Spokane, WA: Lost/GN Hillyard & BNSF Yardley/NP Parkland Railyards & Roundhouses and Purina Feed Mill

GN Hillyard: (Satellite, just east of Market Street between south of Wellesley Ave. and Lincoln Road.)

GN Roundhouse: (Satellite, northeast quadrant of tracks and Wellesley Ave.)

BNSF Yardley/NP Parkland: (Satellite)

NP Roundhouse: (Satellite, part of the foundation is still visible.)

Backshop: (Satellite)

Feed Mill: (Satellite)

Leland Dean Fultz posted
This is an aerial photo taken by the military in 1931 of the Great Northern Railroad Hillyard Yard and Roundhouse. There is absolutely nothing left of the Yard and Roundhouse. Just North of Spokane, Washington

Two images were provided in the comments, but Leland Dean Fultz indicated that these two images are of the Northern Pacific Parkland Yard. Google Maps labels the yard as BNSF Yardley, so evidently the name of this yard was changed.

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Dennis DeBruler commented on Leland's post
The GN yard, 1950/55 Spokane Quad @ 62,500

Dennis DeBruler commented on Leland's post
The NP yard, 1950/55 Spokane Quad @ 62,500

Yardley not only still has its turntable, but it also appears it has some of its old backshop buildings.

Street View, Oct 2024

I normally don't bother with "sheet-metal" photos, but the grain elevator caught my eye.

Arctic Gaming, Mar 2023

While looking for the grain elevator, it is obvious that they also handle intermodal traffic here.

Street View, Oct 2024

Arctic Gaming must have posted his photo to the wrong location because the only silos I could find were the ones in the middle background of the above view. It is obviously a feed mill complete with a Purina feed truck.

Street View, Oct 2024

But it appears that a lot of the feed is packaged for shipment.

Street View, Oct 2024

They do have limited rail service. I presume that is for receiving some of the supplements. They even have their own "critter" to spot the hopper cars.

Satellite

Or is this mill big enough to ship feed by rail? It looks like the left track is for receiving and the right track is for shipping.

Steve Powell, Dec 2016

An older view shows that they can also ship a lot of feed in bulk trucks.

Street View, Oct 2013

Newton, IA: Rock Island and MSTL Depots

Rock Island: (Satellite)

MSTL: (Satellite)

MSTL = Minneapolis & St. Louis Railroad, later it was C&NW

Roger Kujawa posted three photos with the comment: "The Rock Island’s Newton, Iowa depot is now a private home.  The Iowa Interstate now run the line in front of the depot."

Chris Goepel: Interesting. Thought it was a museum, at least at one time. Newton was served by three railroads: CRI&P, M&StL, and N&NW [Newton & North Western]. I believe the depots from the latter two carriers may also still be in existence. It’s been a number of years since I’ve seen them myself.

Dustin Holschuh: The mstl depot is still there.   737 north 3rd Avenue

Roger Kujawa shared

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Dustin Hiolschuh commented on Roger's post

Street View

Watertown, TN: Tourist Railroad Turntable

(Satellite, they plan to install the turntable in 2025.)

This Tennessee Central route is now owned by Nashville & Eastern Railroad (NERR). [2004 SPV Map]

Nashville Steam posted four photos with the comment:

Yesterday, members of Nashville Steam and the Tennessee Central Railway Museum attended the official groundbreaking ceremony for the future Watertown Rail Yard & Turntable! This multi-year project will reinstall the former NC&StL turntable from the Tilford (Hills Park) Yard in Atlanta that will once again turn No. 576 on future excursions. New lead and display tracks will also be constructed. 

A hearty congratulations to the City of Watertown on this achievement! And a big thank you to R. J. Corman Railroad Group for their support with this project!

Kevin William Jones: They ought to go up to Cookeville and back again for there excursion that's good news what there doing I'm proud of them.

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Brochure via NashvilleSteam

Kevin's comment must be wishful thinking rather than the plan because that would be a long tourist railroad ride. But I'm guessing it would be scenic.

1956/71 Nashville and 1956/66 Corbin Quads @ 250,000

Onaway, MI: Wood Grain Elevator and Storage Boxcar

(Satellite)

Maxwell Crosby posted

“One last load”

Former Grand Trunk Western 50 foot boxcar 592517 sits on what’s left of the spur for an old elevator as it has for at least 4 or 5 decades in the small town of Onaway, Michigan.

In recent years some clearing has made this view possible, revealing the boxcar to the outside world once more. Behind the elevator is yet another car, but due to the rain and not being prepared for what else could be back there I did not wander out back to see what the identity of the car was. Sitting on plain bearing trucks the two cars were most likely purchased for storage by the elevator and left behind, even after the former Detroit and Mackinaw was removed through here.

Stephen Lane

Looks like an elevator with feed making capabilities. The cyclone is pretty low to be for the grain legs, so I’m assuming it was for a hammer mill.

Stephen Lane

Well things to know about ag businesses:

Elevator Companies: a business whose main purpose is to receive grain, store and dry. Limited processing is done. Mostly run by Co-Ops so Small farmers could have a shipping point and the railways had a sizeable customer to deal with.

Feed Mill: a company that may or may not receive and dry grain, but takes in for in house processing. Able to make several different grades and types of feed and sold generally in 25,50 and 100 lb sacks.

