In the 1910s, automobiles were shipped as “knock-downs,” with the bodies removed from the chassis and then loaded in boxcars. This is Ford’s Highland Park, Mich., plant in 1915. Ford Motor Co. photo […]
Man power
Monongahela monsters
One of Pittsburgh & West Virginia’s seven 2-6-6-4s leads a freight across the Monongahela River at Belle Vernon, Pa., near Pittsburgh. Ralph E. Hallock photo […]
Mountain muscle
In 1972, four EMD six-axle locomotives lead a freight train over itself on the famed Tehachapi Loop in southern California. Jim Zwernemann photo […]
Canadian commuters
Following a freewheeling “flying switch” maneuver to change ends, No. 46 couples to its train at Dorval, Que., and departs with morning commuters bound for Montreal. Philip R. Hastings photo […]
Escanaba in the daylight
The Escanaba & Lake Superior dieselized in the mid-1940s with Baldwin locomotives, including DS-4-4-660 No. 101, purchased new in November 1947. It was the second diesel on the property and one of two of the model. Classic Trains collection […]
Factory fresh
Railway Express Agency bought 500 new steel plug door reefers from American Car & Foundry in 1947-48. They initially wore a green and aluminum scheme, but were repainted all green in the 1950s. American Car & Foundry photo […]
Fs for freight
Minneapolis & St. Louis was known for its freights that ran south from the Twin Cities through Iowa to Peoria, Ill., to connect with several eastern railroads there. This green-and-yellow set of F units was constructed in 1947, which is reflected in its road number. Classic Trains collection […]
Protecting a GG1
A crossing watchman is out with his STOP sign to warn motorists to stay clear of a fast-moving Pennsylvania Railroad GG1 racing north at Seabrook, Md., in April 1963. William D. Middleton photo […]
Classic Trains, Fall 2019
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Classic Diesel Builders
Download this free 22-page PDF for profiles on the six major 1940s-1950s diesel-locomotive producers. This free download dives into the history of Electro-Motive Engineering Co., American Locomotive Company, Baldwin Locomotive Works, Fairbanks-Morse, Lima Locomotive Works, and General Electric. Learn about the background of each company, the locomotives they produced, and how each company was impacted […]
‘Jump, kid, jump!’
Switching at night could be hazardous, especially when some dodgy moves were attempted. Robert Hale In the middle of 1960 or ’61, during a summer break from Texas Western College in El Paso, I was working the extra board on the New Mexico Division of the Santa Fe. One night I was the pin-puller on a […]
Decapod delight
Gainesville Midland 2-10-0 No. 207 churns its 56-inch drivers across the Southern Railway’s Washington–Atlanta main line at Gainesville, Ga. The short line, which rostered five such locomotives, extended 40 miles from Gainesville southeast to Athens. Philip R. Hastings photo […]
