Column By Mike Bibb
Several years ago, I did an article on the local Arizona Eastern Railway line (AZER), and detailed the origins of the company’s first locomotive to make the Bowie to Globe run.
Following is a brief Wikipedia account of the famous Golden Spike locomotive, Jupiter, that participated in the original completion of the “East meets West rail line” — America’s first transcontinental railroad, on May 10, 1869, at Promontory Summit, Utah.
Today, Jupiter’s descendant, a red, white, and blue engine commemorating the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, regularly passes through the Safford-Thatcher-Pima area on its way to Globe-Miami.
Sadly, the original Jupiter #1195, after being recommissioned as Gila Valley, Globe & Northern Railroad #1 (GVGN #1), ended its working career when it was sold for scrap.
As in many things, new railroad technologies, including advancements in steam and, later, diesel- and electric-driven engines, ended the era of the Jupiter and its cousins.
“Of historical note, the Gila Valley Globe & Northern Railroad’s first locomotive, apparently GVGN #1, was purchased from the Central Pacific Railroad, originally #1195 (Jupiter). The locomotive was the Central Pacific locomotive that met with Union Pacific No. 119 at Promontory Summit on May 10, 1869, for the driving of the golden spike, commemorating the completion of the First transcontinental railroad. Despite its historical significance, in 1909 the GVGN, by then controlled by Central Pacific successor Southern Pacific, sold No. 1 for $1000 as scrap.”
— Wikipedia
