John William Bailie

John William Bailie died on August 17th, 2023 suddenly and unexpectedly. He was born on April 1st, 1957 in Fontana, California. John discovered his passion for trains at a young age. His family continued to support his passion as he grew up like when his Grandfather Charles and his Grandmother Emma bought him a peddle train. As a child he was already taking apart and building engines; he took a lawn mower and turned it into a Go-Cart. In high school, he got his first motorcycle.

Moving to Sacramento in 1965, John graduated from Foothills High School in 1975. Shortly after he took the motorcycle and rode all the way from Sacramento to Fontana. During that time he met Jacqueline Nadler and they were married on March 29th, 1978. In 1980 they had their daughter, Marie, and returned to Sacramento.

He got a job at Future Ford and became an accomplished Master Mechanic. His true passion was machining and Live Steam Trains. That interest in trains only continued to grow which led John to join the Sacramento Valley Live Steamers club (SVLS) around 1982. Soon after he bought his first live steam train, a Chole Engine. Over the years he built four locomotives and named them Nimrod, Amuck, Recluse, and Blackheart. He also helped many members of the SVLS Club with building and fixing their trains. As a hobby machinist, he built other things such as clocks, cannons, and kaleidoscopes. For a few years, he ran a Train Speeder with friends and family up in Placerville on an abandoned train line. He and his Father built a small-scale Hit and Miss Engine. They also restored and showed a full-size Hit and Miss Engine at Train Meets with the SVLS club members.  

John enjoyed visiting Disneyland with his family and riding Walt Disney’s train. He created many adventures for his family often including his passion for trains like going to Tehachapi, Feather River Canyon, and visiting San Francisco watching the Cable Cars. There were many trips called "tunneling" with his family and friends. He had many accomplishments, but some of his greatest was the time he took to teach and the impact he made on the people he worked with.

John is survived by his wife Jackie, his daughter Marie, her husband Tom, and their children Alys and Thomas. He is also survived by his mother Clarice, father Richard, and sister Tamara. John was preceded in death by his brother, Richard David. 

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