Messages

1

General Discussion / Re: The end of Blommer

« on: March 23, 2024, 08:41:02 AM »

That is sad and unexpected news. At least we have known the Tribune Freedom Center plant will be closing for a long time now.

I hope to get down there for some final photos of UP switching both of them next month.

UP will be happy to be rid of both of them as it is probably a money loser to assign a crew and a train to make the trip all the way from Proviso and back twice a week.

I wonder how much longer Alpha Baking on the Cragin Line will stay open? At least there is less development pressure in that neighborhood vs. River West and the Fulton Market areas.

2

General Discussion / Rare Picture of Blommer Chocolate Tractor Used to Spot Tank Cars on Lower Level

« on: March 18, 2024, 07:15:18 AM »

https://www.flickr.com/photos/uspslabelfan/53574475543/in/photolist-2keYJFS-21i9M8i-2keSWMz-2pCcc5c-22AkcBW-PWji1Q-2pCcMEk-2okaZ3m-26BaYGL-uGv2qH-22D4xyT-2kgfqYv-22Akdhd-2pCdp7Z-2keX8tR-2nGqihi-aa2fCu-21i9Mv2-22AkdNU-2pCb8c7-21yqrE7-2nqxmzT-e89a2V-e8eNDW-2ka4Cv7-ao6oSg-2ksAFdr-vknvGr-2kGQQ1e-26BaXW7-2h5FoEP-VLZ4dB-e897Qn-EP2APE-2hpEbdg-2nwrJyo-2n8ShXU-Q8NnSL-2h5H4jp-e8eMEJ-2okckhf-2n8J3X2-2nwsZos-e8eSvm-e897Kv-2nwrDtb-e8eSp5-e899ev-e89bax-e898FF

3

General Discussion / Anyone Have Details on CPKC Steam Train Departure From Franklin Park May 8?

« on: March 18, 2024, 07:13:49 AM »

The CPKC steam train tour is stopping in Franklin Park on May 8.

https://www.cpkcr.com/en/media/CPKC-2024-Steam-Tour-Schedule-Dates

Does anyone know about what time it is scheduled to leave Franklin Park? It will be a mob scene there so I am hoping to get photos of the train as it heads west instead.

4

Modeling / Re: Miami / Lance Mindheim modeling

« on: December 22, 2023, 11:16:33 AM »

Thanks, Jeff.

I purchased his book too Stucco and Pastels which is a brief, but interesting, read with plenty of pictures of the Downtown Spur before its recent rationalization that eliminated many of the spurs that used to flare off of it.

I wish I had more time to explore the industrial lines of Miami.

5

General Discussion / Re: Bloomer switching in movie "Blink" 1994

« on: December 09, 2023, 08:00:10 PM »

Great catch. I never even heard of that movie.

It's almost as if they timed that shot on purpose to have the two trains go by.

Must have been a hot delivery if C&NW made a special run to drop off a single car to Bloomer.

6

General Discussion / Re: Kingsbury Street

« on: August 11, 2023, 09:28:07 AM »

In 1987 there would have been several industries that still regularly received boxcars on this line, the Chicago & Evanston or C&E, and off the attached Goose Island trackage. This train is heading south on Kingsbury just past Cortland.

1. Wallace Business Forms at Grand Avenue and Kingsbury.
2. Midwest Zinc on Kingsbury just south of North Avenue.
3. Plibrico on Kingsbury just north of North Avenue.
4. Midwest Industrial Metals on Goose Island on North Branch at Bliss.
5. Big Bay Lumber on Goose Island, North Branch at Division.

The last train in revenue service on these former Milwaukee Road lines was in 2015 to Big Bay Lumber by Chicago Terminal. Chicago Terminal and its parent Iowa Pacific Holdings went out of business in 2019. That was the year of the final movement on these rails as stored reefers were retrieved and brought back across the Chicago River to the Union Pacific North Avenue Yard.

These former Milwaukee Road lines branched off the Chicago & Evanston Line which at one time connected the tracks entering Union Station on the south with a passenger depot in Wilmette on the north end. The MILW cut back the C&E Line over time, starting with the predecessor of the CTA taking over operation of freight and passenger service from Irving Park Road north. By 1984 the C&E Line was cut back to Diversey on the north and Grand Avenue on the south. Its connection to the outside world was via the Bloomingdale Line, now a trail.

In 1986 Canadian Pacific via its Soo Line subsidiary took over operations of the Milwaukee Road including the industrial tracks on the North Side of Chicago. In 2001 the Bloomingdale Line was put out of service as a through line for transfer runs so CP leased space at Union Pacific's North Avenue yard and connected via the interchange track to its home rails. In 2007 shortline Chicago Terminal took over operations of what was left from CP.

