Built by Baldwin in 1927, Santa Fe 3751 was the first 4-8-4 steam locomotive built for the railroad and was referenced in documentation as type "Heavy Mountain", "New Mountain", or "Mountain 4-wheel trailer". It holds the distinction of being the oldest surviving 4-8-4 type steam locomotive in the world.
When built, tests showed that the new locomotive was twenty percent more efficient and powerful than the 3700 class 4-8-2 Mountain types, which at the time were Santa Fe's most advanced steam locomotives. In 1936, the locomotive was converted to burn oil and was given a larger tender that holds 20,000 US gallons of water and 7,107 US gallons of fuel oil two years later. No. 3751 was also present at the grand opening of Union Passenger Terminal in Los Angeles on May 7, 1939, pulling the Scout, one of Santa Fe's premier passenger trains as it arrived from Chicago. It was the first steam locomotive to bring a passenger train into Union Station.
In 1941, 3751, along with the other 13 locomotives in its class, received major upgrades that included replacing the original 73 inch spoked driving wheels with 80 inch boxpok wheels, a new frame, Timken roller bearings on all axles and more. That same year, it achieved its highest recorded speed at 103 miles per hour. It continued to be a very reliable working locomotive until August 23, 1953, when it pulled the last regularly scheduled steam-powered passenger train on the Santa Fe to run between Los Angeles and San Diego; this was its last run in revenue service before being put into stored at the Redondo Junction and retired from active service. On May 14, 1958, it was placed on display in San Bernardino.
In 1981, the San Bernardino Railroad Historical Society was formed with intentions of restoring and operating 3751. Four years later, it achieved its goal when 3751 was sold to it for one cent with the condition that the SBRHS must restore and operate the locomotive. In 1986, 3751 was moved from its display to California Steel Industries, where it was restored at a cost of $1.50 million. On August 13, 1991, it moved under its own steam for the first time in thirty-eight years. It made its first excursion run on December 27, 1991, running with two Santa Fe EMD FP45s and 16 passenger cars on a four-day trip from Los Angeles via Barstow to Bakersfield. Since then, it has been utilized for a large number of excursions and special trips and for display at many events.
The locomotive is currently owned by the San Bernardino Railroad Historical Society, the same organization that performed the initial 1986 restoration. In August 1992, the 3751 was found on its largest assignment so far, as the engine ran the entire route of Santa Fe's Transcon route between Los Angeles and Chicago with three (and later two) Santa Fe GE Dash 8-40CWs. The engine spent 18 days travelling over 2,300 miles in both directions. This run would include travelling to Topeka, Kansas to attend that year's Topeka Railroad days, where the locomotive was briefly displayed near Union Pacific 4-6-6-4 3985.
On April 22–23, 1995, 3751 was displayed in the Riverside Sunkist Orange Blossom Festival in Riverside. On December 31, 1996 when Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe merged with Burlington Northern Railroad to form Burlington Northern Santa Fe, the locomotive retained the same number. The excursion was operated again on April 20–21, 1996. In June 1999, the locomotive participated in Railfair '99. On the way to the fair, 3751, along with a BNSF Dash 9-44CW and mixed train of a tool car, ten BNSF boxcars and two passenger cars, from Los Angeles to Sacramento via San Bernardino, Barstow, Bakersfield, and Stockton. On the return trip to Los Angeles, the 3751 pulled another mixed train with several covered hoppers.
In October 2000, 3751 was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It been displayed at Fullerton Railroad Days in Fullerton, California a number of times. In August 2002, 3751 operated an Amtrak excursion train from Los Angeles to Williams, Arizona to participate in the 2002 National Railway Historical Society convention and ran over Metrolink, BNSF and Arizona and California Railroad tracks. After arriving in Williams, the locomotive pulled some excursions and photo runbys on the Grand Canyon Railway between Williams and the Grand Canyon Village, including a doubleheader with GCR 2-8-2 4960 and a tripleheader with GCR 2-8-0 18. The steam engine also pulled some of GCR's Pullman passenger cars for a photo charter requested by Goodheart Productions.
In 2008, 3751 ran on the Surfline route for two excursions from Los Angeles to San Diego. The first on June 1 was a public excursion. The excursion made the locomotive the first steam locomotive to run on the Surf Line since the 1976 American Freedom Train, it was also the first steam powered passenger train to make the run between Los Angeles and San Diego since 3751 last travelled the line in 1953. The train was turned at Miramar Wye, 15 miles north of San Diego station. The second excursion was a private car special on September 21.
