyoming: Engineer J. J. Mitchell in the cab; fireman unknown. (Picture from T. H. Butler, UPCCEM, Mar. 1927)

Old Carbon Steam Engine. 1927. (T. H. Butler, UPCCEM, March 1927)

Old Carbon Mail Train and Engine No. 924, (Gert Milliken Collection from Gary Milliken)

1891

1891: The Union Pacific Railroad passenger trains were running through Old Carbon. A trip to Salt Lake and San Francisco cost $20.00 at the time. The agent in Old Carbon in 1891 was Warren McCord.

The Union Pacific Railroad. Carbon. 1891.

The Union Pacific Railroad. Carbon. 1891. (The Black Diamond, April 5, 1891)

1889

The Hanna Section Crews - Self Proclaimed Gandy Dancers

They Kept the Trains a Running

Section Crews were responsible for maintaining the Union Pacific Railroad running through Hanna. (Hanna Basin Museum Website)

The Line (Image by Bob Leathers)

The Hanna Section Crew - Hanna Gandy Dancers as they sometimes called themselves - were responsible for maintaining the Union Pacific Railroad tracks at Hanna.

Some of the men that worked on the Hanna Section Crew over the years were: Charles Isaac Sr., Wilford "Leo" Leathers, Alfred "Freddie" Garcia, Ruben Borrego, Film Aragon, Tony Martinez, Robert Bustos, Johnny Bustos, Jerald Beckman, Jimmy Martinez, Steve Brin, Steve Smith and Sarge Duran.

Section Crews, or Section Gangs as they were commonly known, were responsible for maintaining a several mile long section of track. They typically lived along the section of track they were responsible for and rode handcars to look for, and replace, rotted ties, tamp loose spikes, tighten bolts, reinforcing roadbeds and clearing weeds and debris.(RailsWest.Com)

A Gandy Dancer is a term used for workers who maintained built and maintained the railroad tracks in North America. Over time the weight of trains over curves would cause the track to shift outward. Nineteenth and early twentieth century track crews used specialized hand tools known as gandies to align rail tracks into position. For each stroke, each worker would lift his gandy and force it into the ballast to create a fulcrum, then in unison with other workers use his full weight so the gandy would push the rail toward the inside of the curve. (RailsWest.Com)

The men working to maintain the Union Pacific Railroad tracks after the first set of tracks had been laid were primarily multiracial and bilingual workers. The work was hard and extremely dangerous.

In the early days of the railroad, their work included riding many miles to and from their tasks on motor cars or vehicles. They unloaded from railroad cars, steel rails that weigh as much as 100 pounds to the yard, a 33-foot rail weighing in excess of 1,200 pounds. Thousands of creosoted cross ties pass through their hands monthly and all this material, not to mention thousands of cubic yards of ballast is placed in the tracks. They dodge trains - the long, slow freight trains and fast mail trains. Wind. snow, sleet and below zero weather at times confront them. (UPCCEM, Feb 1929)

Union Pacific train wreck. (University of Wyoming, American Heritage Center)

Laying the rails on the Union Pacific Railraod. (University of Wyoming, American Heritage)

Track Work - Then and Now: YouTube

The following video about Railroad work "Now and Then" is not affiliated with the Union Pacific Railroad or Hanna, but it does provides an excellent representation of what the Section Crew and "Gandy Dancer's" job was all about, even at Hanna.

Section Crew. 1943. (Library of Congress)

1949

The winter of 1949 was a difficult winter for the Hanna Section Crew. They were responsible for cleaning the snow from the tracks in order to keep the trains running.

The state of Wyoming suffered significantly during the great blizzard of 1949. It was without a doubt the most memorable storm to occur in the town of Hanna. It wasn't so much the amount of snow that fell. It was the wind that blew constantly up to 80 miles per hour with no let up resulting in huge drifts of snow. The temperatures remained below zero most of the time. Some drifts were reported up to 40 feet deep, stretching for hundreds of feet. Some buildings were reported entirely covered with snow. At a minimum, drifts reached the roofs of houses and residents had to tunnel out of their houses. Train traffic was entirely stopped. The railroad tracks and earth cuts were filled with snow, making train movement impossible. Roads were closed. Large equipment, including bulldozers, was required to move the huge amount of snow to allow traffic flow.

The most significant blizzard in Wyoming history in terms of total human impact occurred from January 2, 1949 to February 20, 1949. Snowfall in parts of eastern and southeastern Wyoming measured up to 30 inches, with drifts 20 to 30 feet high. Within 24 hours of the storm all bus, rail and air traffic was halted. There were thousands of stranded motorists and rail passengers. Thirty-three hundred miles of state highway lay in the storm area. Seventeen people perished, along with 55,000 head of cattle and more than 105,000 sheep. That was an estimated loss of 15 percent of the state's cattle. Seventeen people lost their lives during the storm, the greatest loss of life documented for a winter storm. Total economic loss is estimated at more than $9 million. (History of Wyoming.gov. Chapter 19 Winter Storm and Blizzard)

1949 Blizzard
Images from James Clegg Collection, Hanna Basin Museum
Slideshow from Bob Leathers

Click on the button to play the video.

