#4426 was built by the Lima locomotive works for the Southern Pacific in 1937 for use on the Coast Daylight (now the Coast Starlight) following the success of the train (x98 southbound and x99 northbound). #4426 was a GS-3 (GS stands for Golden State and/or General Service) and the 11th GS-3; the GS-3s were mechanically superior to the prior GS-2s by having larger drivers (80" vs 73"), and All-weather cab, and more tractive effort (62,800 vs 62,200). However, as the GS-4s and GS-5s arrived, the earlier models (GS-2 and GS-3) would be demoted from the Coast Daylight and Morning Daylight, to more secondary passenger trains like the Peninsula Commuter (San Francisco-San Jose), and sometimes were on the San Joaquin Daylight; and during this time, they lost their Daylight colors, and their side skirting (the Orange part from the Cylinders to the cab) removed for ease of maintenance. However, by the time diesels arrived, the fate was sealed for many of the Southern Pacific's steam engines, and the GS-3s, including #4426, were not an exception. From 1955-1958, all GS-3s were retired, with the last one, #4422, being scrapped on May 20th 1959. No GS-3s live in preservation, but a wheel from #4422 is displayed at the RailGiants Train Museum in Pomona California.
