02/18/2026
Dollywood Trains During WWII. Still in operation today at Dollywood, the genuine coal-fired steam engines that journey along the foothills of the Smokies have an interesting history. With old time conductors and the piercing whistle of the steam engine, riding this train is like taking a journey back in time. The locomotives were actually constructed in the late 1930s and early 1940s! During WWII, these steam engines played an important role in America’s war effort. The trains traveled the White Pass and Yukon Route, a railroad that linked the port of Skagway, Alaska with the city of Whitehorse, the capital of the Canadian territory of Yukon. This railroad was constructed in the late 1800s during the Klondike Gold Rush.
After the end of the gold rush, the White Pass and Yukon Route was used by professional miners to move silver, copper, and lead. When the Great Depression struck, however, the White Pass and Yukon Route was hit hard. Traffic dried up and trains ran infrequently, sometimes only once a week. During World War II, after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, America became concerned that Alaska could be Tokyo’s next target. Alaska was the closest part of the United States to Japan, which made it vulnerable to invasion. In light of this threat, the U.S. and Canadian governments decided to build the Alaska Highway, a route that connected the contiguous United States to Alaska by way of Canada. The city of Whitehorse suddenly became an important construction site for the highway.
Despite its poor condition, the White Pass and Yukon Route was charged with the task of transporting construction supplies to Whitehorse. In the first 9 months of 1942, the railroad moved more freight than it had in the past two years combined! In October of 1942, the railroad was taken over by the U.S. Army to speed up the delivery of supplies. Under military control, the WhitePass and Yukon Route gained an additional 26 engines and 258 cars. Among these engines were the future Dollywood trains, which were officially known at the time as “United States Army Transportation Corps S118 Class steam locomotives”.
During the next year, the trains on the White Pass and Yukon Route moved a staggering amount of freight. In 1943, the railroad carried 281,962 tons, which is equal to ten years worth of the route’s prewar traffic! This feat is even more impressive considering the horrendous winter weather in Alaska and Yukon, which included snowdrifts, strong winds, and temperatures of – 30 °F. Ultimately, the trains on the White Pass and Yukon Route successfully completed their mission, and the Alaska Highway was finished.
16 years after the end of World War II, one of the trains from the White Pass and Yukon Route played a starring role in a brand new attraction in Pigeon Forge, TN called “Rebel Railroad”. Opened in 1961, Rebel Railroad’s signature train ride featured attacks from train robbers and fights between Union and Confederate army reenactors. As the theme park changed hands over the years, more White Pass and Yukon Route trains were added to the fleet. Today, Dollywood has four original White Pass steam engines.
