Open-hearth light show: Benwood at night

steelmillnight

A steel mill at night, like this one in the Pittsburgh area, was an unforgettable sight. Baltimore & Ohio At night the atmosphere in many railroad yards was completely different than it is during the daytime. Although few railroaders would admit it, there were scenes that pleased both the eye and the psyche: The colors […]

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Swift refrigerator cars

Swift refrigerator cars

A mix of older wood reefers and new steel cars mingle on the cleanout and ready tracks at Swift’s Sioux City (Iowa) plant in 1954. A lone car in the old yellow scheme stands out among a sea of cars in the red 1950 paint scheme. George Berkstresser photo […]

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Twenty-four hours at Supai Summit

SupaiLucas

On May 23, 1996, Santa Fe train P-CHLA1-21, a 5,338-ton, 7,133-foot train, at Supai Summit in northern Arizona. John C. Lucas Have you read Fred W. Frailey’s October 2017 “Commentary,” “24 hours at Supai Summit?” He spills all of the details of a 1996 visit to Kaibab National Forest 4 miles east of Williams, Ariz., […]

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Former Smithsonian rail curator William Withuhn dies NEWSWIRE

Withuhn

Withuhn in his Washington office. Smithsonian Institution BURSON, Calif. – Any account of railroading in the past four decades would be incomplete without including the formidable contributions of William L. Withuhn, whose work as a historian, museum professional, journalist, author, shortline executive, preservationist, and engineering consultant is without precedent. He is best known for his […]

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Santa Fe train 76 and 17 tons of sand

atsf_pa_61

Santa Fe PA No. 61, whose long nose may have saved its crew 14 years later, in 1951 flies green flags on the point of First 24, the Grand Canyon, at Caliente, Calif. Stan Kistler On December 22, 1965, I was the engineer on Santa Fe Railway Los Angeles–San Diego train 76, one of the […]

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Union Pacific to host two-year-long celebration of the Transcontinental Railroad completion NEWSWIRE

img_up_great_race_logo

UP has created this new 150th anniversary logo celebrating the completion of the transcontinental railroad in May 1869. Union Pacific OMAHA, Neb. — Union Pacific is launching a two-year-long celebration commemorating the great race to complete the Transcontinental Railroad nearly 150 years ago. During the next two years, the railroad will host a traveling exhibit, […]

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