From Richard Crabtree on Frisco Rails Across Missouri: Here we are at the Frisco West Shops (built in 1909) in Springfield Mo. We are at the transfer table getting ready for Frisco No. 4112 2-8-2 Mikado built by Baldwin Locomotive works in 1923 to pull onto the table. They opted for this innovative design opposed to a roundhouse to better serve the locomotives. Oct 4th 1947 ~ MSU Digital Collection
Roundhouses weren't suited for heavy repairs or building locomotives. The shop was laid out with a plan on how to move locomotives through the shop for complete overhaul, which it looks like the 4100 is fresh from. Big overhead cranes picked up the locos off the wheels and moved it to a different spot enabling all work to be done to running gear, boilers and tenders. There was a separate tank and tender shop for that work. I would have loved to gone through those shops when they were full of steam being built/rebuilt.
