hugging up the hill, her “heart” begins racing, faster and faster, letting off steam as she climbs. With gold gilding and brass fixtures decorating her black frame, some describe the Eureka as a beauty. Just watching her pass makes people smile and wave.

Inside the Eureka’s cab, the wood-burning locomotive creates her own musical rhythm as brass fixtures clink, metal wheels spin and the steam whistle blows.

One of only three remaining narrow-gauge locomotives of its type, the Eureka once hauled passengers, delivered timber and appeared in Hollywood movies. Now she takes riders back in time, providing a glimpse into the nation’s history.

Owner Dan Markoff, a Las Vegas resident, purchased the Eureka in 1986 and spent six years – with the help of volunteers – restoring the locomotive, which was burned in a fire in 1985. Now the Eureka makes appearances twice a year. This year one of them is at Railfest, the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad’s annual train celebration which ends today.

“This is a time machine,” Markoff said. “What you are experiencing here is the same experience like in 1875.”

The locomotive was built in Philadelphia in 1875 and made its way to Palisade, Nev., along the transcontinental railroad. From 1875 to 1901 the locomotive, part of the Eureka & Palisade line in central Nevada, regularly made the trip between the two towns, Eureka and Palisade. In 1901 the locomotive was sold to a lumber company in Lake Tahoe, where it remained until 1939.

The engine, ready to be sold for scrap in San Francisco, was saved when a soundman with Warner Bros. studios bought it for a movie prop. From 1940 to 1976 the Eureka was used in movies and television – appearing with icons like John Wayne.

Markoff said the locomotive is probably one of the best restorations of a historic locomotive with the most original parts. Only two other locomotives from the same line remain; both were built later. One is at a railroad museum in California, and the other is at the Smithsonian Institution, in Washington, D.C. Neither is operational.

Rebecca Orrell, 5, is all smiles as she rides aboard a two-car train pulled by the Eureka. The coach and caboose pulled by the locomotive, built in 1875 by the Baldwin locomotive works in Philadelphia, aren’t much newer, having been built in the 1880s.

Traveling with the Eureka, Markoff said he has witnessed amazing responses to the locomotive. For some, a ride in the cab is a lifelong dream realized.

Recounting the time he took the engine back to Eureka, Markoff said it received an escort and a celebration. An elderly woman who rode the railroad as a child was given a ride, Markoff said, holding back tears. “She broke down crying.”

Not so much a love of trains, but a love of history led Markoff to purchase the Eureka. “It’s a special part of Nevada’s past and a big part of America’s past; our country wasn’t even 100 years old when she was built.”

The Eureka is listed on the National Park Service’s National Historic Register.

Despite the grease, embers and hot temperatures in the cab, there is a sense of excitement and anticipation as the Eureka chugs along the tracks, propelling itself forward.

Markoff said bringing the Eureka to Durango is “a good time for the old gal to get out and stretch her legs.”

Bob Craddock, a former legislator and resident of Las Vegas, helped restore the locomotive and enjoys traveling with it. The comradeship keeps him involved.

Volunteer fireman C.W. Craven wipes the grease and oil from his hands.

“The people that follow (the Eureka) are a dedicated crew who are interested in the history and continuation of the train,” he said.Although Markoff said choosing one thing about the locomotive that he likes the most is difficult, the Eureka’s design would be at the top of the list. “It’s just a pleasing design.”

The locomotive was built to be utilitarian, hauling wood or silver, but the beauty of her was meant to entice wealthy riders to climb on board.

“It’s just a magical time machine,” Markoff said. “I often wondered what it was like to live then (in the 19th century) and now I know. ... Those guys had a good time.”

Reach Staff Writer Mary Ann Lopez at maryann@durangoherald.com.

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Dan Markoff, a Las Vegas lawyer who owns and operates the Eureka & Palisade locomotive No. 4, is the engineer of an excursion train to Rockwood during the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad’s Railfest.	C.W. Craven, a volunteer, prepares to climb off the Eureka’s tender after filling at the water tank in Hermosa.	Volunteer Earl Knoob, of Wichita Falls, Texas, throws pine wood into the firebox to keep the Eureka’s steam pressure up on the climb to Rockwood.