Monday, July 26, 2021

Springfield, IL: Amtrak/GM&O/ALton Depot

(Satellite)

Marty Bernard posted
Gulf Mobile & Ohio F3A #809A leads a freight slowly past the Springfield, IL depot on the warm afternoon of August 15, 1965.
Jon Roma: FYI, this is a northbound.
Marty Bernard shared
 
Springfield Model Railroad Club posted
Here's the northbound Alton Limited passing Springfield station en route to Chicago in May 1952.
Philip Anthony Kohler: Lincoln, Bloomington, Pontiac, Joliet, Chicago
Andrew Roth shared
 
Andy Zukowski posted
Gulf Mobile & Ohio Train No. 4 is coming to a station stop with the Alton Limited in Springfield, Illinois. 1952
Phil Shadid: Double track mainline in the 1950s, allowed the Alton Limited to make the St. Louis-Chicago run in 5:20. But by 1960, it took 5:30, and the name "Alton" was dropped; it became "the Limited." Does anyone know when the second main was eliminated?
Stuart B. Slaymaker: Phil Shadid : Early 60s, when they started ripping up the second main, and putting in the long passing sidings. They were a wonder to see in action. The remaining passenger trains rarely had to slow down, in a "running meet" situation.
Don Crimmin: I was the Amtrak District Supervisor of Stations, based in Springfield from November 1, 1976 until February 1978. Those were two terrible winters, weatherwise. Oh, boy, were those old Alton and GM&O ever railroaders! This was before Amtrak had taken over the T&E crews so the oldest seniority Gee-Mo men worked the jobs like Harold Feger and Jimmy Carmandy. And they accepted a long-haired, 25 year old wet-behind the ears Amtrak kid. Thanks guys, you were great.
Stuart B. Slaymaker: 100A is the second unit. It was still a Winton Powered EA in 1952. It was traded to EMD in 1953, and came back as an E-8M, with the same number. GM&Os only E-8.
Everett Lueck: The unit trailing #100 is the old original B&O EA unit originally number 52,, then 50, now GM&O #100A In the following year it would be rebuilt by EMD into a 2000 hp E-8m to better mate with the E-7's.
Bill Molony shared
Ray Schaller: Back in the day they showed pride in the equipment!

Jim Arvites posted
View of the old Gulf Mobile & Ohio Railroad passenger depot in Springfield, Illinois on March 12, 2023. The station, built in 1895 by the Chicago & Alton RR, is used by Amtrak today. In the near future the depot will be replaced by the Springfield-Sangamon Transportation Center, which is currently under construction, and expected to open in 2025.
(Keith Pokorny Photo)
Jerry Hund: What was wrong with this station?
Timothy Hawkeye Kane: Jerry Hund on the wrong set of tracks to accommodate high speed rail. Causes a lot of delays to downtown traffic anymore as well.
[To summarize some additional comments, the politicians in Springfield don't think they should put up with a fraction of the traffic congestion caused in Chicagoland by the trains.]
Ken Baker: Dwight Smith also noting the location was the same for the lincoln funeral train when the Row was the C&A.

Dennis DeBruler commented on Marty's share
One could argue that Springfield is not in the Chicago Area and that these photos belong in the RAILROAD HISTORY BUFFS OF ILLINOIS Group, but there is so much previously undocumented history in these photos that it is too hard to resist.
Per Jon Roma's comments on Marty's original post, the freight is running n/b past the depot (39°48'08.8"N 89°39'05.7"W). And the second photo is looking West along the B&O route and the caboose is s/b on the UP/GM&O/Alton route.
Can someone confirm the ownership of the "green" freight house?
Red: JA Tower
Yellow: GM&O Depot
Blue: Union Station
Orange: GM&O Freight House
Green: B&O Freight House

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