Route of the Olympian Hiawatha
Milwaukee Road’s Train No. 16, the Olympian Hiawatha, passes the east switch at Bandera on Snoqualmie Pass traveling to its next scheduled stop at Cle Elum, Washington
Delivered in 1918 and 1919 from General Electric, the Bipolar came to symbolize the Milwaukee Road and the Olympian. They were called Bipolars because each traction motor had only two poles and the armatures were mounted directly on the axles. Pictured here, nearing the end of its career, is modernized Bipolar E-5 still resplendent in orange and maroon pulling the Olympian Hiawatha in Union Pacific colors
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