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Refrigerated Freight: 1943
... DaveB Still there; now part of BNSF Argentine Yard is still in Kansas City, Kansas. Today it is part of the Burlington ... of the smokestacks visible between the oil tanks and the railroad yard seem to have survived. The large warehouse on the east side of ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 03/27/2013 - 7:09pm -

March 1943. "Santa Fe R.R. yards and shops, Argentine, Kansas." 4x5 Kodachrome by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. Nice framing!Delano lowered the lens center considerably, to get lots more of the interesting foreground and place the horizon high on the print, while keeping the camera level. Try that with a standard lens on your digital cam! DaveB Still there; now part of BNSFArgentine Yard is still in Kansas City, Kansas. Today it is part of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe and is the biggest yard in their system. View Larger Map I am pretty sure this view is looking mostly east; the elevated roadway crossing the tracks at the upper right is probably 42nd Street. The oil tanks visible at the upper left are still there as part of the Sinclair pipeline terminal; its modern address is 3401 Fairbanks Avenue. The hills at the upper right are on the south bank of the Kaw River. It's kind of hard to see, but the river crosses from left to right near the top of the photo; there is a truss bridge just about visible among the smokestacks, which I think is 18th Street. Today, the elevated portion of 42nd Street extends further north (to the left in this picture) and only "comes down" to connect with K-32/Kansas Avenue. The house on the west side of 42nd Street here, and all the plowed fields between the tracks, are no more; all of this belongs to BNSF and has various tracks and buildings on it. None of the smokestacks visible between the oil tanks and the railroad yard seem to have survived. The large warehouse on the east side of 42nd Street at the right of the picture is gone; there is a lot full of shipping containers where it was. The modern BNSF offices (4515 Kansas Avenue) would be just out of shot to the left of the picture. I-635 runs parallel to 42nd street on the west side; it crosses over the yard about where the railroad light tower is on the upper right of this picture. Eight years after this photo, a lot of this would be underwater; this link has photos from the 1951 flood. The Argentine neighborhood was named for a silver smelter that operated there in the late 1800s and early 1900s. It closed before World War I. Probably taken from the elevatorI looked up the other Delano photos of Argentine yard and I started to wonder how he got the angle for this shot. After a bit of Google Earthing, I think he was probably standing on top of the grain elevator seen here. (The elevator won't show up on Google Maps, but if you look at the early-90s image on Google Earth, it was still there.) (The Gallery, Kodachromes, Jack Delano, Railroads)
The Flavor Lasts: 1940
... Just what every kid needs A Wabash boxcar in the back yard! Looks like a brand new Ford sitting there in the alley. Don't ... landlord? HO Scale What an excellent subject for a railroad diorama. Dept. of Sanitation I'm impressed (or depressed?) by ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 05/17/2011 - 4:56pm -

April 1940. "Dubuque, Iowa." Grit and gum in the Key City. 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Attention pleaseWill the person who parked their rail car in the loading zone please move it. You are blocking traffic. The glamor and excitement of the big city-I knew there was a reason I live in the suburbs. After 71 yearsStill recognizable. Just what every kid needsA Wabash boxcar in the back yard! Looks like a brand new Ford sitting there in the alley.Don't think that a lot of people living in this neighborhood could buy a new Ford, landlord? HO ScaleWhat an excellent subject for a railroad diorama. Dept. of SanitationI'm impressed (or depressed?) by the amount of garbage all over the place. If there's one thing the USA has gotten better at, it is keeping the garbage off the streets and sidewalks. I've been elsewhere, and I think the USA has come a long way since this photo. Framed!Can anyone tell us what the purpose of the framework attached to the shed is? There are at least two wires running to the top of the framework, but no power lines or telephone lines appear to connect to it. HopperesqueThe composition, subjec -- I wonder if the photographer was influenced by the painter Edward Hopper. NoirThis could be the opening shot for the credits in a Robert Mitchum or Robert Ryan or Mickey Spillane thriller. It captures that grittiness and mystery very well. Who could be sitting in that car? (The Gallery, John Vachon, Railroads)
Chicago & Alton: 1904
Circa 1904. "Chicago & Alton Railroad shops at Bloomington, Illinois." At left rear, the Anheuser-Busch beer ... then. Interesting. [The chalk markings are from the yard crews, noting such things as routing, special content advisories, repairs ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 01/10/2014 - 11:45am -

Circa 1904. "Chicago & Alton Railroad shops at Bloomington, Illinois." At left rear, the Anheuser-Busch beer boxcar. 8x10 inch glass negative. View full size. GraffitiI like the graffiti on the side of the train. People were doing that even back then. Interesting. [The chalk markings are from the yard crews, noting such things as routing, special content advisories, repairs required, etc. Often seen on rail yard photos here on Shorpy. -tterrace] C&A Blues"I said, let me tell you, peoples What the C&A will do for you Well, now she will take yo' little woman Then will holler back at you..." From The C&A Blues, by Peetie Wheatland, circa 1930 No DumpingThe old shops are gone, you can still see the foundations on Google Earth at https://goo.gl/maps/BQFNq It looks like there may have been a turntable just to the south of the main building. Also, the shops can be seen in an old postcard on the Wikipedia page for the Alton Railroad at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alton_Railroad There is no good street view of the site, the road stubs leading into the site all have the same sign: No Dumping. (The Gallery, DPC, Railroads)
Jacked: 1942
... up a car on the repair tracks at an Illinois Central Railroad yard." Someone get the spare out of the trunk? Medium-format negative by Jack ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/21/2013 - 2:19pm -

November 1942. "Chicago, Illinois. Jacking up a car on the repair tracks at an Illinois Central Railroad yard." Someone get the spare out of the trunk? Medium-format negative by Jack Delano, Office of War Information. View full size. RIP: 1942Delano caught it on one of the RIP tracks. Repair In Place. Treble MemoryI believe both wheels shared a common axe. So to make a change he needs another jack. Quiz time: why were the outer rims tapered? [That axe never stops sharpening. - Dave] Doh!When they told him to go get a Duff he thought they meant Beer. Not just trucking aroundThere probably is another jack out of view to the left. He'll be removing the whole truck (both axes...er...axles and all 4 wheels). If he was just removing one pair of whhels he'd have to support the truck somehow instead of the frame of the car. Don't Damage the FinishWe first saw a track jack and Texas toothpick back here. I don't quite understand the padding that seems to be sitting on the business end of the jack. Tapered wheelsTapered wheels keep the wheels centered on the rails and allow for the different distances each wheel travels when going around curves since they have a solid connection via the axle to the opposite wheel. In an ideal world the flanges should never touch the rails in reality they do however. Wheel taperWheel taper is 2 degrees 50 minutes. The taper is designed to keep the flanges off the rail heads and to eliminate hunting. The wheels are pressed onto the axles. This particular car has 33 inch wheels and plain bearings. It would be another 20 years before roller bearings were in widespread use on freight cars. That guy has some "get up and go"Now that's what I call a faith-based initiative! That JackThat jack is very similar to the ones my father had stored in his garage. He used a couple to jack up the front and back porches on his house (for long term stability). He called them "house" jacks, and I'm sure they are still doing their jobs 60 years after installation! Trucks and solid axles. With the solid friction bearing axles as in this pictured truck. The truck needs to be disassembled to replace a wheel set (2 wheels and axle). The paper between the jack and steel body is to reduce slipping of the steel on steel surface. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Jackson Sevens: 1939
... and Mill streets you can use Google Maps to see there are railroad tracks nearby to the east. In Shorpy's photo you can see an address ... so look exactly alike . The house has a sign in the yard that says "306 N. State." The station is at 300 North State. - Dave] ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/10/2019 - 1:10am -

