In a September 1952 view at Cincinnati Union Terminal, passengers board Baltimore & Ohio’s Cincinnatian for Detroit. Wallace W. Abbey photo […]
Cincinnatian at Cincinnati
Big Emma at rest
Louisville & Nashville class M-1 No. 1988, one of 42 “Big Emma” 2-8-4s Baldwin and Lima built for the road during 1942–49, rests between runs at Corbin, Ky., in May 1952. Ed Theisinger photo […]
Better than K-rations
Servicemen enjoy a meal on one of Baltimore & Ohio’s elegant colonial-themed dining cars during World War II. B&O photo […]
Algers, Winslow & Western 0-6-0
At Enosville in southwestern Indiana, six-wheel switcher No. 57 of 16-mile coal-hauler Algers, Winslow & Western rests between runs in May 1952. Ed Theisinger photo […]
“The Abe” departs Chicago
Gulf, Mobile & Ohio E7s 101A and 103 lead train 3, the Abraham Lincoln for St. Louis, away from Chicago Union Station. Classic Trains coll. […]
Alco S5 locomotive — a Diesel That Didn’t
Similar to the EMD RS1325, the Alco S5 locomotive is one of those locomotive designs that seemed like a good idea at the time, was engineered well, ran well, but almost no one wanted to purchase. The manufacturer needed to update its aging lineup of 660-hp S3 and 1,000-hp S4 end cab switchers […]
Best-selling first-generation Electro-Motive diesel locomotives
The best-selling first-generation Electro-Motive diesel locomotives came from the switcher, cab unit, and road switcher product lines. The company that would dominate locomotive construction from the 1940s through the 1970s had humble beginnings, contracting the construction of motor cars at other companies’ plants in the 1920s. The Electro-Motive Corp. was purchased by General Motors in […]
The Missouri-Kansas-Texas logo’s heritage
Missouri-Kansas-Texas logo underwent subtle changes throughout the railroad’s history. But its origin is more interesting than these iterative changes. In his history of the Katy, J. Parker Lamb mentions the different incarnations of Katy’s corporate herald over the years, but where did the road’s uniquely shaped emblem come from? According to Freeman Hubbard in his […]
Biggest steam switcher: Union Railroad’s 0-10-2
The biggest steam switcher stood head and shoulders above the rest. In the steam era, switch engines came in basically three sizes: 0-4-0, 0-6-0, and 0-8-0. They ranged from diminutive shop switchers — typically 0-4-0s, pretty much a pre-1900 machine — to huge switchers such as Indiana Harbor Belt’s three U-4a class 0-8-0s […]
Three-way crossing at Tuscola, Ill.
The small east-central Illinois town of Tuscola hosted an at-grade crossing of three railroads: Illinois Central (double-track, now Canadian National), Baltimore & Ohio (lower left, now CSX), and Chicago & Eastern Illinois (lower right, now UP). Gordon E. Lloyd photo […]
Northern Pacific’s Banana Nut Bread recipe
Northern Pacific’s Banana Nut Bread immediately caught my eye as a recipe worth re-creating. The railroad wanted to waste as little as possible, so using overripe bananas in a banana bread was a sensible idea. It also reused milk that had gone sour (though you don’t need to keep old milk in your fridge—see tips […]
Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad remembered
The Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad is perhaps best summed up by two words: deterioration and reconstruction. Seldom has a railroad managed to survive the number of disasters, both natural and contrived, that befell the Katy. Its 1865 charter was for the Union Pacific Southern Branch. Although it connected with the Kansas Pacific (merged by UP in 1880) […]
