North Shore at North Chicago Junction

20161007

A northbound Chicago North Shore & Milwaukee train leaves the interurban’s Shore Line route and joins the Skokie Valley route at North Chicago Junction, Ill., on July 18, 1955 — one week before cessation of passenger service on the Shore Line. Overhead is the Chicago & North Western’s Chicago–Waukegan–Milwaukee line. William D. Middleton photo […]

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Biplanes and an E3

20161028

Two biplanes trailing smoke accent a 1939 publicity photo of Florida East Coast’s Jacksonville–Miami Henry M. Flagler, named for the road’s founder. E3 No. 1001, emblazoned with the train’s name, was FEC’s first diesel. FEC photo […]

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Low-numbered Pennsy engine

20161011

Pennsylvania class L1 Mikado No. 26, trailing an additional tender for extra water capacity, heads a train of empty coal hoppers west out of Renovo, Pa., in September 1955. Under PRR’s unorthodox numbering system, the 574-member L1 fleet ranged from No. 2 to No. 8636. Philip R. Hastings photo […]

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B&O’s Keyser tower

20161014

The former Baltimore & Ohio tower at Keyser, W.Va., seen here in 2004 under CSX ownership, was a classic “armstrong” mechanical interlocking plant. The pipes travel along the tracks, where levers and cranks transfer the motion to switches, locks, and derails. Concrete pedestals support the pipe lines and other hardware. Historic American Engineering Record photo […]

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Pittsburgh PCCs

20161005

In the 1950s, two Pittsburgh Railways PCC streetcars have left downtown, crossed the Monongahela River on the Smithfield Bridge, passed the Pittsburgh & Lake Erie depot, and are heading up into the South Hills tunnel. Linn H. Westcott photo […]

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Wood-burning narrow-gauge Mikado

20160831

Sumpter Valley Railway No. 18, built by Baldwin in 1916, is a modern-design, low-drivered, 36-inch-gauge wood-burning 2-8-2. The timber-hauling Sumpter Valley extended 80 miles out of Baker, Ore.; today, tourists can ride behind steam on 5 miles of rebuilt track. Matt Coleman collection […]

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