November 1939. "Gas station in front of old colonial house (306 North State Street). Jackson, Mississippi Delta." The 777 Service Station, pumping Sinclair "H-C" gasoline. Acetate negative by Marion Post Wolcott. View full size. 300 North StatePhone 2-0777 Case of the spying Sinclair servicemanThis one gave me a little chuckle. Ms. Wolcott probably asked the owner if she could take a photo of his station. Distrustfully, he may have said: "Well, alright. But don't put me in it, I will go inside until you are finished." If he were around today, he might be surprised to see himself through the station window, peering out at the photographic proceedings -- again -- distrustfully. Spite stationThere must be a good story behind this one involving a zoning dispute. This looks to be almost as egregious as the Crocker spite fence! Lost JacksonSadly, this charming scene from 1939 has been replaced by a sea of faceless warehouses and parking lots. EvolutionThe first iteration of the Sinclair dinosaur was apparently an "old colonial house." Changing TimesI think this is more a case of a property owner making the best use of their property as the area around them changes. My scenario is: Long before 1939 an owner built a large, columned mansion in the country on a large lot or acreage on small hilltop (to catch any breeze). The neighborhood changes and by 1939 a Sinclair gas station is a profitable option for the corner property upon which the house now sits. I believe this is the station in 1979. In this photo the house is gone and the small hilltop is leveled. Using the location in this photo of the NE corner of Hamilton and Mill streets you can use Google Maps to see there are railroad tracks nearby to the east. In Shorpy's photo you can see an address 306 for the house. 306 Mill Street puts the house at the correct corner in the 1979 photo. And if you switch to satellite view you can see that immediate area is pretty much industrial now. I suspect the 1939 owners saw it coming. [As noted in our photo caption, the address of the house is 306 North State Street -- not Mill Street. The service station, whose address was given in the first comment below, was at the corner of North State and Yazoo. - Dave] Now either the Eudora Welty Public LibraryOr the parking lot for said library. At least the library is historically significant, from the time of the Civil Rights movement, where a large sit in originated at the library. The photo in question was probably taken from across the street, in front of the (now gone) 1st Presbyterian Church of Jackson, which closed in 1951, at least per the two historic street markers there. Long goneso much for the luck of sevens - both the gas station and the home are long gone, replaced by the Eudora Welty Library. No Survivors to This DisputeNeither the filling station nor the fine old home survive. There is the Eudora Welty Library and a parking lot. Not able to google up the explanation how zoning, bad taste, or a family dispute let this combination happen. What Google does tell me is that, in 1947, a Sears was built on this site, and that when the Sears closed in the late 80s, it became the Eudora Welty Library. 77Mill Street or North State Street, the cutoff sign mid-left foreground makes me wish it were Sunset Strip. Dual 777 StationsThe address on N. State must be the Sippiana Succotash station with picture here; http://sippianasuccotash.blogspot.com/2012/09/777-service-station-and-mu... Whereas the link to the 1979 picture provided earlier is definitely the station in the image today. At the corner of Hamilton and Mill St. like the picture says. The Church just east of the station in the 1979 image is still there if you fly in on Google earth. https://misspreservation.com/2017/07/14/friday-is-a-gas-sinclair-station... [You are perhaps confused by the fact that most Sinclair stations of the era used the same design, and so look exactly alike. The house has a sign in the yard that says "306 N. State." The station is at 300 North State. - Dave] The Library in Questionused to be a Sears store. The large, gray disused building on the west side of State Street used to be the library. Furthermore, Jackson is nowhere near the Mississippi Delta. (The Gallery, Gas Stations, M.P. Wolcott)
Public hanging
... “Pat” Casey, who, like Femenella, was employed as a railroad section hand in the city of Granite. The murder resulted from a ... seventy-five people were admitted to the jail yard to witness the hanging, and a “large crowd” mingled outside the jail ... 
 
Posted by William - 09/20/2011 - 8:51pm -

I found the negative in a cigar box that was tossed into a dumpster in Portland, Oregon. I have no idea of the history. View full size. Maybe around Denver?I googled the name, came up with very little except the name showing up twice in the undigized list of the Denver Public Library. There is a town in Colorado called Buena Vista. Newspaper article Chaffee County Times, Colorado In 1888, the first legal hanging was held in this area behind the courthouse. This was the hanging of Nicolo Feminella, who was convicted of the murder of a fellow miner. Some historyHere is a link to a story that mentions this event in passing: http://www.chaffeecountytimes.com/main.asp?SectionID=7&SubSectionID=7&Ar... "In 1888, the first legal hanging was held in this area behind the courthouse. This was the hanging of Nicolo Feminella, who was convicted of the murder of a fellow miner. A lot of history has evolved in this area and in the old McGinnis Gym." Building on the old gym news story...The Chaffee County Courthouse and Jail Buildings are now a museum. http://www.buenavistaheritage.org/Page.aspx?PageID=2355 at the bottom of the page: The large room at the top of the stairs was once the heart of this venerable old building. This courtroom was the scene of many exciting cases. The fate of Nicolo Ferminello, an Italian accused of stabbing a man to death, was decided here. He was sentenced to die for his crime and his is Chaffee County's only "legal" hanging. He was hanged at the back of the jail complex. The room, which is now available for rental, has the original judge's bench and chair. notice the use of scare quotes around legal hanging... Big!Seems like an awfully big and heavy structure for a single hanging. Surely the forces sufficient to snap his neck would not have been anywhere near sufficient to need all those 2x8s, braces, and so on. Of course, lumber was cheap.... GallowsIt is a counter weight gallows. The condemned was led to the rope at ground level. A very heavy weight was released jerking him into the air. In this picture the man is being lowered by raising the weight out of the picture to the left. Some spectators are watching this. On the left side of the picture you can see the tought rope leading down to the weight. [Little known fact: only educated ropes were used for hangings.] Cigar box?You found this photo in a cigar box in a dumpster??? That's odd...that photo might be worth something. I would keep it and frame it, it's a piece of history. Another version of the history of this hanging...Source: coloradodefenders.us This was the 24th execution in Colorado: NICOLAI FEMENELLA (a.k.a. Mike George). August 23, 1888. Buena Vista (Chaffee County). W-W. Hanging/Broken neck. An Italian immigrant, Femenella was convicted of murdering Irishman William “Pat” Casey, who, like Femenella, was employed as a railroad section hand in the city of Granite. The murder resulted from a quarrel between several Irish and Italian immigrants about the men’s different ethnic heritages. After his conviction, Femenella began to claim that he killed in self-defense, a plea that may have saved him from the gallows had he originally used it at trial.387 Governor Alva Adams deferred the execution on three occasions. “According to prevalent opinion here Femenella has received more consideration than would be accorded to the majority of lifelong citizens in this community.”388 Approximately seventy-five people were admitted to the jail yard to witness the hanging, and a “large crowd” mingled outside the jail fence. He was hanged with rope left over from that ordered from a St. Louis company to hang Andrew Green (q.v.).389 (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery)
Low Rider: 1942
... roundhouse at the Chicago & North Western RR's Proviso Yard." 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano for the Office of War ... the pits are still 1940's era. We now service Long Island Railroad diesel engines. In the photo subject's day, the majority of the oil ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/30/2012 - 4:45pm -

December 1942. "Worker inspecting a locomotive on a pit in the roundhouse at the Chicago & North Western RR's Proviso Yard." 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. Change your oil?With all the oil and fumes around especially in an open pit below the locomotive, I would sure be concerned about the small open flame. What is he doing? They had electric trouble lights then! CombustionYou do realize that he is under a steam locomotive, there is a very large fire above his head in the firebox, which has many a ton of coal burning... The FlameHe is checking for air leaks -- if the flame flickers it shows a leak. He's not under the firebox. The fire is banked when the engine is in the roundhouse. Not so bad!I work in a steam-era roundhouse. In fact the rails on the pits are still 1940's era. We now service Long Island Railroad diesel engines. In the photo subject's day, the majority of the oil fumes present would have been from lube oil, which would not be particularly combustible in such a non-enclosed environment. Even today, with an abundance of lube and diesel oil fumes, we quite routinely have a need for ignition sources (grinders, welders, torches etc.). I have however, heard many a story of the roundhouse roof frequently catching fire due to cinders from the engine smokestacks! I'm also, by the way, a volunteer fireman. TorchI think the torch is just for show in this picture. Yes they did use a flamed torch fro checking the air lines for air leaks but there are no air lines at all on any steamer that would be located where this man is standing. (The Gallery, Kodachromes, Chicago, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Swiping Coal: 1917
... GE 44 tonner. As a young boy, I lived very close to the railroad tracks. My mum would send my brothers and me off with a metal bucket ... and not far from what is now a Norfolk Southern rail yard. Whenever there was a line of coal cars parked in the yard the word ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/30/2020 - 2:36pm -

"Swipin’ coal from the freight yards." Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. April 1917. Photograph by Lewis Wickes Hine. View full size. Swipin' CoalMy father told us that he would look for coal along the tracks putting the finds into a burlap bag. This would have been around 1930 in the Wilson section of Clairton, PA. Swipin' CoalMy grandmother, who is 101, tells how she and her brother would go and collect coal that fell from the train, so they would have heat. Her father had abandoned the family and her mother did laundry to keep them alive. My grandmother said that sometimes the train folks even threw out coal on purpose for them. Swipin' CoalI live in Australia and steam locomotives ran the rails until the 1970's. In the mining village where I lived the last steam locomotive was retired in October 1967 and replaced by a diesel-hydraulic GE 44 tonner. As a young boy, I lived very close to the railroad tracks. My mum would send my brothers and me off with a metal bucket to pick up loose coal that fell from the locomotive tender as it went about its business. We were lucky though. The engineer, a chap named Laurie, was a family friend and sometimes he would stop and shovel coal into our buckets to save us some time. Great Photo! It brought back a good memory. Rackin' CoalIn the early 1900s my father along with three sisters and four brothers lived in an area in Baltimore then known as Goat Hill (long forgotten now) just off the end of 25th street and not far from what is now a Norfolk Southern rail yard. Whenever there was a line of coal cars parked in the yard the word soon spread all around Goat Hill, Remington and Hampden and an army of adults and kids would swarm the area like fire ants on an ant hill intruder. Some of the boys would climb up the cars and start kicking the mounds of coal to the adults and young girls below while others kept a eye out for any bulls (railroad cops). My Irish grandmother, Estella "Stella" Mannion, even though a very devout Catholic, did not put this in the realm of stealing with her socialist reasoning being that the Big Railroad Men were cheating and stealing from the working people it was only right the working people get something back that was stolen from them. Goat Hill supposedly came from the goats the families kept in their backyards for their milk. My father and uncles always bragged they grew up so strong and handsome because of the goat milk. (The Gallery, Kids, Lewis Hine, OKC)
Colossus: 1904
... half of them. Four Independent Wheels The Railroad Gazette, Nov 18, 1904. General News Section The ... on the Detroit river, was recently launched at the Ecorse yard. The Detroit measures 308 ft. on deck, has 64 ft. beam and is 19½ ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 05/28/2011 - 2:58am -