Union Pacific Historical Society collection (University of Wyoming, American Heritage Center)

Union Pacific Railroad construction. (University of Wyoming, American Heritage Center)

Union Pacific Railroad workers on a hill with train in the back ground. (University of Wyoming American Heritage Center)

Union Pacific train wreck. (University of Wyoming, American Heritage Center)

Union Pacific Railroad Wreck. Section Crew at Work. (University of Wyoming, American Heritage Center, Frank J. Meyers papers)

Hanna Coal Chutes. (Gert Milliken Collection from Gary Milliken)

Section Crew. (Public Domain)

Hanna Section Crew working on a derailment in Hanna

The following video about "Gandy Dancers" is not affiliated with the Union Pacific Railroad, but it provides a representation of what the Section Crew and "Gandy Dancer's" job was all about, even in the Hanna.

Gandy Dancers 1973: Shared from YouTube

Hanna Depot and Depot Station Agents

The Hanna depot served not only the Union Pacific Railroad, but also serverd as a church and dance hall as well.

The Station Agent was the man in charge of the railroad station or depot. In smaller towns, this job also included being ticket agent, baggage handler and telegraph operator.

Following the introduction of the telegraph, the Telegraph Operator communicated the status of trains to the dispatcher, notifying the train crews of any problems or unexpected trains that may be ahead of them and communicated train orders issued by the dispatcher. They also would send warning messages to other depots up and down the line. Telegraphers at most small stations, in addition to their railroad duties, worked for Western Union, commissions supplemented wages from the railroad. (RailsWest.Com)

The Hanna Depot was used on sundays for church and Saturday nights for dances. (McNulty Collection, Not Dated)

union pacific railroad, Hanna Depot, 1912 (McNulty Collection)

Union Pacific Railroad, Hanna, Wyoming (Undated) (McNulty Collection)

Hanna Depot, 1950's (Don and Phyllis Shipman Collection from Randy Shipman)

Herb Becker worked as a telegrapher in both the new and the old Union Pacific Railroad Depot. (While Family Collection from Bill and Kristy Becker)

Hanna Mail Pickup and Delivery

The first recorded use of the railroads to carry the mail was on a route from Philadelphia to Lancaster, Pennsylvania, beginning in December 1832. The United States Congress officially designated all railroads as official postal routes in July 1838. Initially, mail was sorted only at the distributing post offices. Eventually the Postal Agents began opening the bags they picked up along the route and distributing the mail to the bags that were being dropped off further down the line. An increasing volume of mail during the Civil War led to the beginning of a national railway mail system in 1864. In 1869, the Railway Mail Service was officially inaugurated, employing RPO Clerks, or Railway Mail Clerks, to handle the transportation and sorting of mail aboard specially designed Railway Post Office cars on passenger trains. (RailsWest.Com)

Phyllis Shipman hung the mail bag each day for train pickup. The mail train speared the mail bag on its way through town each day.1950-1960. (Don and Phyllis Shipman Collection from Randy Shipman)

Hanna Switch Engine Crew

The locomotive Engineer was the most heroic and glamorous figure during the nineteenth century, for he was the one that was capable of making the steam locomotive come to life and pull the train on its journey. If the locomotive needed to be repaired in a remote area, he was the one who fixed it. The nineteenth century locomotive Engineer enjoyed the privileges of the office. On many railroads the engineer was allowed customize the ways his engine painted. Many altered the sound of the whistle by placing wooden stops in it, to create a unique and distinct sound. To become an engineer he had to work his way up. Quite often he started out years before as a Wiper in a yard house, then worked his way up to Engine Watchman, then to Switch-engine Fireman, then Road Fireman, then Hostler, then to Engineer.

The Engineer is the person in charge of and responsible for the locomotive(s). An Engineer is responsible for preparing equipment for service, checking paperwork and the condition of the locomotives. He is also in charge of the mechanical operation of the train including controlling steam pressure, boiler water level, fire box temperature, acceleration, braking and handling of the train underway. He needs to know the physical characteristics of the railroad, including passenger stations, the incline and decline of the right-of-way and speed limits. As the train is moving he watches for obstructions on the rails ahead. Along with the conductor, the engineer monitors time so the train doesn't fall behind schedule, nor leave stations early. The train's speed must be reduced when following other trains, approaching route diversions, or when regulating time over road to avoid arriving too early. (RailsWest.Com)

Front Row: Jim Richardson, Ivan Winchel, Bill Chapman Back Row: Jim Bell, Bernard LaBrie, Ted Rutchman, and Adam Uhrich (Don and Phyllis Shipman Collection from Randy Shipman)

Hanna Switch Engineer: Jim Richardson (Don and Phyllis Shipman Collection from Randy Shipman)

Hanna Trains and Steam Engines

Union Pacific Steam Engine X3940 stopped at the Hanna Depot. The top of the Hanna Basin Museum (community hall at the time of the picture) and Love's are located at the left side of the picture. (not dated) (While Family Collection from Bill and Kristy Becker)

Union Pacific Railroad X2480 at the Hanna Depot (Not Dated) (While family Collection from Gordon Roop)

