Marty Bernard Wrote:
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> Those of us that became railfans in Chicagoland in
> the 1950s and 60s weep every time we see a picture
> of the butchered CB&Q 4960 on the GCR. She was a
> work-every-day freight hauler. Not a pretty-faced
> high-wheeler. It's sad they didn't respect her.


Well Marty, I'm gonna disagree with you here. GCR has never purported itself to be a museum.
It is a people mover and railroad. As such, they have no obligation whatsoever to have kept
4960 in her as-built or later Burlington appearance. That peanut sized tender behind her
would not have worked out at all between WMS and the Canyon even if GCR had spent the time
and money repairing it so it would hold water again. I'm sorry that you feel that she was
butchered and I know that there are some others that agree with you. But as somebody who
has worked on, fired and hostled her, I believe that she is a far better machine for the
profile of the Grand Canyon now than when she was built. Had the ATSF purchased her back
in the steam era, I doubt they would have kept her exactly as she was built. She was a
granger Mikado designed for rolling hills, not sustained grades and they would have done some
adaptions to make her better suited for them. That's the way it works. Enjoy your older
photos and memories, she has undergone a transformation but is still the real 4960.