Beginning in 1966, Southern Pacific Railroad purchased 240 SW1500 switchers from EMD. Purchased primarily to supplement and replace the railroad's aging switcher fleet, the SP specified multiple-unit capability in their SW1500s so that they could be used on locals and even on mainline manifests. These engines became so synonymous with the SP that they "earned" the nickname "Cruds" because they were everywhere the SP operated. (I was told by an engineer that crews called them that because of the low exhaust stacks, which didn't quite lift the sooty exhaust over the cab, leaving crews a bit dirty after a 12-hour shift. Railfans used that name because, while out railfanning, they were often disappointed to find yet another SW1500, and exclaimed - in exasperation - "Crud.") Southern Pacific 2642 was built by General Motors Electro-Motive Division in May 1972 as part of the railroad's ninth order (of ten orders) for these engines. Following the merger with the Union Pacific in 1996, SP 2642 received a new identity: Union Pacific Yard 1208. ("UPY" was assigned as a reporting mark to many UP engines in 1999 in order to handle the railroad's expanding locomotive fleet without resorting to five-digit numbers.) UPY 1208 was retired by the UP on December 18, 2008, a little over two years after it was photographed (still wearing its second SP paint scheme, but missing its iconic Gyralights) in Anaheim, California, on April 12, 2006. Note that the numberboards carry the "Y" behind, rather than in front of, the roadnumber.
