The ''Glenbrook'' is a , Mogul type,

narrow-gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structur ...

steam railway locomotive built by

Baldwin Locomotive Works The Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) was an American manufacturer of railroad locomotives from 1825 to 1951. Originally located in Philadelphia, it moved to nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania, in the early 20th century. The company was for decades t ...

in 1875 for the

Carson and Tahoe Lumber and Fluming Company The Carson and Tahoe Lumber and Fluming Company (C&TL&F) was formed to move lumber from trees growing along the shore of Lake Tahoe to the silver mines of the Comstock Lode. Between 1872 and 1898 C&TL&F transferred 750 million board foot of lumber ...

's narrow-gauge railroad.

History

The ''Glenbrook'' and its sister, #3, The ''Tahoe'' were built to haul cordwood and lumber from

Glenbrook, Nevada Glenbrook is a census-designated place (CDP) on the east shore of Lake Tahoe in Douglas County, Nevada, United States. The population was 215 at the 2010 census. Beach and Bay are for residents and renters living in Glenbrook's gated community. ...

on the east shore of

Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe (; was, Dáʔaw, meaning "the lake") is a Fresh water, freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada of the United States. Lying at , it straddles the state line between California and Nevada, west of Carson City, Nevad ...

to Spooner Summit, at the crest of the

Carson Range The Carson Range is a spur of the Sierra Nevada in eastern California and western Nevada that starts at Carson Pass and stretches north to the Truckee River near Verdi, Nevada. Geography The mountain range is about 50 miles (80 km) long and ...

. At the summit, the logs and lumber were put in a

flume A flume is a human-made channel for water, in the form of an open declined gravity chute whose walls are raised above the surrounding terrain, in contrast to a trench or ditch. Flumes are not to be confused with aqueducts, which are built to tr ...

which carried it to the south end of

Carson City Carson City is an Independent city (United States), independent city and the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 58,639, making it the List of cities in Nevada, sixth largest ...

. There it was loaded onto flatcars of the

Virginia & Truckee Railroad The Virginia and Truckee Railroad is a privately owned heritage railroad, headquartered in Virginia City, Nevada. Its private and publicly owned route is long. When first constructed in the 19th century, it was a commercial freight railroad ...

which carried it to

Virginia City Virginia City is a census-designated place (CDP) that is the county seat of Storey County, Nevada, and the largest community in the county. The city is a part of the Reno– Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area. Virginia City developed as a boom ...

for use in construction of the town, as mine timbers, and as boiler fuel. The area was fairly well logged out by 1890 and the Bliss family, the owners sold The ''Tahoe'' to the

Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad The Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad (NCNGRR) (nickname: ''Never Come, Never Go'') was located in Northern California's Nevada County and Placer County, where it connected with the Central Pacific Railroad. The Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railr ...

(NCNG). In 1899, they took up the two lines and moved all of the equipment and rails to

Tahoe City, California Tahoe City (formerly Tahoe) is an unincorporated town in Placer County, California. Tahoe City is located on the shore of Lake Tahoe, at the outlet of the Truckee River. The site was surveyed in 1863, and Tahoe House was built in 1864. The Tahoe ...

, on the northwest shore of the lake. From there they built a new railroad about to the

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

station at

Truckee, California Truckee is an incorporated town in Nevada County, California, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 16,180, reflecting an increase of 2,316 from the 13,864 counted in the 2000 Census and having the 316th highe ...

, just east of

Donner Pass Donner Pass is a mountain pass in the northern Sierra Nevada, above Donner Lake and Donner Memorial State Park about west of Truckee, California. Like the Sierra Nevada themselves, the pass has a steep approach from the east and a gradual appro ...

. The new line, the Lake Tahoe Railway and Transportation (LTR&T) carried freight and passengers and connected with the lake steamer SS Tahoe. The Bliss family sold the LTR&T to the Southern Pacific in 1926. The larger road immediately converted its new branch to standard gauge. Glenbrook with a narrow gauge passenger train

Glenbrook with a narrow gauge passenger train

The Bliss family had kept #1 out of the sale and stored it at Tahoe City until 1937 when they sold it to the Nevada County Narrow Gauge, which used it largely for parts for ''Tahoe''. The NCNG shut down in 1942, but Hope Bliss convinced her family to buy the locomotive back from the NCNG and presented it to the Nevada State Museum and to the

Nevada State Railroad Museum The Nevada State Railroad Museum, located in Carson City, Nevada, preserves the railroad heritage of Nevada, including locomotives and cars of the famous Virginia and Truckee Railroad. Much of the museum equipment was obtained from various H ...

where it underwent major work. It was announced that it would go back into service in May 2015Reno Gazette-Journal – After 88 years, 'The Glenbrook' locomotive lives
/ref> and was unveiled to the public on 23 May 2015. In 2021, The Glenbrook visited the

Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad The Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad, often abbreviated as the C&TSRR, is a narrow-gauge heritage railroad that operates on of track between Antonito, Colorado, and Chama, New Mexico, in the United States. The railroad is named for two geogra ...

for their Victorian Iron Horse Round Up Celebration with the

Eureka locomotive The ''Eureka'' is a privately owned gauge steam locomotive based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is one of three preserved Baldwin class 8/18 C locomotives in the United States, of which it is the only operable example. It is listed on the Unit ...

. The ''Glenbrook'' was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1981.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Glenbrook National Register of Historic Places in Carson City, Nevada Baldwin locomotives 2-6-0 locomotives Railway locomotives on the National Register of Historic Places in Nevada Individual locomotives of the United States Narrow gauge steam locomotives of the United States 3 ft gauge locomotives Preserved steam locomotives of Nevada