Ecorse, Michigan, 1904. "Steamer Detroit, Michigan Central Transfer, broadside view." Another view of this railcar ferry abuilding at Great Lakes Engineering Works. 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Co. View full size. How many people work here?About half of them. Four Independent Wheels The Railroad Gazette, Nov 18, 1904. General News Section The large car ferry, Detroit, built for the Michigan Central Railroad for use on the Detroit river, was recently launched at the Ecorse yard. The Detroit measures 308 ft. on deck, has 64 ft. beam and is 19½ ft. deep. There will be four independent wheels, two at each end, operated by compound engines, and two double-ended boilers 13 x 22 ft. and two single-ended boilers 13 x 11½ ft. The boat will carry 28 cars and is expected to be put in commission next winter. More on the Detroit of Detroit at this previous post. Screwed at either endScrews at both ends, that's something different, will making a decision much easier. And count the amount of workers on this project. A Beautiful Piece of WorkUp until now I knew diddly about railcar ferries and had never seen a big "modern" one like this, especially out of the water. It is truly an impressive design, a thing of beauty. The props and rudders at both ends are the clincher, though this might have been a standard feature for all I know. I wondered in the bow-end photo about the odd profile of the propeller blades, but apparently they worked double duty as ice breakers. Wow! A rudder at both ends would have made this monster at least a little more maneuverable in tight spots, but it must have required a skillful pilot to captain this vessel! These "Detroit" steamer pictures go under the heading: When ships were ships and men were men! (The Gallery, Boats & Bridges, DPC, Railroads)
Midnight Special: 1943
... train about to leave the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad yard for the West Coast." Medium-format nitrate negative by Jack Delano for the ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 01/28/2013 - 12:23am -

March 1943. Argentine, Kansas. "Freight train about to leave the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad yard for the West Coast." Medium-format nitrate negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. AT&SF # 31672-8-2 "Mikado" type. Lost in a flood in 1952 and now sunk in the Kaw River in Topeka, KS. What a Flood!The ATSF Argentine yard is in Kansas City. The Santa Fe placed several old engines on its bridge over the Kansas River (sometimes called the "Kaw") in Topeka to try to keep the bridge from being washed away during the 1951 -- it was 1951, not 1952 -- flood. It didn't work. The engines weren't salvaged after the flood and reportedly parts of them could be seen in the sandbars at low water levels for years. The ATSF bridge wasn't on the main line, but the Rock Island also lost its Topeka bridge during the flood, which was on its main line to the southwest. The city also lost two of four street bridges over the river. The water reached the street in front of my house, and we had to pump water out of the basement, but the house was up the hill a bit and wasn't otherwise affected. It was the biggest flood ever in Topeka. Steam at nightThere's an interesting technicality in this shot. The time exposure to ambient light means that there are light trails from the loco lights and a lot of motion blur in the steam, the train alongside and so on. However, the long burn time of the flash bulbs meant that there's motion blur in the flash part of the exposure, too. [This isn't a flash shot. The illumination is from lights mounted atop tall standards in the yard. - tterrace] 1 month oldMarch 1943: I would have been 1 month old. These Jack Delano railroad shots are fantastic moments in time. I can hear the hissing of steam, the smell of the exhaust and hot grease; the plaintive call of the steam whistle as I lay in my bed on a cold winter night. As a boy who spent his childhood summer days sitting by the tracks, these photos stir up a whole bunch of poignantly fond memories. I waved at the engineer who always waved back. As the caboose brought up the end of the train, they are now extinct, passed, the conductor would acknowledge my wave as he sat up in the cupola. If I were lucky, there was another engine coupled at the rear behind the caboose and another engineer to salute. I cherish the fact that I was born early enough to have witnessed steam locomotives as part of the passing scene. However, I regret the fact that I was born way too late to have been a steam locomotive engineer. Yes, I am truly an old geezer! (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Clovis Man: 1943
... his locomotive out of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad yard." Medium-format negative by Jack Delano, Office of War Information. View ... sad but fascinating thing to trace the evolution of railroad names as they merged themselves out of existence over the last several ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/17/2009 - 8:36pm -

March 1943. "Clovis, New Mexico. D.L. Clark, engineer, ready to start his locomotive out of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad yard." Medium-format negative by Jack Delano, Office of War Information. View full size. Smokin'That's a clovis cigarette, I assume. Poetical, ain't itI just like saying "Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe." BNSFAT&SF merged with Burlington Northern (formed when the Chicago Burlington and Quincy merged with the Great Northern) to form the Burlington Northern Santa Fe a few years ago. The famous round logo of the AT&SF morphed into a green logo (the green coming from the BN logo). It's a somewhat sad but fascinating thing to trace the evolution of railroad names as they merged themselves out of existence over the last several decades. Engineer DadI wish that I had a picture of my father at work -- he was an engineer on the Pennsylvania RR from the 1940s until he died in 1951, when I was less than a year old. I have family pictures of him but none of him in his railroad environment. Fighter pilots of their day.My dad grew up during the Great Depression. They did not have much except people to look up to and admire. The train engineer was one. He expressed how they were awed by how one or two men could operate such a modern marvel. Then, I remember being awed by my dad when he told me these stories of how he and his friends would spend hours at the railyard just watching and enjoying the sights and sounds of these magnificent bygone machines of fire and steam. I can relate to your sentiments DoctorKMy grandfather was a 'hogger' on the Canadian Pacific. He had the only job I ever really dreamed of having. He died when I was about 7; I wished he had lived long enough to show me the roundhouse and yards out of which he operated. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Diesel Freight: 1943
... entering town along the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad between Winslow and Seligman." Photo by Jack Delano for the Office of ... of those old girls rotting away in the Union Pacific yard In Cheyenne, WO. Very Similar To 103 Very similar locomotive to ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/23/2013 - 9:53am -

March 1943. "Flagstaff, Arizona. Diesel locomotive entering town along the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad between Winslow and Seligman." Photo by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. Color scheme You are correct, the blue and yellow was for freight and the silver and red was passenger. That isn't to say it was a hard fast rule, but there was different gearing on passenger locomotives for a higher speed. SighThere are a bunch of those old girls rotting away in the Union Pacific yard In Cheyenne, WO. Very Similar To 103Very similar locomotive to this Shorpy post from years past. Perfect SolutionDiesels don't need water, which is why early diesel power flourished on ATSF, particularly in the southwest. Locomotives like 2-8-2 3137 in background wouldn't last much longer in the arid divisions across Arizona, but she did have ten more years in her on the eastern divisions, not going to scrap until 1953. Color SchemeConsidering the Santa Fe emblem and the engine number, I suspect Vonderbees has the correct paint colors for this locomotive. As a child growing up in Amarillo in the 50s-mid 60s I recall most of the Santa Fe engines I saw had the red and yellow paint scheme as shown in this previous Shorpy post rather than the blue and yellow scheme. Currently living less than two blocks from a BNSF line, I see lots of the red/yellow scheme though the red is more orange red than I remember as a child. Rationing exemptionsEMD was the only manufacturer permitted to build diesel-electric locomotives during the war, even though diesels were what most railroads wanted. Having never built a steam locomotive, they were exempt from the War Production Board's requirement to use only old and well-proven technology. This special exemption gave EMD a huge advantage over Alco and Baldwin after the war. In the end, General Electric was and is the only company able to compete. Much of their output was allocated to the ATSF, due to the water supply problems already mentioned. [Electro-Motive was a division of General Motors, not General Electric. - Dave] I meant that General Electric was and is the only locomotive manufacturer able to compete with Electro-Motive, until recently a division of General Motors. Re: Color SchemeI always figured the blue and yellow color scheme was for freight trains and the red and yellow was for passenger trains. Does anybody know? Nice styleThe front of this is how all the passenger diesels looked when I was a kid and I think it's still by far the most attractive design. I don't know why they departed from it. Lectrogeek68 is basically correctin that General Electric was EMD's only true competitor until their roles reversed in the 1990s, and GE displaced EMD as the dominant locomotive manufacturer in North America. In 2010 Caterpillar purchased what was left of EMD from a consortium of private equity firms who purchased the division from GM in 2005, and is seeking to reverse that. I honed many a cylinder liner and rough cut more piston castings than I care to remember at EMD's McCook plant during the summers of my undergraduate college years. At the end of their careersHere is a photograph of some sister locomotives stripped of various parts including their road trucks awaiting scrap. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Boston Harbor: 1906
... Electric Illuminating Company of Boston, Station # 3. The railroad cars on tracks in the foreground are quite likely about to the cross ... down from there to the water was (and still is) the Navy Yard, though I don't see the USS Constitution. Browsing some old Boston Maps ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/15/2012 - 4:36pm -

