Two red and gray Monon F3 diesels approach the complex 21st Street interlocking in Chicago with the outbound Tippecanoe in 1950. Wallace W. Abbey photo […]
Monon’s Tippecanoe leaves Chicago
Zone & Region: Midwest
Lake States Railway Historical Association sets lineup for annual symposium
BARABOO, Wis. — The non-profit Lake States Railway Historical Association has announced presenters for its expanded Railroad History Symposium to be held April 12 in Baraboo. The symposium is the largest fundraising event of the year for LSRHA. Changes this year include moving the event to the Al Ringling Theatre in Baraboo, built in 1915 […]
Mid-Continent museum seeks funds for return of C&NW No. 1385
NORTH FREEDOM, Wis. — The Mid-Continent Railway Museum has launched a fundraising effort to return its celebrated steam locomotive, Chicago & North Western 4-6-0 No. 1385, to the museum to continue the effort to restore the 1907 Alco to operation. The locomotive, out of service for more than a quarter-century and away from the museum […]
NTSB report says wheel slide led to collision between CTA train, snow removal machine
WASHINGTON — Wheel slide, reflecting a trio of factors, led to the collision between a Chicago Transit Authority Yellow Line train and a snow-removal machine involved in training, the National Transportation Safety Board said in its final investigation report on the Nov. 16, 2023, accident, released today (Feb. 5, 2025). The wheel slide reflected an […]
The Illinois Central Gulf layout in HO scale
Facts and features Name: Illinois Central Gulf Scale: HO (1:87.1)Size: 25 x 40 feet plus 12 x 16-foot staging in crawl spacePrototype: Illinois Central GulfLocale: Chicago to Champaign, Ill.Era: October 1976Style: walk-inMainline run: 350 feetMinimum radius: 30″Minimum turnout: No. 5Maximum grade: less than .5%Benchwork: open gridHeight: 46″ to 59″Roadbed: ¾” plywood and ½” Homasote Track: […]
Proposal for Iowa City commuter rail service stalls
IOWA CITY, Iowa — A proposal to launch battery-electric commuter train service between Iowa City and North Liberty, Iowa, appears to be dead after the railroad involved said it would not allow use of its trackage. The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports that the Cedar Rapids & Iowa City Railway, or CRANDIC, told those involved with […]
East Troy Industrial Park, Episode 1 | Introducing an all-new HO scale project layout
Trains.com host David Popp invites you along for this initial overview of Model Railroader magazine’s emerging HO scale (1:87.1) project layout, the East Troy Industrial Park Railroad! To get things started, David shares how 1:1 scale operations of a Class III railroad (as featured in the Trains.com Video Series “Taking Care of Business: SMS Rail […]
Lawsuit blames seven deaths on East Palestine derailment
EAST PALESTINE, Ohio — A new lawsuit blames the East Palestine derailment and toxic-chemical release for seven deaths, including that of a week-old infant. The suit was announced Monday — two years after the Feb. 3, 2023, Norfolk Southern derailment — by a trio of law firms on behalf of some 744 plaintiffs. It names […]
The Amtrak Floridian returns
As an entity with 50-plus years under its belt, Amtrak now has plenty of its own history, in addition to that of the trains it took over as of May 1, 1971. Thus, it probably should not have been a total surprise when Amtrak launched a through train service in November 2024 between Chicago […]
Streamliner pioneer
The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy’s Zephyr was the first diesel streamliner, entering service in 1934. The locomotive, which was articulated with the train set, was powered by a 660-hp Winton 201A diesel engine. Classic Trains collection […]
Model Railroader staff’s favorite track plans
When it come to track plans, everyone has a favorite. After all, each modeler values and prioritizes different aspects of model railroading. Some prefer intricate freight switching layouts, while others prefer long, continuous passenger routes. Some like layouts with dense foliage and rolling hills, whereas other modelers may prefer flat, desert landscapes. We here at […]
Spaces to Places VII | Taking a miniprints break
In this episode, host Gerry Leone takes a bit of a respite from construction of his HO scale Bona Vista HO scale model railroad. Join Gerry at Milwaukee’s Trainfest 2024 event, where he works with miniprints owner Bernard Hellen (a.k.a “Dr. Mini”) to prepare O and HO scale life-like figures of himself! Want to see […]
