LUDINGTON, Mich. — The S.S. Badger, the former Chesapeake & Ohio car ferry that is the last coal-fired passenger ship operating on the Great Lakes and last remnant of the once sizable fleet of railroad car ferries, has been sidelined until further notice by a mechanical failure of its ramping system, the ship’s owner announced. […]
Train Topic: Fallen Flags
Class I power finds its way back into the fold
The traditional life cycle for new locomotives on a Class I roster would be revenue service, followed by lease return if the railroad leased the power or retirement and sale if they were purchased. In a handful of cases, power that departed a Class I roster will find its way back into its original owner’s […]
The last PRR steam locomotive
On Sept. 3, 1958 – nearly a year after the Pennsylvania Railroad stopped using steam locomotives – PRR 0-6-0 5244 emerges from Union Transportation’s New Egypt enginehouse. UT used leased PRR steam engines from 1945 to 1959. Aaron G. Fryer photo […]
CSX debuts Conrail heritage unit, the fourth in a series
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – CSX Transportation has released its fourth heritage unit, a salute to Conrail. “Okay rail fans. Here is a sneak peak of the fourth CSX Heritage Locomotive. #1976 celebrates our Conrail heritage. Look for this one out on the road soon. Another great job for our ONE CSX team in Waycross, GA. Enjoy,” […]
Gleaming SD9 reminds us of Nickel Plate Road’s big switch
Just when you think recent progress in railroad preservation can’t get any better — I’m thinking here of everything from Big Boy to Reading & Northern 2102 to Silvis Shops to Michigan Central Station — along comes another milestone that, if not quite a blockbuster, is still remarkable. Especially if you’re interested in diesel […]
New York Central’s first E unit
E7 No. 4000, the first of New York Central’s eventual fleet of 112 E units (36 E7As, 14 E7Bs, and 62 E8As) stands at the road’s Englewood engine terminal in Chicago on Aug. 13, 1946. L. V. Lucy photo […]
PRR’s new ‘Congressional’
Brand-new from Budd, cars for the Pennsylvania’s Congressional glisten under the lights at 30th Street Station, Philadelphia, during a March 1952 publicity run to preview the new equipment for the press. Classic Trains coll. […]
Morning Zephyr in the snow
Two E5 diesels thunder through Downers Grove, Ill., with the Chicago–Minneapolis Morning Zephyr in January 1948. CB&Q photo […]
Trains announces photo charter with historic Minnesota Transportation Museum diesels
OSCEOLA, Wis. — Trains Magazine has announced an exclusive photo charter to be held Sept. 11-12 at the Minnesota Transportation Museum’s Osceola & St. Croix Valley Railway featuring three historic diesels. The tentative schedule for the two-day event includes a Sept. 11 passenger train with freshly painted Great Northern SDP40 No. 325 and Great Northern […]
Icing station on the Erie
At an icing station on the Erie Railroad, crushed ice is dumped into refrigerator cars from a cart on the upper level through a funnel that rides on tracks at the platform edge. Erie Railroad photo […]
NKP SD9 returned to as-built appearance by Progress Rail
MUNCIE, Ind. — Nickle Plate Road SD9 No. 358 is nearing the end of a lengthy process of restoration to operation by the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society, with Progress Rail returning the locomotive to its appearance as built in 1957. The locomotive, donated by Norfolk Southern to the Fort Wayne Railroad Historical Society in […]
GN’s Western Star and Empire Builder
A Great Northern public timetable for Summer 1951 showcases the road’s two Chicago–Seattle/Portland streamliners, the new Western Star and the newly re-equipped Empire Builder. Classic Trains coll. […]