Union Pacific engine X2480 parked in front of the Hanna round house and maintenance shop. (Don and Phyllis Shipman Family Collection from Randy Shipman)

Union Pacific steam locomotive #9087, class four-twelve-two. (University of Wyoming. American Heritage Center)

Union Pacific Railroad 4014, 4-8-8-4, inside cab view (University of Wyoming. American Heritage Center)

Steam Locomotive Number 8444 visits Hanna in 1979 and 2007

The Union Pacific steam locomotive 8444 pictured below visited Hanna in 1979. It was numbered x8444 in 1979 because from 1962 - 1989, its original number 844 was given to a different locomotive, the EMD GP30 locomotive. After the GP30 was retired from service in June 1989, the locamotive 8444 was renumbered back to 844.

Union Pacific Railroad Steam Engine Number 8444 parked next to the Tipple in Hanna. (Hanna Basin Museum)

Union Pacific Railroad Steam Engine Number 8444 rolls Into Hanna. (Hanna Basin Museum)

Union Pacific Railroad Steam Engine Number 8444 pulling up to the Hanna Tipple. (Hanna Basin Museum)

Union Pacific Railroad Steam Engine Number 8444 in Hanna. (Hanna Basin Museum)

Union Pacific engine X3967 in Hanna (Don and Phyllis Shipman Family Collection from Randy Shipman)

4000 type locomotive (UPCCEm, Dec. 1941)

4000 Type Locomotive

The 4000 type of locomotive was recently put into service by the Union Pacific Railroad. We present herewith a picture of the first to arrive, No. 4000, known as a 4-8-8-4 Mallet type, costing $250,000. A total of twenty of the new locomotives will be delivered by December 31, completing the order.

Designed by the Railroad’s staff officers, the new machines will handle fast freight in heavy grade territory, and, as they are the world’s largest and most powerful locomotives, our readers will be interested in noting some of the specifications: 132 feet, 10 inches long, weighing 1,189,500 pounds, it will hold 28 tons of coal and 25,000 gallons of water, and has a tractive power of 135,375 pounds. Cab of the locomotive is all steel, insulated and there are four upholstered seats. Setting a world standard for size and power, the frame of the new locomotive is hinged in the center to permit it to make turns it otherwise would not be able to negotiate.

The increasing demands to handle more and faster vital freight shipments, now being made upon Union Pacific and all other railroads during the current national defense crisis, makes the delivery of this railroad’s twenty new “4000” locomotives an important defense project—a further aid to “Keep ‘Em Rolling!” (UPCCEM, Dec. 1941)

YouTube Video: The Union Pacific Steam Locomotive 8444
by Skip Weythman May 7, 2007

THE STEAM ENGINE THAT ROLLED THROUGH HANNA

Click on the play button to start the video.

History

Union Pacific 844 is a 4-8-4 steam locomotive owned by Union Pacific Railroad. Built in 1944, it was the last steam locomotive delivered to Union Pacific and is the only steam locomotive never retired by a North American Class I railroad.
Saved from scrapping in 1960, 844 was chosen for restoration and is now used on company and public excursion trains, along with revenue freight during ferry moves.

No. 844 was one of ten locomotives that were ordered by Union Pacific in 1944 and designated as class FEF-3. The FEF-3 class represented the epitome of dual-service steam locomotive development; funds and research were being concentrated into the development of diesel-electric locomotives. Designed to burn coal, they were converted to run on fuel oil. Like the earlier FEF-2 class, FEF-3 locomotives were designed as passenger engines. They pulled such trains as the Overland Limited, Los Angeles Limited, Portland Rose and Challenger.

From 1957 to 1959, UP 844 was reassigned to freight service in Nebraska when diesel-electric locomotives took over passenger service.

Saved from scrapping in 1960, 844 was chosen for restoration and is now used on company and public excursion trains, along with revenue freight during ferry moves.

Union Pacific 844 has served longer than almost any other UP locomotive. It has been called an inspiration to many train conductors across the nation.

Since 1962, the engine has run hundreds of thousands of miles as Union Pacific's publicity locomotive. The locomotive often pulls the annual Denver Post-sponsored Cheyenne Frontier Days train that runs round-trip from Cheyenne to Denver in July. (From Wikipedia Encyclopedia)

Hanna Coal Chute, 1955. Steam engine X3998 taking off after filling up with water and coal. (Don and Phyllis Shipman Family collection from Randy shipman)

Steam engine X3998 rolling through Hanna in 1955 (Don and Phyllis Shipman Family collection from Randy shipman)

2014 May 7: The Union Pacific steam engine "Big Boy" No. 4014 rolled through Hanna headed to Cheyenne, Wyoming for repairs. (While Family from Bob Leathers)

2017: Hanna Trains Today

Union Pacific Diesel Engine 8207 Rolling Through Hanna (While Family Collection from Bob Leathers, April 2017)

Union Pacific Railroad Diesel Engine No. 8207 in Hanna (While Family Collection from Bob Leathers April 2017)

More at: Industry, Politics and Power: the Union Pacific in Wyoming

More at: The Railroad and Wyoming