Bill Provines, the last surviving employee of the famous "crookedest railroad in the world" that once climbed Mount Tamalpais, died Friday at his home in Novato of heart failure. He was 101.

In later life, Mr. Provines worked in the insurance industry in San Francisco, but he never forgot the three years he worked as a fireman on the steam engines that powered the small trains running from Mill Valley to the summit of Tamalpais. He died on the 80th anniversary of the mountain railroad's last passenger run.

Mr. Provines, who had a photographic memory, enthralled historians and researchers with exact details of how the mountain trains were operated, the passengers they carried and the scenery along the Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods Railroad.

"He lived in a time that none of us would ever know, but he made it come to life for us," said Fred Runner, who wrote a book on the railroad.

The Mount Tamalpais and Muir Woods Railroad operated from 1896 to 1929 and was as famous as San Francisco's cable cars are today. Passengers on the mountain trains included President Theodore Roosevelt, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and John Muir, who once rode the railroad to the redwood forest that bears his name.

Mr. Provines was fond of telling how difficult the work of operating the steam engines was, and of the engineering marvel the railroad represented. There were 281 curves in the 8 1/4-mile line from Mill Valley to the top of Tamalpais - "more than 42 complete circles," Mr. Provines liked to point out.

He worked on the trains as a summer job while he attended UC Berkeley.

"It was the best job I ever had," he said.

Mr. Provines was born on July 4, 1908, in the Mendocino County town of Willits, where his father worked as a railroad engineer for the Northwestern Pacific Railroad. The family moved to Mill Valley in 1916.

After graduating from Cal with a degree in economics in 1932, Mr. Provines worked as an underwriter for the Royal Liverpool Insurance Co. in San Francisco. He retired in 1973.

In retirement, he lived in Mill Valley until recently, when he moved to Novato to live with his son, Walter Provines.

His memory and his interest in current affairs remained sharp all his life, said Runner, who was a friend.

"He often said, 'If my body was in as good shape as my mind, I could run marathons,' " Runner recalled.

Mr. Provines was seldom ill, and he died suddenly when his heart gave out.

"No one could ask for a more peaceful death," said his son Walter, who was with him at the time of his death.

Mr. Provines is survived by his sons, Walter of Novato and Douglas of Mill Valley; a daughter, Ginny of Novato; three grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.

A funeral will be held today at 11 a.m. at St. Anthony's Church, 1000 Cambridge St., Novato.