I covered the history of these lines in detail in a Milwaukee Road Historical Association book called The Milwaukee Road in Chicago which was recently reprinted by the MRHA and is available on their website.

I also have photos and maps in these albums among others.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/albums/72177720296370340

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/albums/72157715114878692

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/albums/72157657870065262

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/albums/72157657240086290

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/albums/72157657848232111

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/albums/72157704913274794

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/albums/72157704913274794

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/albums/72157704913274794

7

General Discussion / Cool Picture of Streetcar Crossing MILW Tracks Outside Wrigley Field

« on: July 14, 2023, 07:29:43 PM »

Not sure if this picture has been posted here before or not...

8

General Discussion / Re: 1921 tracks along river

« on: July 05, 2023, 07:44:44 AM »

Nice catch. I am guessing that the Sun-Times building then later Trump Tower occupied that spot.

Reminder looking at the smoke in the air in the photo that in the old days bad air days were common in the industrial past when homes and industries burned coal.

9

General Discussion / Re: CNW shrine on the Mayfair branch

« on: July 05, 2023, 07:42:50 AM »

It's nice that they preserved a relic of the railroad heritage and noted it with a sign. I walked the 606 Trail when it first opened and was disappointed to not see a single rail preserved nor signage unlike the High Line Trail in NYC.

The date is a little off. UP continued to service Sun Chemical north of Touhy through at least 2003 and the tracks were in place as late as 2005.

Also this line at this point was actually the Weber Branch of Line. Mayfair was the line up to River Junction. From there it forked into the Skokie Subdivision to Northbrook and the Weber Line into Evanston.

http://industrialscenery.blogspot.com/2020/04/abanc-weber-yard-on-weber-canal-branch.html

Good digital copy of this out of print book on the line available here-

https://cnwhs.org/wp1/product/cnw-lines-north-of-mayfair-maps/

I have photos of the line when it was still in service and later, after operations ended but the tracks were still in place, in this album.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/albums/72157658402425729/with/20903869703/

10

General Discussion / Re: photo missions

« on: July 05, 2023, 07:28:36 AM »

How about retracing the route of the former Milwaukee Road Chicago & Evanston Line?

You could start at the former Buena Yard, just north of Irving Park Road where it interchanged with the CTA via a ramp. Then follow it south all the way to where it at one time crossed the North Branch of the Chicago River at Kinzie and Kingsbury and joined the main MILW tracks along Canal Street where they Metra/Amtrak tracks now cross Canal. It ran on the east side of Canal Street after crossing by where the East Bank Club now sits.

Your route would be primarily on city streets like Lakewood and Kingsbury. You could take a side trip onto Goose Island.

Show what artifacts like embedded tracks in the pavement are still left.

These maps should help.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/albums/72157715114878692

Put your photos on Flickr also.

Tom

11

General Discussion / Re: Buena

« on: June 15, 2023, 03:35:12 PM »

The Milwaukee Road engines would work the Buena Yard up to where it became single track to go up the CTA ramp. There was a story where a MILW engine became derailed and a CTA electric engine helped rerail it. The overhead wires extended all the way to Irving Park.

12

General Discussion / Re: customer spreadsheet

« on: June 04, 2023, 04:43:01 PM »

Along the Milwaukee Road C&E Line between Belden and Webster on the east side was Richardson Chemical. North of Belden were coal dealers.

Richardson Chemical lasted at least as long as 1979 as a rail served customer. It was gone by 1985 when I started photographing the line.

Here's a view of the plant being demolished to make way for townhomes.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/20606052648/in/photolist-xoTpxN-xEExk5-LiHihj-YvHRsN-xG7WPa

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/20784606302/in/photolist-xoTpxN-xEExk5-LiHihj-YvHRsN-xG7WPa

South of Webster and north of Clybourn you had a Lakin tire facility and a liquor distributor on the east side. On the west side was the Birk Brothers Brewery.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/29080135950/in/photolist-xoTpxN-xEExk5-LiHihj-YvHRsN-xG7WPa

13

General Discussion / Re: customer spreadsheet

« on: June 04, 2023, 04:30:34 PM »

I had to dig up an old post but I found what you are looking for. Here is a spreadsheet I put together of all time C&NW and UP customers on the Harvard Subdivision.

https://sites.google.com/view/chicago-north-westernunion-pac?usp=sharing

14

General Discussion / Re: customer spreadsheet

« on: June 01, 2023, 04:47:10 PM »

I posted quite a few scanned track diagrams with listings of customers over the years on the former Milwaukee Road and some C&NW lines in this Flickr album-

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39092860@N06/albums/72157715114878692

15

General Discussion / Re: Buena

« on: May 24, 2023, 07:48:19 AM »

Very cool. I have never seen pictures of it before.