I know the City of San Francisco train started in 1936. That was its first run from Chicago to Oakland with a ferry connection to San Francisco. From the photos, I cannot tell, but what type of locomotive did it start with. It sort of looks like an F-3, but I know those did not start production till 1945. Matt
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That thar would be an EMC E2 A-B-B. Built 1937...
2 A's and 4 B's were built in total. The other A-B-B set was for the City of Los Angeles.
Rusty
You may notice that the front of the locomotive carries the emblems of the three owner railroads (the three which ran the City of San Francisco). The side of the engine carries the train name. Similar units were bought for the City of Los Angeles with only UP and C&NW emblems on the nose, as the SP was not involved in that train.
In 1948, the joint ownership was dissolved and the individual diesel units were allocated among the owner railroads. SP received, among others, an E2 A-unit, which was then painted in Daylight colors until 1954, when SP converted it to an E7A in its own backshop.
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