GG1 at Swarthmore

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GG1 4903 heads a westbound rush-hour commuter train at Swarthmore, Pa., sometime during World War II. A mainline motor like this was a rarity on PRR’s West Chester Branch. George Gillespie As were many railroads during the busy World War II years, the Pennsylvania Railroad was hard-pressed for equipment. Many of us remember seeing locomotives and […]

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Twenty-four hours at Supai Summit

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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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Sumpter Valley Malley

Sumpter Valley Railroad 2-6-6-2 Mallet

2-6-6-2 Mallet No. 250 of the 3-foot-gauge Sumpter Valley Railway in northeast Oregon rolls a train of lumber toward the Union Pacific interchange at Baker, Ore., in 1946. The SV was abandoned in 1948, but a portion has been revived as a museum and tourist railway. Henry R. Griffiths photo […]

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Kentucky diesel paint schemes

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Louisville & Nashville adopted Alcos by the 1950s on lines in eastern Kentucky. The railroad first painted RS3s, FA2s, and FB2s in black, cream, and orange, but later opted for simpler schemes. R.D. Sharpless, Louisville & Nashville Historical Society collection Q My family moved from Texas to southeastern Kentucky in the mid-1950s, and I remember […]

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Super Streamliners: Dazzling passenger trains from the classic era of rail travel

Long before the advent of diesels and lightweight equipment, streamliners shaped “high-speed rail” in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. In this free, 35-page download, we revisit the classic streamliner era. This series includes: The Great Chicago-Twin Cities Speed War: How intense competition between Burlington Route, Milwaukee Road, and Chicago & North Western drastically reduced daytime […]

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Coast-to-coast passenger train

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Amtrak’s westbound ‘Sunset Limited’ pauses for a station stop in Atmore, Ala., at sunrise in January 1995. It was the nation’s first and only transcontinental passenger train. Bob Johnston Q There were numerous named passenger trains that spanned distances beyond the reach of a single railroad, such as the California Zephyr between Chicago and Oakland, […]

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Trains Presents: Train Festival 2011

We take you trackside for Train Festival 2011 in the Quad Cities! Relive the glory days of Midwest steam excursions and see your favorite locomotives, including Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 No. 765 and Iowa Interstate’s Chinese-built QJs! Be sure to look for our special issue, Big Steam is Back, available now, along with its companion […]

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Trains Tube: ‘Selling Sunshine’ DVD preview

Brightly painted diesel electric locomotive.

Join Trains Magazine Editor Jim Wrinn and video producer Rich Luckin for an early look at our next DVD production: “Selling Sunshine, the Florida Trains,” available in late August 2017. You’ll learn about the passenger trains that opened the Sunshine State to tourism and the railroads they ran on. […]

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