Morning at L.A. Union Station

20150710

Santa Fe F7 No. 311 prepares to depart Track 5 at Los Angeles Union Station with the first San Diegan of the day, while the Rock Island/Southern Pacific Golden State, just in from Chicago, stands on Track 4. William D. Middleton photo […]

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Steam locomotives: An era long since past

steam train in distance with sunset and cattails

Steam locomotives What is it about a steam locomotives that attract generations? Like the Saturn V rockets of their time, steam locomotives represent the pinnacle of engineering in an era long since passed. Their ability to use simple components, coal or oil with water, to produce power sometimes only inhibited by the hand of the […]

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Locomotive models in Bicentennial paint

Color image of electric locomotive in patriotic paint scheme.

With Independence Day just around the corner, we thought it would be fun to take a look back at some N and HO scale locomotive models in Bicentennial paint schemes. As the 200th birthday of the United States approached, numerous prototype railroads renumbered and repainted locomotives in patriotic schemes to pay tribute to the nation. […]

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GTW gathering place

20150618

Four Grand Trunk Western passenger trains meet at Durand, Mich., in July 1950. A streamlined 4-8-4 has just arrived with No. 17; visible east of the depot is a car from No. 38, in from Alpena; Pacific 5633 is on No. 21; and Pacific 5629, having cut off from No. 56 to take water, waits […]

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Frisco E7 posing as an E8

20150615

St. Louis-San Francisco No. 2005 Winchester has the grilles and portholes of an E8, but it’s really an E7, as indicated by the louvers behind the cab door. For the sake of appearance, Frisco modified its E7As to look like its E8As. All were red with gold striping and silver trucks. SLSF photo […]

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