Boys young and old walk up to look at Central Vermont 4-8-2 601 at White River Junction, Vt., in the 1940s. Classic Trains coll. […]
CV Mountain type
Section: Railroads
Continental Divide
Five black-and-gold Northern Pacific F units lift a freight up the west slope of the Continental Divide at Elliston, Mont., in the 1950s. The NP relied on F units for both freight and passenger service. R. V. Nixon photo […]
General Electric passenger U-boats — Diesels that didn’t
The General Electric passenger U-boats filled a niche in the 1960’s locomotive market. Santa Fe, like many Class I railroads at the time, was still proud of its passenger service. But its roster of suitable diesel locomotives was getting old and any thought of Amtrak was still years away. Keeping its aging fleet of silver […]
Amtrak America’s Railroad book review
Amtrak America’s Railroad records the many trials of keeping America’s railroad passenger service on track, and there were and still remain many. The chapters offer coverage of “What We Had,” “Creating a New National Network,” “Where Do We Go From Here?” and “The Road to the Future.” The authors have dug deep to record input […]
Canadian Pacific 2816 The Empress steam locomotive profile
Introducing The Empress Canadian Pacific 2816 The Empress: Canadian Pacific President and CEO Rob Ritchie set the steam preservation world on its ear when in 1998 he revealed the railway’s plan to repatriate CP H1b Hudson No. 2816 from its long-time home at the National Park Service’s Steamtown museum and rebuild the 1930-vintage locomotive for […]
Burlington 40-foot stock cars
A Burlington Route local spots a pair of stock cars at a Wyoming stock pen in 1955. The 40-foot cars were typical of modern 1950s cars, with steel underframes, ends, and roofs. The single-deck cars were built in 1949 at the railroad’s Havelock shops. William A. Akin photo […]
9 oddball diesel locomotives in North America
9 oddball diesel locomotives: Just when we think we understand the rationale behind particular railroad locomotive fleets, they like to throw us a ringer or two. Standardization is the key to a streamlined and efficient operating department, and while an endless parade of one particular model may become a little monotonous for fans, railroad accountants […]
Southern Pacific history remembered
Southern Pacific history is made up of many little stories. Each for one of its many distinct mainline routes. Until the supermergers of recent decades, Southern Pacific was one of the largest railroads in the U. S., ranking third behind Pennsylvania and New York Central in operating revenue and second behind Santa Fe in route mileage. […]
Alco diesels in the Berkshires
Three New York Central Alco FAs lift a westbound freight up Washington Hill on NYC’s Boston & Albany line in western Massachusetts in September 1949. R. E. Toby photo […]
‘Electroliner’ at night
One of the North Shore Line’s two Electroliner trains pauses at the North Chicago station on a southbound run one snowy night in the 1950s. William D. Middleton photo […]
City of San Francisco at Davis
A Southern Pacific PA-PB-PA set leads the westbound City of San Francisco at Davis, Calif., in June 1951. D. W. Johnson photo […]
‘Cardinal’ conductor L.L. Claytor reflects on five decades of railroading
Second of two parts Two veteran Amtrak employees retired last year after lengthy tours of duty on the New York-Washington-Indianapolis Chicago Cardinal, and a regular on the train reached out to suggest their stories were worth telling. Previously, we spent time with sleeping-car attendant Janice Adams [see “Two ‘Cardinal’ veterans look back …,” Trains.com, Jan. […]