Circa 1906. "Boston Harbor from East Boston." Our second glimpse at this bustling transport hub. 8x10 inch glass negative. View full size. If you are talking about theIf you are talking about the dome to the left of the White Star Line, I don't think that is the state house. I think that is in Charlestown, close to the present location of Bunker Hill Community College. I'm not sure of the name of the section of Charlestown. I think that was a police station. It was located near the old expressway. There was an entrance to the expressway/93 north there. Old Boston This photo apperently shot from East Boston shows the Bunker Hill Monument at the far right located in Charlestown. The Golden Dome of the Massachusetts State House, quite possibly the old North Church of Paul Revere fame, middle right. The black smoke stack and hulking building toward the left is either the Boston Cold Storage Building or the Boston Electric Illuminating Company of Boston, Station # 3. The railroad cars on tracks in the foreground are quite likely about to the cross the harbor channel to railroads yards on the other side of the harbor located not far from where the old Anthony's Pier 4 was located. Different WorldI live and work in this City, but the only thing I see in this picture that is even remotely recognizable is the Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown, way over on the far left of the picture. If this photo was taken in East Boston, it may have been taken from roughly the location of where Logan Airport is today. Real live Lionel train tracks ....Note the three-rail tracks going into the end of the building in center foreground: honest full-sized Lionel train tracks??? Skip The Electric Company"The black smokestack and hulking building" was a power plant. Now it's a condominium! Note to the right of the building under the Boyle Brothers sign: an elevated train and the head house for the Battery Street Station. The El was new in 1906, ran along the Atlantic Ave./Commercial Street waterfront (same street with two names). Last service was circa 1938, torn down in 1942 when I was 10. I remember it. Looked at the area using Google Earth at street level. Very little left now I recognize from my childhood. But it's a great improvement over what was. After Poking Around a BitAs a couple of folks have noted, the Bunker Hill monument is the one easily recognizable feature. Moving straight down from there to the water was (and still is) the Navy Yard, though I don't see the USS Constitution. Browsing some old Boston Maps, I've matched the "Merchants and Miners Transportation Company" to Battery Wharf, which means this picture was most likely taken near (but slightly northwest of) present day Logan Airport, say the end of Marginal Street near Lewis Street. If that's the vantage point, the domed building looks (agreeing with soupman22 below) to be too far north to be the State House, and is probably still Charlestown, or even the West End(?). The water below the "White Star Line" signage, and passing behind the cranes just to the left of "WHITE" marks the path to the present day locks and the beautiful new Zakim Bridge). The Old North Church is most likely directly behind the structure that looks like a power station, and that tower to the right is tantalizing but I haven't been able to figure it out. One distinctive building I think I can identify (thanks to that cool faked 3D angle view Google maps does): From the water tower in the center right (just to the right of the large rectangular building), go to the steeple a bit further right. I'm 99% certain the lower rectangular building just to the right of the steeple, with the slightly taller left tower and the slimmer column on the right is Saint Mary's Parish, at the corner of Winthrop and Warren Streets in Charlestown. Still there!It's good to see the three masts of the Constitution docked in the Charlestown Navy Yard. It's the only thing I recognize other than the Bunker Hill Monument. Wow, it's an amazing shot and the city was much different than it is today. I wonder if the large brick building is Mass General, it's in about the right spot. And the West End, that the city razed in the 1950s is here intact and thickly settled. Thanks Dave! (The Gallery, Boats & Bridges, Boston, DPC, Railroads)
Iron Ore on Erie: 1900
... page in this picture) to service different parts of the yard. I think there are elevators/bucket lifts on the input side that puts the ... it up, and then move either over the large piles, or over railroad cars to dump the load. Rebuilds... The hopper cars on the far ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/25/2016 - 10:09am -

Circa 1900. "Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railway ore docks, Ashtabula, Ohio." 8x10 inch glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. Clean, but ...Am struck by how clean this busy site seems to be. Of course, those massive piles of iron ore are a rust-red color and that tint might prevail all across the scene. A really fine steel industry shot. Glad you put it up. Cranes?How did those Crane like thingies in the background work? When You're Out of Schlitz ...That little Schlitz private owner refrigerator car was the prototype for one of the most popular Walther kits for kids like me, whose parents could only afford a Marx 027 set. At 36ft long in real life, it scaled down small enough to go around the 027 curves, and still let an impecunious kid build a "proper" piece of model rolling stock. I still have mine. I'm often reminded of painters and paintings on this site. Today it's Charles Sheeler, particularly the smaller sized version. [Tiny Charles Sheeler is one of my favorites, too. - Dave] "Cranes"I think those are actually movable sets of elevators/conveyor belts. They transfer the material (coal) from one side and then dump it into the piles you see. They move side-to-side (into and out of the page in this picture) to service different parts of the yard. I think there are elevators/bucket lifts on the input side that puts the material on the belts which climb then the stuff falls off the free end. Still thereThe docks are still there, with ore trains and big piles of ore. Only the equipment has disappeared. I imagine that a modern loader can move a third of a carload in one scoop. D for dedicatedThe Lake Shore & Michigan Southern gondolas have the letter D prefacing the car number. This told car checkers the car was in dedicated service so not to be taken off its current route. In this case mine to pier to steel mill over and over again. The ore bridges were a step up from the whirley cranes but soon have competition from massive Hullet unloaders with their grasshopper-like dipping legs. The ground looks clean since this was an area where only the most foolish non-railroader would tread and drop trash. There is little in this photo that a safety inspector would praise. Those crib retaining walls being a first concern. Short-lived lighthouseThe lighthouse at the left side of the picture dates this to between 1897 and 1904, the latter date when these facilities were doubled in size and a whole new terminal was built for the Pennsy. It served as the rear light of pair to guide ships into the harbor. With the expansion a new tower was built in the new section, and that was all she wrote for this one. More "Cranes"Those structures do not have conveyor belts - if you look closely, you can see a few of the buckets at various distances from the ship. There are small 'trolleys' which move along the bridge-like structures, one on each. Each trolley caries a bucket (probably clamshell) which can reach into the ship's hold, remove some ore (or coal, but I suspect ore), raise it up, and then move either over the large piles, or over railroad cars to dump the load. Rebuilds...The hopper cars on the far right look to be rebuilds from earlier composite hoppers. Composite types had metal frames, and wooden sides with metal bracing. These cars, however, look to be of an all metal construction. While not overly common in 1900, all metal construction hoppers were starting to come into use. The cars had a longer life span than the wooden composite types, and actually ended up being cheaper to operate in the grand scheme of things. (The Gallery, Boats & Bridges, DPC, Mining, Railroads)
Over and Under: 1936
... that control the path that a train takes through the rail yard. The only computer in this 1936 image is the brain of the guy in the ... arms akimbo, trying to decide if he should call the railroad police on the strange dude taking pictures of railroad infrastructure. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/25/2021 - 6:30pm -

April 1936. "Housing conditions in crowded parts of Milwaukee. Housing under the Wisconsin Avenue viaduct." Photo by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. InterlockingThe maze of trackwork is controlled as an interlocking from the signal tower. The elevated pipes are the rods controlling the switches that determine the direction of travel and the signals that control train movement through the interlocking. The signalman moves the switches by large levers in the tower. It's called an "armstrong" system because of that. The signals are semaphore signals, probably of the upper quadrant type. There is another of the interlocking system signals behind the man in the image. The vertical signal blade is likely giving a train engineer permission to move through the left hand track of the two curving off to the right. Upper quadrant signals were deemed safer than lower quadrant ones as the blade would drop to the horizontal "stop" position in the event of a signal malfunction. Interlockings like this are now controlled from an operations center miles away from the interlocking. A few interlockings and semaphore signals like these may still exist somewhere in the US. I spyA guy between the tracks carrying something white. A signal device which I hope commenters will explain. A streetcar zipping across a rail bridge. A crisp array of laundry on the line. An intriguing series of diagonal shadows falling from that pipe-y business running close to the ground between the houses and the tracks. And -- up up up – three pigeons, one with its wings caught forever in mid-flap. "Pipe-y Business"The "pipe-y business" mentioned in jd taylor's comment are push rods that are connected to large levers in the switch tower. The other end of the pipes are mechanically connected to the various switches that control the path that a train takes through the rail yard. The only computer in this 1936 image is the brain of the guy in the switch tower to control where the train goes. The pipe-y business and the signal deviceThose are the connections between the track switches and the "Armstrong" levers in the control tower. To move a train from one line to another the tower man pulls the correct Armstrong levers and the rods connecting the lever to the track cause the switch to move. Later, these movements are accomplished electrically with much less effort, but are still controlled from the tower. The signal device is called a train order board and tells the oncoming trains to proceed, slow or stop. Simply put, straight up is proceed. Diagonal board is a slow order, and horizontal means STOP! The two order boards control two tracks. The ValleyI worked on the west side of Milwaukee briefly in the '80s, the area called The Valley. This Shorp looks reminiscent of my time there (minus the homes under the bridge). Drying clothesThe lady of the house would need to get the laundry in before the train comes by, otherwise the laundry won’t be very clean. Mr. Mydans is being watched... by the vigilant signalman in the tower, who is standing, arms akimbo, trying to decide if he should call the railroad police on the strange dude taking pictures of railroad infrastructure. Amazing how much detail those large format cameras picked up. [Medium format (Speed Graphic 3¼x4¼). - Dave] Compared to the typical imager in most consumer-level gear, any format larger than 35 mm is 'large' today, and digital backs for medium format and larger cameras are priced well out of reach for mere mortals... Lots going on here That guy on the tracks isn't holding any signal device. The guy in the signal tower is about to yell at him through the open window to get off the tracks. At any rate, he's almost to his destination, the F. Knop Tavern, just out of view on the right. The "pipey-business"controls the switches in the railyard from that little square 4 window building on the left, all hand powered. (The Gallery, Boats & Bridges, Carl Mydans, Milwaukee, Railroads)
Eggerss-O'Flyng: 1938
November 1938. "Railroad and coal yard, Omaha, Nebraska." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the ... guess it is a Chicago, St Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha RR yard, because the CStPM&O was a subsidiary of the Chicago & ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/08/2020 - 10:15am -

