Cairo, IL: IC Interlocking Towers: IC vs. GM&O and Bridge

Bridge: (Satellite, now just a signaling equipment cabinet.)

Junction: (Satellite, the replacement tower. Again, it is marked by a signaling cabinet.)

While researching the location of the Cairo Junction, I found this picture of the Illinois Tower in the bridge posting. Note that Mobile & Ohio trains must have used the Cairo Junction to join the IC mainline to share this expensive bridge. A 1946 GM&O train is consistent with the 1940 merger of M&O with Gulf Mobile & Northern. And 1946 is long before GM&O became a fallen flag in 1972 when the ICG was created by merging both of these north/south routes --- IC and GM&O.

Photo 14 from Classic Trains, Henry J. McCord
New Orleans–St. Louis Rebel motor train at North Cairo, Ill., July 1946.
[Comments on a posting disagreed with "North Cairo." It was Illinois.]
Paul Turner It sits (or did sit) right above the Cairo Water Treatment plant, now Illinois American. Looking down on Bunge and the former Burkhart plant.
Paul Turner Those folks at Classic Trains are great, and I’m a subscriber, but that’s not North Cairo. In RR timetable parlance, that’s, as the shanty indicates, Illinois. But that is Cairo, geographically in the general sense. I’ve climbed those stairs, there are 99 of them, as we counted them in High School.

1938 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

The Bunge plant was rather small back then. The track going south from the top of the image to under the bridge and then curving west was the Big Four.

Illinois Central Railroad Scrapbook posted two photos with the comment:

Two views of the interlocking tower at Cairo Junction, Illinois.  Located about 3 miles north of downtown Cairo, the tower protected the junction between Illinois Central's north-south mainline and Mobile & Ohio Railroad's line from St. Louis  (the M&O had trackage rights across IC's Ohio River bridge; on the south side of the river, the M&O joined the IC at Winford Junction, KY).

Cairo Junction also was the location where IC's line into the city of Cairo itself joined the mainline.  

The tower seen here was built in 1902.  According to an article in the June 6, 1902 "Railway Age", the tower controlled 15 turnouts (a.k.a. "track switches"), 14 signals, and 1 movable point frog.  This was an electric interlocking plant.  In other words, when an operator turned a lever, a signal was sent to an electrical motor connected to the turnout or signal, causing that device to move.

The signal equipment was supplied by Taylor Signal Company.  Apparently IC was not happy with this equipment.  The December 24, 1909 issue of Railway Age Gazette says the old equipment was replaced by new signal equipment supplied by General Railway Supply.  The old building was kept, however.  

The tower had a short life.  Disastrous floods hit the Mississippi River in 1912, and the Ohio River in 1913.  The city of Cairo itself was spared thanks to several miles of levees and a downtown floodwall.  But IC's track north of town was heavily damaged.  In response, several miles of track were raised between Cairo and Villa Ridge.  The tracks at Cairo Junction were raised about 5 feet, necessitating the construction of a new interlocking tower.

Both photos, IC photographer, Cliff Downey coll.

 Cliff Downey shared

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EarthExplorer: Feb 21, 1952 @ 23,600; AR1SW0000010137
Dennis DeBruler commented on Cliff's share
It appears that the replacement tower was in the middle of the curve of the connector.