WM local from Elkins

Western Maryland Railroad local train on the Potomac River

Pacific 203 leads Western Maryland’s Elkins, W.Va.–Cumberland, Md., local train along the North Branch of the Potomac River near Westernport, Md., in June 1952. H. F. Houck photo […]

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Genesis of a debt to be repaid

NHPAsSouthStation1961

Before starting their seven-stop trek to Providence, the two Alco PAs on New Haven train 531 prepare to follow the FL9s on the Merchants Limited (left in photo) out of South Station, Boston, in 1961. Chris Burger In the early 1960s, I was a student at Providence College in Rhode Island’s capital city, commuting on […]

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Winter Rail Memories

Celebrate the winter season with Classic Trains’ compilation of Winter Rail Memories, featuring four articles and stunning images showcasing some of our favorite snow-filled stories. In Long Way Home for Christmas, author David Ingles recounts his trip home from college in 1965, when he ventured on a rail odyssey from central Illinois, to Dearborn, Mich., […]

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Alex Mayes’ top 10 railfan spots

CSX Railroad Foley Overlook

Westbound CSX train Q261 climbs the Sand Patch grade at Foley Overlook, near Fairhope, Pa., on Oct. 9, 2011. Three photos, Alex Mayes Trying to come up with just 10 favorite train-watching spots posed a challenge for me, as I have a lot of favorite spots, all of which have their particular characteristics. For this […]

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Drew Halverson’s top 10 hot spots

BNSF Railway intermodal train in California

A westbound BNSF intermodal train leans into the famous elevated curves at Siberia, Calif., in April 2014. Four photos, Drew Halverson I witnessed an endless array of trains while growing up in the Midwest. Despite the diversity of railroads, the surrounding landscape was lacking. I needed mountains and deserts to go with the ubiquitous cityscapes […]

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Matt Van Hattem’s top 10 railfan spots

CSX intermodal train at Bear Mountain, N.Y.

A southbound CSX intermodal train skirts the Hudson River at Bear Mountain, N.Y., on May 12, 2011. Three photos, Matt Van Hattem Every region has fascinating places to watch trains, and working at Trains brought me to locations I had always longed to visit as well as great spots I might not have otherwise come […]

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Tom Danneman’s top 10 retreats

Montana Rail Link traveling through the mountains

Two Montana Rail Link GP9s head up the Paradise Local as it crosses the Clark Fork River in Paradise, Mont. Three photos, Tom Danneman When I was asked to come up with 10 of my favorite spots to view and photograph railroading, I knew it wouldn’t be difficult. The difficulty was picking just 10 spots, […]

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Piedmont & Northern electric train

Piedmont and Northern Railroad in Belmont, South Carolina

A northbound Piedmont & Northern train makes a stop at Belton, S.C., in April 1951. Later that year the road ended all passenger service and converted its South Carolina division from electric to diesel operation. A.C. Kalmbach photo […]

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Centennial Trains

Classic Trains Logo

View the public schedule of the 1963 West Virginia Centennial Special. Download the schedule by clicking on the PDF below. WV_Centennial_Schedule     View the initial working schedules of the 1964 Montana Centennial Train. Download the schedule by clicking on the PDF below. Montana_centennial_train_schedule […]

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