V&T Engine #21, J.W. Bowker, on the cover of Sunset magazine. The Bowker was built in 1875, one of the last of the V&T's bonanza engines. It was sold in 1896 to a logging railway at Truckee, then later found its way to Hollywood to star in several movies. This 1938 view must be on a movie backlot somewhere. The boiler looks a little rusty but the red paint has been kept up. The Bowker is now in Sacramento at the California State Railroad Museum.
"Engines like this were still in use when the first issue of Sunset came out, 40 years ago this month. This one's the 'J.W. Bowker,' crack locomotive of the Virginia and Truckee Railway during Nevada's bonanza days. For more about it and about Sunset, see this issue."
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