The proclamation read by B.S. Sines Feb 22, 1957


During the ceremony when the "Old 794" was presented to the City of San Antonio and the Chamber of Commerce, Mr. B.S. Sines, the Executive Vice President of the Southern Pacific Railroad lines in Texas and Louisiana read a proclamation to all who attended the day's festivities.  The proclamation conveyed the locomotive to its new owners.
"Let it be further known that the said engine has earned its honorable retirement by long and faithfully serving its former owner, its state and its nation in blazing the steel trails over this our beloved Lone Star state, and the sound of its wheels pounding on the rail, though to be heard no more, has thrilled and inspired countless generations of Texans."

The proclamation further instructs the city and chamber of commerce to retain the engine as a constant reminder the steam engine made possible the growth and economic expansion of the nation. The proclamation concludes:
"Be it further agreed that all aforementioned conditions prevail even through the wraiths of that vast fraternity of all those departed who have nobly served this mighty engine shall rise from their rest in the great roundhouse, and with Casey Jones on the engineer's seat, and with an eerie brakeman flying in the lead waving an ethereal lantern, shall send Engine No. 794 highballing on its way to take its place with other cherished monuments in San Antonio."