November 1938. "Railroad and coal yard, Omaha, Nebraska." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Reclining on his yacht in Florida, 1940A retired Omaha sign painter. C&NWCan’t tell you exactly where this is, but going to guess it is a Chicago, St Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha RR yard, because the CStPM&O was a subsidiary of the Chicago & Northwester, and the shovel-nosed engine on the head of that short passenger train on the upper tracks is a C&NW E-4 class locomotive. The cars it is pulling are what Railroader’s called “head end” cars- baggage or (possibly) Railway Post Office cars. Odd seeing a road engine like that on the head of an equipment consist like that without coaches or Pullmans. Usually smaller engines put a train together or took it apart, and road engines like this one came on just for the revenue trip. Streamlined SteamOn the far right there appears to be a Chicago and North Western Railway Class E-2a 4-6-2 “Pacific” type locomotive. Good Ol' 4008?The steamin' streamlined beauty (far right) may well be Chicago & North Western engine #4008. This Hudson-class E-4 (4-6-4) would be relatively new here, having rolled out of the Alco works at Schenectady in March of '38. Still thereWith the original signs still faintly visible. I wondered how longit would take for someone to zero in on that steam locomotive with the correct description, I believe they may have been painted orange. Similar, but differentThat is a North Western E-4, loafing with a short consist -- humiliating for an engine capable of more than a hundred miles per. But the orange engines mentioned (more gray than orange, actually) were the similar locomotives owned by the Milwaukee Road. The North Western ones, as seen here, were a deep green with an accent stripe. Each an outstanding example of streamlined steam. Nice photo with much besides going on. Not LoafingOmaha Union Station is just out of the picture at upper right. This is where through trains changed from C&NW to Union Pacific operation. The C&NW Hudson has undoubtedly just cut away from a hot "Overland Route" train, probably the "Challenger", taking the Omaha-bound head end cars with it. The crossovers are a few blocks farther west (to the right and behind the photographer), where the engine & cars will cross over and back into the mail and express tracks. Meanwhile, once the C&NW locomotive has cleared the track, a Union Pacific locomotive will be attached to the train, and the "Challenger" (or whatever train it was) will continue on it's its way west. All of this, including connecting air and steam lines, was done in less than 30 minutes. (Panoramas, Factories, John Vachon, Omaha, Railroads)
Steel Wheels: 1942
... In the locomotive repair shops at an Illinois Central Railroad yard." Photo by Jack Delano, Office of War Information. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/28/2013 - 11:31am -

November 1942. "Chicago. In the locomotive repair shops at an Illinois Central Railroad yard." Photo by Jack Delano, Office of War Information. View full size. wheel shopThis is not a locomotive shop. It is a wheel shop and there are wheels from freight and passenger cars present. The wheelset under the hoist is a passenger car set. The gearbox between the wheels drives a generator which charges batteries for the car electric system. Wheels need to be reprofiled due to wear or flat spots. Industrial atmosphereJD was really a master at composing gorgeous photographs of quotidian subjects and this is no exception. What serendipity to have an arrow on the floor. be sure you are SAFE, then go ahead with your jobThese look like freight car wheels, or non-powered locomotive wheels... they don't have the gear or traction motor that powered wheels would have. (Yes, there were diesel-electric locomotives in and before WWII. Just not very many.) The wheelset to the right of the man standing, with the gearbox-looking thing in the middle of the axle and a pile of small parts on the floor in front of it, might be designed to drive an under-car generator. Before locomotives provided electricity to the train, some passenger cars were lit by generators turned by their own wheels - sort of like a giant bicycle headlight. Each car would have its own generator, and batteries for use while in the station. I think the big machine with the electric motor on top is a wheel lathe. Railroad wheels are made with a certain taper to the "tread"; this makes the train car center itself between the rails and go around curves smoothly. After a while, the wheels wear down, and the train car will track badly; one fix is to re-machine the tread back to the proper taper, which is what a wheel lathe is for. There are a few standard wheelset sizes for freight cars, so a lot of railroads keep a supply of new or rebuilt wheelsets (the assembly of two wheels and an axle) at big freight yards. If a car needs new wheels, they hoist it up with jacks or a crane and swap the wheelsets - the old wheelsets go on top of a flat car. When the flat car is full, it goes to a shop like this, so all the wheelsets can be inspected for cracks and re-machined in batches. Cracked wheels and axles, and wheels that have worn so much that they can't be re-machined, are sold for scrap; often they are melted down and cast back into new railroad wheels. Powered axles have a traction motor in the middle. Sometimes these are swapped out complete just like non-powered axles, but sometimes the wheels are re-machined on the car. There are wheel lathes that sit in a pit under the tracks; the train car is driven over the pit, a small section of the track is removed, and the lathe can machine the wheels while they are still installed. The trolley crane, with exposed conductor rails, is a nice touch. These days, there would probably be a long insulated cable feeding this crane. Really big cranes (enough to lift an entire locomotive with) still have busbars like this, but they're buried under a lot of insulation. Train Wheels.While visiting the U.P. Yard in Cheyenne I spied a flat car, tarp covered, with a huge load upon it as the car was bent under the weight. The worker told me it was a wheel lathe as this rail road maintains gorgeous steam 2-6-6-2's that are used. The wheels on the engines and cars are of cast iron to which a steel "tire" with flange must be shrunk fitted. Can you imagine turning an 80" locomotive wheel so it is within .001" round? When the wheel is finished a steel "tire" is then fitted by heating the steel disk so it expands over the wheel and locks solid when cool... a very hard and precise job indeed! One of Jack Delano's photos show a roaring hot tire just fitted.... take a look by searching for: "Wheel of Fire". Spicer driveThe name of this drive that powered the generators off the wheel axle is known as a Spicer drive. It used generally two universal joints, a drive shaft, and a large generator to charge the onboard batteries, normally 32V. The Spicer drive only effectively charged the batteries at road speed. According to Amtrak's Standard Maintenance Procedure or SMP revised 3-4-2011, "Effective January 1, 2015, use of an axle drive for a generator system (either Spicer or belt) is prohibited at the time of the car's next PC-1 annual inspection, and the drive apparatus must be removed from the axle by that time." So if you see one, get a photo of it as they will become more rare to see in operation! Lathes, wheels, tyresAs an apprentice I spent some time in the wheel shop. I can't be absolutely certain, but that machine in the centre of the photo looks like a tread grinding machine - used to re-profile the treads of chilled cast iron wheels - rather than a wheel lathe. Wheel lathes typically have large headstocks and large diameter faceplates at both ends. As for loco driving wheels, by the 1940s US practice favoured the use of cast steel wheel centres. The preserved UP locos referred to have steel Boxpok wheels. The locos I work on have 69" diameter Boxpoks, which we re-tyred some back in 2003-4. On most locos I've worked on the tyres are not just retained simply by shrink fitting. Older locos with cast iron wheel centres have studs through the wheel rim, and more modern locos with steel wheels use a Gibson ring. The car wheels in this photo appear to be multiple-wear wrought steel wheels, which were in very widespread use on passenger by 1942. These were one-piece wheels with no separate tyre. They could be machined when worn to restore the tread and flange profile. (The Gallery, Chicago, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Be It Ever So Humble: 1938
... our parents would have let us construct it in the back yard. Jug Band Music Seeing the washboard in this picture makes me ... was a simple shack, or series of shacks, mounted on railroad flat cars, to provide accomodations for the workers in the camps. The ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/09/2012 - 12:24pm -

November 1938. "Shack of day laborer who works in sugarcane fields near New Iberia. He comes from a parish in northern Louisiana." 35mm nitrate negative by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Insensitive commentA set-up for a Laurel & Hardy gag if I ever saw one. Flanged wheelsare under the hut. Fascinating. Kids' dreamWhen I was 10 years old, this would have been just the kind of clubhouse / tree house that my friends and I would have loved to have built from scrap lumber, if only our parents would have let us construct it in the back yard. Jug Band MusicSeeing the washboard in this picture makes me wonder if there isn't a guitar just inside the door ready for an impromptu tune. [More likely some dirty laundry.] On the fenceThe laundry's dryin' on the fence, Dave. [Comment Czar - not Dave, btw - acknowledges your observation, but speculates our fellow may have separated out his whites and still needs to do his union suit.] Early WinnebagoPrototype motor home? About those flanged wheelsI was recently reading an article on the sawmill towns of western Louisiana. A large part of the article was devoted to the types of company housing used in the towns. One type of housing used in the temporary logging camps [called "front camps"] was a simple shack, or series of shacks, mounted on railroad flat cars, to provide accomodations for the workers in the camps. The shacks would simply be wheeled into place on the company rail line and then withdrawn to the next location once all the timber had been cut out. Looks like this might have been one of those "mobile homes" left over from the sawmill days, since by 1938 most of the western Louisiana timber lands were a wasteland of cut-over stumps. (The Gallery, Agriculture, Russell Lee)
Wholesale Minneapolis: 1939
September 1939. "Railroad yards, wholesale district, Minneapolis, Minnesota." A nice view of the ... View full size. No more rails. This rail yard was between North First and Second Streets, running from Fourth Avenue ... residential district. All converted to condos and the rail yard filled in with new condos. An interesting side note, a residential ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 03/23/2013 - 11:06am -

