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Tag: Railroad

  • BNSF 7859 GE ES44DC

    BNSF 7859 GE ES44DC

    Burlington Northern Santa Fe BNSF 7859 GE ES44DC leading a grain train on the CN Centralia subdivision passing under the old Illinois Central coaling tower in Reevesville, Illinois on January 2, 2021.

    Coaling towers were constructed of wood, steel-reinforced concrete, or steel. In almost all cases coaling stations used a gravity-fed method, with one or more large storage bunkers for the coal elevated on columns above the railroad tracks, from which the coal could be released to slide down a chute into the waiting steam locomotive’s coal storage area. The method of lifting the bulk coal into the storage bin varied. The coal usually was dropped from a hopper car into a pit below tracks adjacent to the tower. From the pit a conveyor-type system used a chain of motor-driven buckets to raise the coal to the top of the tower where it would be dumped into the storage bin; a skip-hoist system lifted a single large bin for the same purpose. Some facilities lifted entire railway coal trucks or wagons. Sanding pipes were often mounted on coaling towers to allow simultaneous replenishment of a locomotive’s sandbox.

    As railroads transitioned from the use of steam locomotives to the use of diesel locomotives in the 1950s the need for coaling towers ended. Many reinforced concrete towers remain in place if they do not interfere with operations due to the high cost of demolition incurred with these massive structures. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

  • CSXT 5478 GE ES40DC

    CSXT 5478 GE ES40DC

    CSX Transportation CSXT 5478 GE ES40DC leading Q512 a mix freight past this old Chessie System Steel Bay Window Caboose that CSX use for a shoving platform thought town in Evansville, Indiana on January 1, 2021

    The shoving platform may be made from a flat car or a caboose. They provide a safe platform for the crews to stand on when a train is shoved a long distance to an industry.

  • PREX 1614 EMD EMD GP16

    PREX 1614 EMD EMD GP16

    Pioneer Railcorp PREX 1614 EMD Rebuilt EMD GP16 Indiana Southwestern Railway switching some cars at the Harwood yard in Evansville, Indiana on December 31, 2020

    Indiana Southwestern Railway (reporting mark ISW) is a subsidiary of Pioneer Railcorp, operator of several short-line railroad companies. The ISW is a Class III railroad, and operated on 17 miles of track from Evansville, Indiana, northward to Cynthiana, Indiana. That track is currently out of service but switching still occurs in ISW’s yard and surrounding industries.

    The line was originally operated as part of an Illinois Central Railroad line that ran all the way to Newton, Illinois. Illinois Central sold off the line south of Browns, Illinois, to Indiana Hi-Rail Corporation; the line went through a succession of operators, all of which had to contend with the line’s ancient bridge over the Wabash River near Grayville, Illinois. The bridge suffered damage from floods on more than one occasion, and one span finally collapsed completely around 1999.

    Pioneer bought the line and its Evansville shops in 2000 from the Evansville Terminal Railway. However, when Pioneer stopped shipping grain, the track had to be dismantled and salvaged at the close of 2011. Only the small stretch from the interchange northwest of Evansville to just north of their yard is still used, a distance of about 4 miles.

    The dates back to 1881 as part of the Evansville and Peoria Railroad, which then became part of the Peoria, Decatur & Evansville Railway through a series of purchases. The PD&E became part of Illinois Central in 1900. The ISW is currently the only remaining in-service segment of the PD&E south of Mattoon, Illinois. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

  • NREX 2010 NRE 2GS14B

    NREX 2010 NRE 2GS14B

    National Railway Equipment NREX 2010 NRE 2GS14B demonstrator crossing over 950 Avenue as it is used by the Marathon Robinson Refinery switching cars in the plant in Robinson, Illinois on December 5, 2020.

    The NRE 2GS14B is a low-emissions diesel switcher locomotive built by National Railway Equipment. It is powered by two Cummins QSK19C I6 engines with each one developing 700 horsepower (522 kW) and creating a total power output of 1,400 horsepower (1,040 kW). At least 7 2GS14B Genset locomotives have been produced to date, with the majority of these units being manufactured at NREC’s Mount Vernon shops in Southern Illinois. From Wikipedia

  • INRD 3002 EMD GP40-3

    INRD 3002 EMD GP40-3

    Indiana Railroad INRD 3002 EMD GP40-3 leads the Hiawatha-Palestine turn HWPAT-05 is approaching the CSX diamond in Sullivan, Indiana on December 5, 2020.

  • NS 4004 GE AC44C6M

    NS 4004 GE AC44C6M

    Norfolk Southern NS 4004 GE AC44C6M The Black mane (Sonic Bonnet) was rebuilt at Altoona, PA. here it is leading NS 224 westbound as it waits for a recrew in Princeton, Indiana on December 12, 2020.

  • CMStP&P 1416 Class Steam I-5A 0-6-0

    CMStP&P 1416 Class Steam I-5A 0-6-0

    It’s looking a lot like Christmas at the Evansville Museum Transportation Center with Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific, CMStP&P 1416 Class Steam I-5A 0-6-0 through the windows in Evansville, Indiana on December 17, 2020. #evansvillemuseum

  • CSXT 3380 GE ET44AH

    CSXT 3380 GE ET44AH

    CSX Transportation CSXT 3380 GE ET44AH leading a mix freight past the old Princeton Depot as Santa gives the crew a friendly wave in Princeton, Indian on December 13, 2020

    Constructed in 1875 and beautifully restored, the Princeton Depot is the only remaining depot structure in Gibson County. Once housing the C&EI and L&N railways, it was the lifeline of commerce and transportation for the county. Passenger service was discontinued from the depot in late 1960. Today the depot stands as a nostalgic reminder of the importance railroads have played in Gibson County’s history.
    The Princeton Train Depot is now home to the Gibson County Visitors Center and features a railway museum with a restored train caboose.

  • NS 4004 GE AC44C6M

    NS 4004 GE AC44C6M

    Norfolk Southern NS 4004 GE AC44C6M The Black Sonic Bonnet was rebuilt at Roanoke, VA here it is leading NS 224 westbound through an S curve in Albion, Illinois on December 12, 2020

  • NS 9650 GE C44-9W

    NS 9650 GE C44-9W

    Norfolk Southern NS 9650 GE C44-9W Leading a mixed freight passing TRRA SH tower the tower is long gone but the name lives on as a yard crew puts together a BNSF train at the TRRA Madison yard in Venice, Illinois on November 7, 2020.