Friday, February 24, 2017

Neilson Junction: BNSF/CB&Q vws. UP/C&EI

(Satellite)
Normally, the title would begin with the town that the junction is in. But southern Illinois is such a wilderness, that two railroads joined, but no town ever developed at that junction.

Edward Bridges posted two photos with the comment:
Neilson Junction tower, built in 1911 by the C&EI for the junction of the C&EI and the CB&Q 8 miles south of Marion, Illinois where the two roads shared trackage for 16 miles to West Vienna, IL, which also had a tower.
This junction was guarded by semaphore signals the entire life of the tower 1911-1989. The tower was demolished in early 1989, but not before me and two other friends saved some priceless items from this tower.
Those items we saved (Some items many thought were lost forever) will be displayed at the MP/C&EI Joint Convention in Mt. Vernon, IL October 5-8, 2017.
Edward Bridges photographs.

1

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Not only is the West Vienna Tower gone, the junction is gone because UP has abandoned all of its C&EI trackage that was south of there including a bridge I studied. It now uses the BNSF route to access the Joppa Power Plant branch.

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