September 1939. "Railroad yards, wholesale district, Minneapolis, Minnesota." A nice view of the Chase Bag tower. Photo by John Vachon. View full size. No more rails.This rail yard was between North First and Second Streets, running from Fourth Avenue North to Plymouth Avenue North. The tower for Chase Bag stands at 700 Washington Avenue North. The entire area is now filled with apartments and condos. The current view is from about the same place, but at street level. View Larger Map Much is still thereHowever the wholesale district is now the residential district. All converted to condos and the rail yard filled in with new condos. An interesting side note, a residential building that I was part of constructing uses that stone retaining wall at the far side of the yard as a foundation wall. Here's a similar view now. Hole in the WallThe photographer is looking northwest along First Street North and the cross street is 4th Ave North. Fourth Avenue was atop a granite wall, and the Northern Pacific tracks cut through the wall to enter the picture at the far left, hence the railroaders called this location Hole In The Wall. Today, the scene is unrecognizable. John Deere PlantWhere the John Deere building was on Washington Avenue. They were on the north side of the street, on this side of picture, Washington Avenue runs left and right here. The building is still there, though John Deere moved to Bloomington. (The Gallery, Factories, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Railroads)
Muskogee Yards: 1939
July 1939. "Railroad yards. Muskogee, Oklahoma." Medium format acetate negative by Russell ... we see a baggage car from the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad, nicknamed "The Katy" for its initials, MKT. Known to legions of ... this be … … the cleanest, best-groomed railroad yard ever to grace the pages of Shorpy? (The Gallery, Railroads, Russell ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/17/2021 - 11:18am -

July 1939. "Railroad yards. Muskogee, Oklahoma." Medium format acetate negative by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. On the tracks to the left --I see him. The Okie from Muskogee. They like holding hands and pitchin’ wooIt’s a place where even squares can have a ball. There's a great future in plastics.Not a plastic bag or single piece of litter in sight. He was proud to be.Even if Merle was only 2 at the time. The KatyHere we see a baggage car from the Missouri–Kansas–Texas Railroad, nicknamed "The Katy" for its initials, MKT. Known to legions of Blues Brothers fans from the opening credits with "She caught the Katy, and left me a mule to ride." Could this be …… the cleanest, best-groomed railroad yard ever to grace the pages of Shorpy? (The Gallery, Railroads, Russell Lee)
Erie 2601
... out that compounding didn't work as well as expected on railroad locomotives, and later articulated locomotives were built as "simple" ... spent its whole life pushing long trains up the hump of a yard where they would be gravity sorted. The idea behind the placement of the ... 
 
Posted by Lost World - 09/22/2011 - 11:39pm -

Erie 0-8-8-0 Camelback locomotive at Port Jervis, N.Y., in 1911. The camelback design was unique in that the engineer sat in the tiny cab alongside the boiler, while the fireman worked at the usual spot behind the boiler. One of the main disadvantages was the obvious communication problem between engineer and the rest of the train crew while the engine was in operation. The Erie camelback mallets didn't last long, but smaller camelback locomotives survived well into the 1950's on roads like the Jersey Central. View full size. Photo's History?What might you know of the photo's history? Interesting shot of a very rare locomotive. Don Hall Yreka, CA Erie 0-8-8-0 CamelbackAt Port Jervis, N.Y., in 1911.I model trains in HO scale. I have never seen anything like this engine. I have seen 0-4-0, 0-6-0 and 0-8-0 camel engines, but never an articulated camel. I have a 2-6-6-2 articulated and have seen the 4-8-8-4 UP engines, but not this one. Anyone know where I could get more pictures of this engine? Don Rowland - donhotrains@cinci.rr.com [You could try contacting the person who posted this picture. First sign up for a user account, log in, click on his username, and then "contact." - Dave] Erie 0-8-8-0 malletThe "Mother Hubbards," sometimes called "camelbacks", common on railroads in the Anthricite (hard coal) region of Pennsylvania. IIRC there weren't many articulated locomotives built this way. I believe this particular type of locomotive was typically used in "helper service," pushing coal trains over the mountains. The design comes from the need for a very large firebox on locomotives burning hard coal. Hard coal required a fairly thin fire to burn well, thus a large area was required to burn the amount of fuel required to generate enough steam. The fact that they burned the lowest quality of coal available didn't help! This particular locomotive is interesting in that it is a true compound; notice the size of the front low pressure cylinders compared to the high pressure cylinders on the rear engine. This makes it a "true" Mallet. It turned out that compounding didn't work as well as expected on railroad locomotives, and later articulated locomotives were built as "simple" engines. I've never seen any of the larger Mother Hubbards in service, but I did see several of the smaller 0-6-0s and 0-4-0s in active service. BTW & FWIW - in the 70's we lived in McCloud for four years. Beautiful country in that end of the state! Erie 0-8-8-0- More photos (Link)There are a few more photos of these engines at: http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/el/loco/erie-lmn.html Erie Engine No. 2601 Derailed at Gulf SummitIn my wife's hometown paper (The Deposit Courier), the "Looking Back" section "100 Years Ago, 12 October 1910" says, "Erie engine No. 2,601, one of the largest engines in the world, was derailed at Gulf Summit Sunday night. It was pulling a train of about eighty cars and was running along at a fairly good rate of speed when suddenly it left the track. The big engine pounded along the rails for about 500 yards, cutting off the ends of the ties and tearing up the roadbed for a considerable distance. The Susquehanna wrecking crew was called and repaired the damage." Only oneThere was only one of this type of locomotive ever built, and it was used for only one thing. Hump work. Basically this engine spent its whole life pushing long trains up the hump of a yard where they would be gravity sorted. The idea behind the placement of the cab was more for visibility than anything. As for communication, the engineer and fireman used their own whistles to communicate between themselves. The engineer used the train whistle, the fireman had a lighter, lower whistle he used. There were three of theseThere were three of these used for pusher service, not hump service. Only the ERIE had articulated camelbacks, no other road had them. They were all rebuilt later with their cabs at the back. There were alot of camelbacks in the east and even some western roads had them: Santa Fe, Canadian Pacific, MKT, Chicago & Indiana Coalm, C&IE, to name a few. There are more pictures all over the Internet, even a color painting. An HO scale model just sold on Ebay for over $3000.00! (ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery, Railroads)
Pere Marquette: 1910
... second Pere Marquette 18 was launched at the South Chicago yard of the American Ship Building Company on December 20, 1910, and entered ... in the picture - perhaps a spring or summer excursion for railroad employees? There's even a bass drum on board, right above the 'P' in ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/20/2012 - 3:42pm -

The Chicago River circa 1910. "Pere Marquette transfer boat 18 passing State Street bridge." Railcar ferry built in a record 90 days after its namesake sank in Lake Michigan. Detroit Publishing Company glass negative. View full size. Father MarquetteThe first Pere Marquette 18 was built 1902 at Cleveland by the American Ship Building Company. During the summers of 1909 and 1910 the Pere Marquette Railway chartered this vessel to a group from Grand Haven, Michigan, known as the Chicago Navigation Company and who placed her in the excursion trade between Chicago and Waukegan. A rail ferry that ran across Lake Michigan from Ludington, Michigan, to points in Wisconsin, her car deck was used as a dance floor and rumored to also house gambling operations. Returning to Ludington after Labor Day, she re-entered service September 8, 1910, sailing late that night to Milwaukee with twenty-nine rail cars aboard. At 3 AM she began taking on water which the pumps could not handle. At around 4 PM her captain sent out a CQD (forerunner of the SOS) distress message by wireless, attracting the vessel's near-sister, the Pere Marquette 17, which attempted to maneuver close enough to the stricken Pere Marquette 18 to remove passengers and crew. Suddenly, a little after 7 AM, her stern plunged beneath the water and she went straight down in a matter of seconds, it estimated twenty-seven to twenty-nine lives lost. The Pere Marquette ordered a replacement immediately. Incredibly, the second Pere Marquette 18 was launched at the South Chicago yard of the American Ship Building Company on December 20, 1910, and entered service the next month. Removed from service 1954, as a little kid I recall her sitting forlornly on Pere Marquette Lake at Ludington until she was towed to Hamilton, Ontario, in 1957 for scrapping. The tug T. T. Morford shown was built 1884 by the Miller Brothers at Chicago, and her design proved so successful that she became the model upon which almost every subsequent Chicago harbor tug would be built. PM18 (II)Launched December 20, 1910, in Chicago. More here. T T MorfordThe TT Morford was a tugboat with an interesting history: The tugboat T.T. MORFORD was built in 1884 at Chicago and served the area faithfully until 26 October 1895, when her boiler exploded. She was rebuilt and went back into service adding another strange twist to history, for it was this same tugboat that 14 years later would rescue 20 or more people from Chicago's 68th Street Water Crib Fire. A fire which killed 60 men in January of 1909. The vessel shownis the first Pere Marquette 18 while chartered to the Chicago Navigation Company, taking summer excursionists to Waukegan, to clarify my earlier post. The second Pere Marquette 18 remained exclusively in the rail trade between Ludington and Wisconsin ports its entire career. [Why do we think this is the first Pere Marquette? - Dave] An Excursion?Seems to be a significant number of the fairer sex aboard, and the ship seems to be riding very high in the water, so I don't think it has a load on. The ship was launched December 20, and arrived in Ludington Michigan on January 30 - it sure doesn't look like mid winter in the picture - perhaps a spring or summer excursion for railroad employees? There's even a bass drum on board, right above the 'P' in the ship's name. [Midwinter would be February. December 20 is (barely) fall. But yes, it was chilly -- the high was 32, so this is probably not launch day. It may not even be launch year. - Dave] The control houseseems to match that of the first PM 18: http://www.carferries.com/pm/PM18/ vs PM 18 (II): http://www.carferries.com/pm/PM182/ (The Gallery, Boats & Bridges, Chicago, DPC)
A.S. Gerdee: 1943
... 3251 Maypole Street, Chicago, a switchman at the Proviso Yard of the Chicago & North Western Railroad. View full size. 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano, ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/30/2012 - 9:22pm -

