Southern Pacific Engine #2914 was among the largest and most powerful locomotives on the Southern Pacific Railroad system and supported the growth and development of the San Joaquin Valley and the West. Called a 4-8-0 for its wheel configuration, it was characteristic of the type of locomotive used in freight service by railroads in the early 1900s. Built by the Schenectady Locomotive Works in 1898, 4-8-0 locomotives pulled well for their size and were easy to operate, and over the years they were extensively upgraded and modernized until the efficiency of diesel-powered locomotives made them obsolete. This locomotive arrived in Bakersfield in 1901 and served the local area until 1955. Originally a coal burner, it was soon converted to burning oil. It hauled freight over the Tehachapi Mountains, on the McKittrick, Sunset, and Oil City Branches of the railroad, and was used in the Southern Pacific yard in East Bakersfield. The Southern Pacific Railroad donated Engine #2914 in 1955.