In his childhood home, Pat Tracy would hear endless stories about SP 4449 when his family would sit down for Christmas dinner. Growing up in a railroading family, Pat developed an appreciation for steam engines. His father, uncle and grandfather shared countless ideas, questions, and admiration for steam locomotives. This wonder and awe would later be passed down to his children.

The inner workings of steam engines continue to fascinate Pat. But airplanes were his first love. In 1973, he enlisted in the Air Force, serving in the Air National Guard Unit in Portland, Oregon. “The only thing I wanted to do was be a pilot” Pat shared. “So I got my solo pilot’s certificate when I was still in high school, and I thought that was the only thing I was going to do in life. Then the steam engine came along.” Any time he had leave, Pat would find himself in the Brooklyn Roundhouse working on SP 4449.

Keeping Steam Alive Together

Pat soon found himself surrounded by dozens of other knowledgeable crew members, who over time became good friends. Each day brought a new challenge. The crew taught him a lot. Working together, they accomplished incredible tasks. Pat remembers when the team jacked up the 400-ton locomotive to do a tire rotation, and when he and Bob Slover were deep inside the auxiliary tender coated in mountains of orange rust.

“Every time I look at the locomotive, I see 30 years of work someplace on the engine.”

Because of his military attachment, the crew gave Pat the nickname “Sarge,” and it’s stuck ever since.

The opportunity to maintain the three steam locomotives keeps bringing Pat back to the Enginehouse. The oil, soot and rust—they make him want to work harder. 40 plus years later, after starting as a “grunt volunteer”, Pat is now the president of the Friends of SP 4449.

An Enginehouse Family

Pat’s three children have been in and out of the Enginehouse their whole lives. Some of them worked on ORHF’s locomotives while they were in the Brooklyn Roundhouse. When his oldest son Justin was about 9-years old, Doyle McCormack invited him to use a wire wheel brush to remove paint off a steam engine’s door. Growing up in the Roundhouse, Justin followed in his dad’s footsteps and eventually started working on bigger projects. Years ago, CP 2816 was shipped to Portland to get its boiler overhauled, and Doyle offered Justin a project with that engine. This led him to other opportunities such as working with the Grand Canyon railroad in Williams, Arizona, and now Calgary, Canada.

As a child, Pat’s daughter Melissa would sit in the firing seat with her dad for Holiday Express. She now has a 1-year-old daughter and looks forward to bringing her on Holiday Express sometime soon.

Pat’s youngest son, Nick, lives nearby in Estacada. He is a manager for Alaska Airlines, based in Portland. When Pat worked on the base, Nick liked to yell from across the runway, “Hey dad, I’m over here and I’m waving at you!”

A Dedicated Volunteer

In the 1960s, Pat never thought he would see the locomotive his dad admired lit up. But after countless hours of volunteer work and showing up for his crew every day, he’s been lucky to experience it. Hearing the hum of the engine and feeling the heat from the firebox keeps bringing Pat back to the Enginehouse, and his dedication doesn’t go unnoticed.