The 55-mile-long San Joaquin & Eastern was built in Fresno County, California in 1912 to serve the Big Creek hydroelectric dam site. Since it was sometimes described as the most crooked railway line in the world, steam locomotives with bogies were used on the mountainous sections. After five Shays from 1912, six more Climax were purchased between 1916 and 1923.
The first five of these were of the three-truck C class with 70 tons. Like many railroads in the region, they were fired by oil. When the unprofitable line closed in 1933, No. 108 shown was shipped overseas. The sixth Climax with number 110 from 1923 was of the B class with 45 tons.