April 1943. A.S. Gerdee of 3251 Maypole Street, Chicago, a switchman at the Proviso Yard of the Chicago & North Western Railroad. View full size. 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Jack Delano, Office of War Information. KodachromeI love these 4x5 Kodachromes. For the life of me I can't figure out why anyone would shoot anything else (alright, I do really know why but it's still cool stuff). Its such a shame it's not made anymore. KodachromeI remember shooting a couple of rolls of Kodachrome 25 about 20 or 25 years ago. Absolutely gorgeous results, no perceptible grain, just beautiful. At that time the only people who developed it was Kodak, so you had to send it off in a mailer and in time you'd get your little box of slides back. KodachromeWell, it is still being made, but only as 64 ISO (ASA) 35 mm film. There are only a few labs left in the world that can process Kodachrome. Also the colour rendition of modern Kodachrome is a bit different from the "classic" emulsion that you see so much of on these pages. I do hope that Dave will keep on posting Kodachrome images by Jack Delano, he is my favourite. [As long as Jack keeps taking them, I'll keep posting them! - Dave] KodachromeThey give us those nice bright colors They give us the greens of summers Makes you think all the worlds a sunny day, oh yeah ImmortalMr. A. S. Gerdee, you have been immortalized, my friend! C. W. MossNow we know where the mechanic from Bonnie & Clyde ended up. (The Gallery, Kodachromes, Chicago, Jack Delano, Portraits, Railroads)
A Pretty Grille: 1941
... Chevys or (fill in dream car here) was found, lost by the railroad for decades, on a siding in Michigan or Ohio or Canada. Ah, well. ... stumbled across three of these cars abandoned in an old yard. Took some working to figure out, but the cars had apparently been lost in ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/29/2014 - 2:28pm -

San Francisco, 1941. "Pontiacs being unloaded from freight cars." Slathered with chrome. 8x10 Eastman Kodak Safety Film negative. View full size. Last of the New Cars for ConsumersI'm supposing that these are being unloaded not long before the attack on Pearl Harbor. These represent the last model year of new cars available to consumers until World War 2 was finished. Sales of new automobiles were severely limited for the duration. [You're a year off. These are 1941 Pontiacs; 1942 was the last model year for new cars before the war. - Dave] Note that the Pontiacs are being unloaded from special end-door RR boxcars. The boxcars shown have now-obsolete features such as full-height ladders and roof walks. Examining the boxcar doors close up will reveal minor damage. Autos are still shipped extensively by rail, but the current auto carriers have three decks! Put them back in the freight carThen wait 75 years and open it again. What a time capsule that would be! Illuminating?I refer to the hood ornament which looks like clear plastic and just might have lit up at night. Barn FindReminds me of an urban legend current when I was young in Minnesota circa 1980. A boxcar (or two, or three) filled with 1949 Hudsons or '42 Chevys or (fill in dream car here) was found, lost by the railroad for decades, on a siding in Michigan or Ohio or Canada. Ah, well. Great photo. Chief Pontiac's faceDid not light up until 1949. Bryant StreetBuilding in background is the Hamm's Brewery at 1550 Bryant Street. See this photo across railroad loading docks. My guess is that the photo was taken at the former site of the Southern Pacific 16th Street freight depot, located around Treat Street between Florida and Harrison. The Shorpy photo and the one below both appear to be from around Treat Street. looking towards Florida. A 1960s track diagram for the Southern Pacific doesn't indicate a match for the freight sheds and ramp for unloading (see Zone 8 page 1). The track diagram does indicate track 828 was the "old 16th Street Freight Depot," suggesting the tracks had been rearranged before 1960. Interesting story here.The type of railroad car is an "end door" type. They were designed for carrying automobiles, or larger loads. The end doors were only on one end though, meaning that to unload, you had to move the cars around after each was emptied. Bout twenty years ago, in a small town in Georgia, they stumbled across three of these cars abandoned in an old yard. Took some working to figure out, but the cars had apparently been lost in transit to a local dealership in Savannah. Sidelined due to something wrong with the trucks (bogies the cars ride on.) The cars were just forgotten. Well, when the crews found them, they asked what to do and were told to just scrap them. Opening the doors, they found that each car held three brand new Ford Galaxies, with all of six miles on the odomoter. The owner of the company doing the demolition took two for himself, and divided the remaining cars among his crew. One of the cars sold at Barret's auto auction some years back, with the winning bid being over one million dollars. (The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Railroads, San Francisco)
Willow Springs: 1900
... your own risk these days One source reports that when railroad service was established between Willow Springs and Chicago, city folk ... many of which are shuttled to the adjacent BNSF intermodal yard (another very large facility). I assume the fellow in the image is ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 11/13/2012 - 1:13pm -

Circa 1900. "Station at Willow Springs, Illinois." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size. 8 x 10 Glass Negatives.I love photos from those 8 x 10 glass negatives. This one is focused a little close to the camera to be a great photo, and there are some scratches towards the bottom, but it is almost like you can step into the scene. Picnic at your own risk these daysOne source reports that when railroad service was established between Willow Springs and Chicago, city folk used it to reach what was considered a nice place to picnic. How things have changed. Today the community is host to a very large and busy highway interchange, including Interstate 294 (Chicago bypass), U.S. highways 12, 20 and 45, and Illinois 171. It also hosts, in part, a huge (2,130,000 square foot) United Parcel Service hub that processes 1.6 million packages a day, many of which are shuttled to the adjacent BNSF intermodal yard (another very large facility). I assume the fellow in the image is the station agent, a prestigious position at the time. Perhaps some knowledgeable Shorpy reader can tell us what the indication is for the semaphore aspect. Proceed? Not Bucolic AnymoreThis Illinois town was chosen as the site of a large intermodal highway/rail terminal, because it was far enough away from Chicago's core to avoid congestion, but near enough to be convenient to the Interstate Highway systen. Repair ListLooks like the chimney could use a bit of work. Electrically bondedI noticed that the far left rail has bonding wires at the joint. For 1900 I am surprised to see that this line probably has some form of signalization. Whether that be for aspects or just track occupancy I can't tell. More than likely just to make a light light up or bell ring inside the station to let the station attendant know there was a approaching. I can see the wires on the left main, but don't see them on the track on the right, could be a siding. As for the semaphores at the station, these were used for signaling the train to pick up train orders at the station; instructions for the crew for the next and/or subsequent sections of the line (where to take a siding for a meet, speed restrictions, construction, etc...) There are two, one for each direction. Generally down indicated no need to stop or receive orders. The SemaphoresThere are 2 semaphore signals seen. They are both what are known as 2 aspect semaphores. They can only indicate slow and stop. Further away in each direction you would find 3 aspect semaphore signals that would indicate either; proceed, slow or stop. Further down on the right is a mail pick-up device. I'm quite sure there is also one for the other track in back of the camera. The mail pouch is suspended from the arm and as the train goes by, an arm is extended from the mail car to snatch it and draw it inside. If there is mail for the station, it is tossed onto the platform. Commuter trains still stop at this location. Train order signalThe train order signal is set for "clear" in both directions. If there were train orders or a message to be delivered, it would be set horizontally. This signal itself doesn't convey any information to a train about the condition or occupancy of the track ahead, and would be used only for messages. Great photo, the track appears immaculate. My Father's Predecessor?There are two railroads that run through Willow Springs. I'm guessing that this is the Santa Fe depot. My father was the Santa Fe Signal Maintainer at Willows Springs Ill. throughout the 1960's. I'm assuming this photo was taken facing north and that is Willow Springs Road crossing the tracks. Thank you for wonderful picture. (The Gallery, DPC, Railroads)
This & That: 1907
... is a southeasterly direction along Elm Street, toward the railroad tracks and Union Avenue. Park Street is on the left in the foreground. ... and axle sets, next to the rail crossing. Maintenance yard, perhaps? [It's the depot seen in the other view. - Dave] IOOF ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/29/2013 - 9:46am -