In May 2010, the locomotive returned to the Surf Line for a third excursion from Los Angeles to San Diego, pulling eight Amtrak cars and a few dome cars, attracting large crowds. In order to alleviate issues with turning the train, the excursion was split over two days: south to San Diego on May 1, and north to Los Angeles the following day. This proved successful, as 3751 was on time into San Diego the first day and sustained only normal delays northbound, thus proving the excursion to be the most successful yet The weekend after the trip to San Diego saw the engine in San Bernardino for National Train Day and the 2010 San Bernardino Railroad Days festival. It has made annual runs to San Bernardino for the Railroad Days Festival in April or May since the initial trip.
In May 2012, 3751 powered a six-day excursion from Los Angeles to Williams, Arizona, as part of the centennial celebrations of Arizona's statehood. As part of the excursion, another special round-trip doubleheader to the Grand Canyon and back was run with 3751 and GCR 4960. The train also operated over the Arizona & California Railroad on the way to Williams and on the return trip to Los Angeles. Three weeks before the trip to Arizona, the engine also made the trip east to attend the San Bernardino Railroad Days Festival for the third year in a row.
The ChaseBill Compton picked me up at 7:10 AM and we headed north on Interstate 5 to Bandini Boulevard, taking that road west to Downing Road, which we took to Exchange Road to the Los Angeles Junction Railroad but there was no way for any pictures to be taken there. We then left that location and drove west on Leonis Boulevard, turned left on Pacific Boulevard then right on 49th Street to our first photo location.
Here is the old eight-track BNSF yard on the former Santa Fe Harbor Line.
There is a wig wag crossing signal here. From there we took Santa Fe Avenue north and as we passed 8th Street, saw Santa Fe 3751 smoking so we knew it had not yet left for the station. We continued north on Santa Fe to Center Street, to Vignes Street then turned right on Cesar Chavez Avenue before turning right onto Lyon, where Bill did the best parking I have ever seen. We then walked out onto the Cesar Chavez bridge over the Los Angeles River and did not have a very long wait for some action.
Union Pacific 8625 West came by our location first. Then we saw Santa Fe 3751 reversing its train towards us and I started my picture-taking.
Santa Fe 3751 reversed the train which had a consist of Santa Fe 3751, Metrolink 873, "Pony Express", Amtrak Horizon coach 54500, "Acoma", "Overland Trail" and "Tioga Pass".
Metrolink 600, the only F40PH on their roster, was at Keller Yard this morning. We started back to Bill's Blazer.
On the way there we saw Santa Fe 3751 reversing the train into LAUPT. We then drove out to the San Bernardino Freeway to Atlantic Boulevard South then turned right on Hellman Avenue and another right on Marguerita Avenue before paking and walking out onto the pedestrian bridge to our photo location for the steam train coming down the middle of the San Bernardino Freeway. This morning we would have two Metrolink trains to practice with before the big event.
First, Metrolink 354 for San Bernardino, came beneath us.
Later, Metrolink 353 to Los Angeles went beneath us. Chris Parker arrived and after I called Let's Talk Trains, I showed him the maps of where we might be going on Bart Jennings' rare mileage trips next month. A good crowd was now up on the pedestrian bridge with us then I spotted Santa Fe 3751 coming towards us. Everyone got ready, including the California Highway Patrol officer's car which was parked along the shoulder of Interstate 10 waiting for those crazy chasers.
Santa Fe 3751 running down the middle of the San Bernardino Freeway this great morning. We returned to the car and headed east down the San Bernardino Freeway to the 57 Freeway which we took north to Covina Boulevard east, and parked in a lot after we crossed the tracks then set up for our next pictures, after which Chris Parker arrived.
First Metrolink 357 showed up and would meet Santa Fe 3751 at Covina. Soon after, we started hearing the whistle of Santa Fe 3751 and then the chugging of the engine climbing the grade towards us. We then saw a headlight as the train crested the rise to the west of us and everyone was ready for their pictures of the steam train.
Santa Fe 3751 put on the best ground experience I ever have had with the engine as it went by. After that Bill drove me home and I put up the pictures on Trainorders.com before driving down to the Santa Ana station. I boarded Metrolink 665 to Los Angeles to meet my good and dear friend Bob Alkire who had ordered me lunch at Philippe's in Los Angeles where I met him.
After lunch, we went back to LAUPT where Bob bought his first Metrolink Weekend Pass and we took Metrolink 666 to Oceanside. After I bought my dinner at Burger King, we waited for Metrolink 667, a train that I had never ridden before. As Surfliner 580 arrived, three youths were at the crossing at the north end of the Oceanside Transit Center. The one wearing a dark blue shirt then laid down in the tracks as Surfliner 580 approached but climbed out at the last second. As our Metrolink 667 was approaching the station, the youths returned and Bob called the Oceanside police, and soon a police car arrived and the one youth was taken away. We enjoyed our trip back north, where I left Bob at Santa Ana as he returned to Los Angeles where I would meet him to ride out to San Bernardino in the morning.
