Frisco Turntable - Oklahoma City, OK
Posted by: 
hamquilter
N 35° 30.363 W 097° 28.040
14S E 638997 N 3930244
This turntable is currently standing just north of the Oklahoma Railway Museum, awaiting installation.
Waymark Code: WMYPHR
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 07/07/2018
Views: 6
The Oklahoma Railway Museum has a multi-phase program for expansion of their fascinating display of railroad vehicles, depots and artifacts. The Frisco Turntable is currently standing in a field north of the museum. Plans are underway in a future phase to demolish a barn on the property and move this turntable nearby. It will be installed so that it is workable, which will provide a wonderful opportunity for visitors to see how these turntables work.
A metal sign has been attached to the side of the turntable, explaining its history and future plans. The sign reads:
FRISCO TURNTABLE
Turntables were utilized to turn locomotives 180 degrees allowing
trains to travel from where they came. Turntables were once
an integral part of many railway yards during the steam era.
Turntables are typically steel bridges supported by an axis in the
middle of the structure. Wheels on the outside guide the turntable
on its ring rail while equipment is being turned. This 100-foot
turntable was originally installed in Sapulpa, Oklahoma in 1920 by
the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway (theFrisco Railway). It was
moved by the Frisco Railway to Oklahoma City in 1929 as a
replacement for an 82-foot turntable. In 1980, the Frisco was
purchased and absorbed into the Burlington Northern Railroad
(later the BNSF). In 1994, the turntable was donated to the
museum by the BNSF Railway. This relic of the railroad industry
was moved to the Oklahoma Railway Museum in April 2017.
Eventually, it will be installed in a 6-foot deep pit and
restored to operation.
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