Circa 1907. "Street in Lakeport, New Hampshire." Points of interest in this view of the fair city (last seen here) include the Lovejoy & Prescott fire insurance agency, Adkin & Adkin Millinery, the L.E. Pickering restaurant, Frank Clow Wood & Coal ("Hard, Soft, Bobbin & Slab"), W.A. Moore Boots & Shoes, and a lady having a conversation with her horse. Not pictured: sign painter with a graduate degree in ampersands. 8x10 glass negative, Detroit Publishing. View full size. Building at the far endThree story building beyond the tracks is still there, corner of Clinton & Union. Engine House louvers?The wheelsets and the large louvered clerestory that you can see along the tracks behind the white building makes me think the building with the clerestory was an engine house. It would be typical to find wheelsets there, supporting minor car repairs and the occasional wreck. Still aroundThe squarish building in the background with the narrow windows is still around today, on the corner of Union Avenue and Elm Street. Its exterior is still recognizable though no longer so ornate. The photo is looking is a southeasterly direction along Elm Street, toward the railroad tracks and Union Avenue. Park Street is on the left in the foreground. Asphalt sidwalks?What caught my eye in this scene is the smooth seamless surface of the sidewalks. Could that be asphalt in 1907? Nice looking town. I could live here. Should be able to get a job as a street cleaner at least. Aerial PollutionI recently moved from a neighborhood with underground utilities to one with poles and overhead service cables as shown here, and it's taken a while to get used to the older aesthetic. Nonetheless, when this photo was taken, overhead electrical "plumbing" denoted progress, modernity, and all the other Babbitt-esque values. And, if you had a service cable running in plain sight from the street into your home and your neighbor did not, an added increment of socioeconomic status accrued to you as well. Behind the collieryA field full of wheel and axle sets, next to the rail crossing. Maintenance yard, perhaps? [It's the depot seen in the other view. - Dave] IOOF GARIndependent Order of Odd Fellows & Grand Army of the Republic I made sure to use an ampersand, in keeping with the local zoning code. Square utility poles?Square utility poles. I can't say I've even seen that before. New HampshireThe "Granite State;" lots of granite in evidence here. (The Gallery, DPC, Small Towns)
Houses on the Hill: 1935
... There was a James Garner TV-movie (he worked for a railroad) where each time he went across his back yard headed for the outhouse, the annoying little neighbor girl would say, "I ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/09/2011 - 12:22pm -

October 1935. Coal miners' houses in Omar, West Virginia. View full size. 35mm nitrate negative by Ben Shahn for the Farm Security Administration. Outhouse These were most likely Company owned houses and everything was built with ease of maintenance in mind. You'll notice a large trap door at the base of the rear of the outhouses in the picture. These doors allowed access for the "honey dippers" to clean the outhouses and keep down odors and avoid the need to relocate the outhouse every few years. The building that was mentioned as a chicken coop could also be a wood or coal shed, wash house and possibly even a chicken coop. These were also most likely foreman homes since they seem to be much larger. SmokehouseInteresting--large houses, every one has its own outhouse and there's even a smokehouse and what appears to be a chicken coop at the one on the left. Very interesting house designs, would look good today. OuthousesThere was a James Garner TV-movie (he worked for a railroad) where each time he went across his back yard headed for the outhouse, the annoying little neighbor girl would say, "I know where YOU'RE going!" OmarGreat image. These duplexes near the tracks look nicer than the ones on the hill. I wonder what you say to your neighbor as you walk past on your way to the outhouse. (The Gallery, Ben Shahn, Mining, Small Towns)
Milwaukee Yards: 1941
June 1941. "Railroad yards. Milwaukee, Wisconsin." Medium format acetate negative by John ... The tracks under the bridge would become the Hump Yard in about 1949, with 24 classification tracks taking a steady stream of ... cars 24/7. The tracks to the left constituted the Airline Yard. The large building in the upper left corner is the old Johnson Cookie ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 03/22/2020 - 12:44pm -

June 1941. "Railroad yards. Milwaukee, Wisconsin." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Precious memories Vachon is standing on the 27th Street viaduct, looking west. The 35th Street viaduct is in the distance. The tracks under the bridge would become the Hump Yard in about 1949, with 24 classification tracks taking a steady stream of rolling rail cars 24/7. The tracks to the left constituted the Airline Yard. The large building in the upper left corner is the old Johnson Cookie Company, repurposed at least six times or so since Johnson’s demise. Have had a lot of mud on my boots from those yards, as well as from those behind Vachon (West Yard, Adams Yard and Reed Street Yard). Rain, wind, sleet, snow, hot, cold -- I felt like a mailman at times. Almost 40 years of it. Wouldn't trade any of it for ... well, maybe some of it I would. (The Gallery, John Vachon, Milwaukee, Railroads)
Work, Read, Wash: 1943
March 1943. Barstow, California. "Railroad worker in the washroom of the reading room in the Santa Fe yard." Medium-format negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/29/2016 - 8:13pm -

March 1943. Barstow, California. "Railroad worker in the washroom of the reading room in the Santa Fe yard." Medium-format negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. Santa Fe Depot and Reading RoomOh, the Santa Fe reading room. not the Reading Railroad reading room. The Santa Fe Reading Rooms were hotelish facilities for engineers and employees on break between runs. The Waynoka, Oklahoma, Depot and Reading Room: https://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/aviation/sfe.htm SpittoonThese had to be high on my list of disgusting things seen in my childhood. Never envied the people who had to clean them or around them. WaynokaI have never been to the Barstow area but I have been to the Waynoka Santa Fe depot. It was several years ago that my sister, a friend, and I , mainly, went to eat at the Harvey House Restaurant there. At the time, I had no idea that Waynoka had played such a role in the history of transportation. The restored depot and the restaurant were very interesting and well worth the trip if you are in the area. As an occasional home plumberI have to admire the sheer, brutal functionality of the plumbing; not only is it designed not to clog, but if it does clog it's designed to be unclogged easily. And you can get at the feed lines and cutoff valves, too. Mystery fixtureCan anyone identify the fluted ceramic column at far right, raised up off the floor? Pedestal sink, drinking fountain? Fluted ColumnI'll say that the fancy tile on the right is the edge of a floor length men's urinary convenience. The concrete step probably holds the shallow basin at its base. That mystery fixtureI encountered a row of these frightening floor length fixtures many years ago in a historic hotel, I believe in Wellsville W.Va, or thereabouts. Not just similar, but apparently identical. Each unit includes 1 column, and there is an extra column tacked on at the free end. There is a separate cap at the top. Our ancestors sure had a taste for the grandiose in bathroom fixtures. As for the sink, this "S Trap" drain configuration far below the sink is generally illegal now, as it can siphon the trap dry. The vent pipe connection must be only a foot or so below the sink, with the "J Trap" in between. We ate a fine lunch in the grand dining room, but did not stay. I looked on Google Earth and didn't find the hotel, may not have survived. At the time, it was in the guidebook of historic hotels, along with such places as the wonderful Lafayette in Marietta OH. I may have pix somewhere, but probably wouldn't want to post them. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads)
Emporia Junction: 1943
... the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe train pulls into the yard." Medium-format negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. ... and levers, called piping, to control the position of a railroad switch or signal up to half a mile away. This piping can be seen ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/06/2014 - 1:28pm -

March 1943. "Emporia, Kansas. Passing Emporia Junction switch tower as the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe train pulls into the yard." Medium-format negative by Jack Delano for the Office of War Information. View full size. Track DiagramTrack diagram for Emporia Junction tower along with a bit of history here. Mechanical Bits and BytesYou are looking at the 19th century's equivalent of a computer - mechanical style. That large building, or "tower" is the CPU. Inside, at the operators level upstairs, are several dozen 4 foot long levers - the equivalent of a keyboard for input. One or two of each of these levers is connected by a system of rods and levers, called piping, to control the position of a railroad switch or signal up to half a mile away. This piping can be seen running from the base of the tower, on supporting rollers parallel to the tracks. At the remote switch, the motion of one lever would set the position of the switch, and the second lever would control a locking mechanism to assure that the switch had thrown properly and to lock it in position so it wouldn't accidentally change position under a moving train. Downstairs in the tower was a system of vertical movable tappets, one for each lever, with a horizontal matrix of movable locking bars interfaced to the tappets. At the junctions of the tappets and locking bars there were notches cut into the tappets into which dogs on the locking bars could fit to lock or unlock the tappet. Dogs could be set as IF-THEN, OR, XOR, NOR, WHEN, and AND logic, to prevent setting up conflicting routes for train movements through the "interlocking" limits of the plant, and to allow the proper setting of signals to convey routing and speed information to the engineer of an approaching train. A Solid State computer- VERY solid! LarryDoyle states the case very well. One minor detail: not all mechanical interlocking machines had their locking vertically below the floor; some had a horizontal 'bed' behind the machine. This type of interlocking was known colloquially as an 'armstrong' plant - nothing to do with a Mr. (or Mrs.) Armstrong! I can speak from a very mild dose of experience - I am helping to restore such a tower in East Stroudsburg, PA. It is not connected to anything, but even so, my arms get tired. I love Jack Delano train photosThis is where my old head lays as I do miss the big steam days. Gosh, I’m working on a HO brass 4-8-4 Northern right now. I remember it well!When I was 18 I worked for British Rail as a conductor guard (as it was known back then) and I remember the tower and having to visit one on my training course. I also remember the old style signals you see in this photo. One of my tasks as a conductor guard trainee was to alight the tower when one of the signals failed and set off cap detonators on the tracks to warn the oncoming trains. I never had to do this, fortunately, since the signals were well maintained by the signalmen who religiously made sure they worked well all the time. Thanks for stirring such wonderful memories. Computer trains Many thanks to "signalman" and "LarryDoyle". I lived by yards in Chicago and would occasionally see men at the end of trains throwing switches. I thought that was how it was done, period. To see such a complex integrated system back in the forties....well, I never knew. Thanks once again to Shorpy and followers for this fascinating piece of historical knowledge. KansasHow evocative! I can almost feel the early spring wind blowing. (The Gallery, Jack Delano, Railroads)
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