Grist/Flour Mills: a mill who has more refinement capabilities than a feed mill. Generally with use of fine grinding machines and packing. Food grade machinery in use.

Sometimes the smaller elevators became feed mills as the need for elevating and storage of grain became...less needed.

Troy Kleman

Stephen Lane I worked at an elevator that was also a feed mill. They are still one of the few such places that exist today. 4h livestock keeps them busy. Rail service is getting more and more rare as railroad up the car load requirement for service.

Maxwell Crosby shared

The Detroit and Mackinaw never got absorbed by the Michigan Central. It is still labeled Detroit and Mackinac on a 1955/64 Chbeoygan @ 250,000 topo map. And the only label shows by the 2004 SPV Map is DM. Normally, that map labels who built the route and who abandoned it. Interestingly, the 1928 RR Atlas, which is my naming standard, doesn't even show it even though there is room on the map. Thus, the label "rrOther" for these notes.

Goreville, IL: Lost/C&EI Depot

(Satellite)

Stephen N. Brannon posted
C&EI Depot at Goreville between Neilson Tower to the north and West Vienna Tower to the south. Situated at the top of somewhat steep grade. CB&Q had trackage rights between Neilson and West Vienna and the two roads exchanged coal hoppers at Goreville - CB&Q loads headed to the EEI steam power plant at Joppa served by the C&EI, and C&EI loads destined for the TVA Shawnee steam power plant served by the CB&Q. Both power plants were on the Ohio River - EEI on the Illinois side and TVA on the Kentucky side accessed via the P&I Bridge over the Ohio at Metropolis. CB&Q helper engines were sometimes stationed at Neilson Tower to assist loaded coal trains up the hill to Goreville.

Dennis DeBruler commented on Stephen's post
I think this big concrete slab used to be the foundation of the depot. https://maps.app.goo.gl/VpkGhQh3USy6yKYT6

1966/67 Goreville Quad @ 24,000

1938 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Columbiana, OH: Reichard/Pollock Co., 1933 Columbiana Foundry and 1952 Compco

Reichard Industries/Pollock: (Satellite, they also use the buildings on the east side of Fairfield Ave.)

Compco: (Satellite)

Foundry: (Satellite)

Pollock made the special freight cars that are used to haul molten iron from the blast furnace to a steel-making building. Evidently, the company started in Youngstown in 1863. The plant in this town is now owned by Reichard Industries, but they still make bottle cars.

TheRustJungle

 

Raymond Boothe posted via Dennis DeBruler

Viral Media posted

Hot Metal Car

The Reichard cars are used to haul molten iron from a blast furnace to a finishing mill. The car’s interior is lined with firebrick since the molten steel loads average temperature is about 2,732 degrees Fahrenheit. The outer steel casing is 1” thick steel and is lined with about 20”of refractory brick lining that stops the steel vessel from suffering damage when used to transport molten metals. If the molten metal came in direct contact with the ladle shell, it would rapidly melt through the shell.

They have about a four hour window to move the car between plants once the they are loaded with molten metal. If the load cools too much you have a solid piece of metal which is an expensive problem. The bottle cars rotate to pour out their molten contents. 

The cars are manufactured by Reichard Industries based in Columbiana, Ohio.  They are the successor to the William B. Pollock Co. and are the only domestic builder of hot metal cars. Reichard is a specialty steel industry supplier, and builds or rebuilds ladles, hot metal cars, and an exotic array of items for blast furnace, basic oxygen furnaces, and electric-arc furnaces. 

Rick Rowlands posted 15 photos with the comment: "some builder's photos of Pollock hot metal cars."

Richard Allison: I know those ladles well. They look like mostly 150 ton and 250 ton and a couple a bit larger. I ran a ladle house and did all the maintenance on them from bricking, gunning and mechanical repairs on knuckles, trucks and tilting gearboxes. Good post.

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[This would be how they shipped the car we see at Sloss. I presume the standard flatcar trucks can travel faster than the 3-axle trucks. These cars never had to go fast inside a steel mill.]

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Building bottle cars is probably no longer a full time job, so they fabricate all sorts of stuff. But they do seem to specialize in round things.

In the background, on the left, I see a ladle. The half-circles on the right are too big for a bottle car.

Street View, May 2024

We are lucky that the street view driver drove by while they were preparing some oversized loads.

Street View, Sep 2023

I wonder where these are going and what kind of machine that they will help build.

Street View, Sep 2023

While looking for the Reichard Industries plant, I found Compco, which makes the ends of tanks, steel domes and other stamped parts.

Compco
"Mechanical and Hydraulic Presses with capacities ranging from 600 to 2,500 tons"

 

ColumbianaFoundry
"The Columbiana Foundry is one of only a handful of companies in the U.S. that offers castings in both steel and iron. In fact, we pour virtually every class of ferrous alloy throughout the year. We are fully capable of complete casting and pattern design, including the conversion of fabrications, forgings, and other metal parts to castings. Whatever your particular casting needs from prototype to low or medium quantity production runs the Columbiana Foundry is ready to serve you!"

Compco is in a rather generic industrial building, but the foundry's building has some character. Note all of the exhaust vents on the roof.

Street View, Oct 2013

Judging from a satellite image, none of these industries are now rail served. Pennsy went past all of these buildings, and Pollock would have also been served by the Youngstown & Southern Railroad.

1951/53 Columbiana Quad @ 24,000