The eastbound Southern Pacific Sunset Limited approaches the Memorial Tunnel at El Paso, Texas, on March 15, 1952. Born in 1894, the Sunset had received its latest upgrade in 1950. Classic Trains collection […]
Texas Tunnel
Train Topic: Fallen Flags
Southern Pacific fans remember ‘The Bear’
When mourners gather Thursday for services at the Church of Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Auburn, Calif., it will mark a special occasion for anyone associated with the once-upon-a-time Southern Pacific Railroad: a moment to appreciate a true SP hero, James C. Mahon, known from Sacramento to San Antonio as “The Bear.” Railroaders in charge […]
Reminiscing on five prolific narrow gauge railroads in Colorado
The silver and gold bonanza of the late 19th Century led to a boom in narrow gauge railroad startups across Colorado. But out of the plethora that’ve come and gone, which left an impact in the Centennial State and sparked our enthusiasm to visit what’s left today? Let’s find out by reminiscing about five prolific […]
Burlington Route diesel locomotives remembered
Burlington Route diesel locomotives showed a strong loyalty to Electro-Motive Division, located in the online community of LaGrange, Ill. The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy was a diesel pioneer with its Zephyr passenger trains in the 1930s, and the railroad began dieselizing mainline freight trains with EMD FTs in 1943. The CB&Q continuing dieselizing with a […]
Business car group seeks to save former N&W sleeping car
CHESTERTON, Ind. — The group that has preserved a former Norfolk & Western business car is now seeking to save and restore former N&W sleeping car Hollins College. The N&W Business Car 300 Preservation Society says it is working with Norfolk Southern, the Hoosier Valley Railroad Museum, and the Morristown & Erie Railway to preserve […]
Four-builder lineup
A General Electric U25B leads EMD, Alco, and Fairbanks-Morse units on Norfolk & Western train KB6 near Hull, Ill., in October 1964, just weeks after N&W leased the Wabash. J. David Ingles photo […]
Burlington Route passenger trains remembered
Burlington Route passenger trains are part of Classic Trains‘ editors’ celebration of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy all through December 2024. Please enjoy this photo gallery of Burlington Route passenger trains selected from Firecrown Media’s David P. Morgan Library. Since October 2019, Classic Trains’ editors have celebrated a different Fallen Flag, that is, […]
Union Pacific to tear down landmark Sparks, Nev., machine shop, will offer bricks to public
SPARKS, Nev. — Union Pacific is planning to tear down a 120-year-old machine shop in Sparks, Nev., to the disappointment of preservationists, but will offer residents a chance to retain a piece of the historic building. The city and railroad have announced that UP will make bricks from the structure — older than the city of […]
Burlington Route steam as only John Gruber could see it
We all have “near misses” in our lives, and one of the biggest for me was the steam program of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, known best by the numbers of its two star locomotives, 4-8-4 No. 5632 and 2-8-2 No. 4960. Both were among a few saved after the Q dieselized and subsequently […]
An engineer’s life: Christmas calendar
I used to get a bit of grief when I was a new hire from co-workers for being a railfan. Railroaders can sniff out a rail enthusiast from 100 miles away — but I know I was not alone. Personally, I think there are more out there than would ever admit to it. I was […]
Railroad names for a baby
Okay let me be the first to say, I am childless. However when a friend of mine told me that he and his wife were expecting, I immediately started to wonder what they would name the child. The next day I brought up the idea to a colleague and said that I thought Norfolk would […]
Baltimore & Ohio toy train display
Years ago, it was not unknown for railroads to promote themselves via railroad models. This actually began in the toy train sphere of model railroading. Scale model railroading as a hobby emerged from toy trains, which began to come to prominence in the early 20th century. As evidence, I’ll cite the fact that Al […]
