Etna, PA: Junction (BG) Tower: B&O vs. Pennsy

(Satellite)

Darren Reynolds posted four photos with the comment:

The Baltimore and Ohio Railroads 

"BG" tower (Bottom Grade)?

Etna, Pennsylvania

Tim Shanahan shared

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An eastbound passing "BG" tower

Photo by: Mark J. Vinski

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The operator at "BG" tower hands up train orders to a eastbound.. The Dimond was the PRR branch to Etna... Photo by: Mark J. Vinski

Mark Malik: Headed West to New Castle.

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"BG" tower had a Armstrong leavers...The interlocking was all electric (No pipeline) March 1931

Photo by: Henry Wilhelm NRHS

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"BG" tower had a Armstrong leavers...The interlocking was all electric (No pipeline) March 1931

Photo by: Henry Wilhelm NRHS"BG" tower also Controlled the crossing gates...

Look at the lower left in this picture.... June 1977

Photo by: Rob Mandeville

This shows the "SHALLER" hill that we see in the background of some of the tower photos. It also shows the Pennsy Etna Branch that curves north down by the Sharpsburg Bridge.

1951/51 Pittsburgh East @ 24,000

The bridge that took the Pennsy Etna Branch over Pine Creek is not only extant, it sill has its tracks. In the background is the elevated road we see in some of the photos. In the left backgroiund is the road with its crossing signal for the B&O tracks. In the right background is a glimpse of the steel girder bridge for the B&O over Pine Creek.

Street View, Aug 2011

Dallas City, IL: CGB has a Wood Grain Elevator core

(Satellite)

Street View, Aug 2024

Alvaro Serrano posted
Dallas City, Illinois, USA…
Dennis DeBruler shared
I've seen several wood grain elevators in Illinois, but I don't remember any of them being in a Consolidated Grain and Barge Co. Elevator.

Dennis DeBruler commented on his share
This elevator is on the Mississippi River, and it can load barges. https://maps.app.goo.gl/VprJaNom7jJgka598

Dennis DeBruler commented on his share
When I searched for a view that wasn't blocked by the tree, I noticed that we can see the barge loading dock to the left of the wood elevator. https://maps.app.goo.gl/VprJaNom7jJgka598

Dennis DeBruler commented on his share
I fired up Google Earth and found barges at the dock in Oct 2020.

Dennis DeBruler commented on his share
And a satellite caught another barge in June 2016. About a half-dozen more images caught a barge at the dock.

Colona, IL: Lost/Rock Island Junction Tower: RI vs. CB&Q

(Satellite)

Andy Zukowski posted
Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad and  Tower in Colona, Illinois. 1911

Robert Weber: That's a CB&Q train headed towards Galesburg.

Tim Shanahan shared

Doug Hefty: The former CRIP (now Iowa Interstate) is today a single track and the diamond has been replaced by two switches with the IAIS switching onto and then off of the BNSF main.

This map was back when it was a traditional diamond crossing. I believe the reason they switched to using two turnouts was to avoid the maintenance cost of a diamond.

1953/57 Green Rock Quad @ 24,000

I also included Lock #28 on the Hennepin Canal.

1938 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Stiles Junction, WI: Lost/C&NW and Milwaukee Depot

(Satellite)

Judging by the satellite image, I thought both routes were abandoned. But James' comment below implies that at least one of the routes is owned by Escanaba and Lake Superior Railroad.
 

Greg Bunce posted three photos with the comment: "Here's some photos of the Stiles Jct., WI depot June 5, 2002 while it was still standing."

James Sucha: E&LS [Escanaba and Lake Superior Railroad] let it fall down. Never took care of it.

Paul Comstock: I did FRA signal Inspections of the Interlocking there in the mid 90's. Performed a shunt test, When we dropped the shunt, the semaphore signal went crazy, clearing, pumping and doing all sorts of strange things. Did ground tests and there were grounds everywhere. The maintainer had replaced line lightning arresters with track arresters (essentially grounds). Had to take the interlocking out of service.

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Jeff Kehoe commented on Greg's post
Here's one I took a couple of decades earlier: That was during my black & white days!

1956/58 Oconto Falls Quad @ 62,500

Niagara, NY: 1895 Edward D. Adams Power Plant (World's first major hydro-power plant)

(Satellite, the only remaining building is the Transformer House.)

I've known for decades that Tesla helped Westinghouse build the first major hydro-electric power plant in the world. AC current was chosen for this plant, and it was Tesla's "final victory" of the "Current Wars" (AC vs. DC) with Edison.

And now I finally know where that plant was built.

TeslaSociety
A higher-resolution photo via HABS NY,32-NIAF,3-

This is a view of the Transformer House. It is the building in the left foreground of the above photo. (The wastewater facility reuses much of the land of the power houses and its inlet canal, and it also reuses the tailrace tunnel of the power plant .)

Street View, Oct 2018

It is not sufficient to put a building on the National Registry as a National Landmark to preserve the building; the roof must also be maintained.

Marni Blake Walter posted
Adams power plant

Marni Blake Walter posted
Adams power plant

The early powerhouses (see also the 1905 William B. Rankine Power Station) were built upstream of the Niagara Falls and a deep underground tunnel was used to dump the water to the downstream side of the falls. More modern powerhouses use a canal or shallow tunnel to transport the water to a powerhouse on the canyon wall downstream of the falls. When this plant was built, the hydraulic canal transported water to mills that already lined the canyon wall on the American side.

HABS NY,32-NIAF,3-
6. Photocopy of print (from Niagara Power, Volume II, p. 19) Delineator and date unknown DIAGRAM OF INLET-CANAL, POWER-HOUSES AND TUNNEL - Edward D. Adams Station Power Plant, Niagara River & Buffalo Avenue, Niagara Falls, Niagara County, NY Photos from Survey HABS NY-6150

The first powerhouse and transformer house were built in 1895. The second powerhouse was built in 1903. Both powerhouses generated power until 1926, and they were demolished in 1961 after the Robert Moses Power Plant was built. [guidetags]

HABS NY,32-NIAF,3-
14. Photocopy of photograph (original in collection of Niagara Mohawk) Photographer unknown, c1960 AERIAL VIEW

I'm surprised that the generators used vertical shafts because the modern thrust bearing was not used until 1912.

TeslaSociety
"Interior of Edward Dean Adams power station at Niagara, with ten 5,000-horsepower Tesla/Westinghouse AC generator."

The above caption implies one of the powerhouses had an output of 50mw. But this source indicates it was 37mw.

EdisonTechCenter

HABS NY,32-NIAF,3-
5. Photocopy of photograph Photographer and date unknown GENERATOR

This diagram shows that some sort of thrust bearing had been developed by 1895. And that bearing has to support a long shaft as well as the rotor of the generator and the turbine wheels. An advantage of building a powerhouse down in the canyon is that the long shaft is not needed.

HABS NY,32-NIAF,3-
8. Photocopy of print (from Niagara Power, Volume II, p. 77) Delineator and date unknown ORIGINAL FAESCH AND PICCARD DEISGN OF WHEEL PIT FOR POWER HOUSE NUMBER ONE

It turns out that more than Tesla helped Westinghouse build the generators.

EdisonTechCenter

[This web page also has a timeline for the development of hydro-power in this area. And please access that page to use the green hot links.]

"From 1892 to 1894, the Niagara Falls Power Company built a 6,700 foot (2042m) long, 21 foot (6m) high and 18 foot (5m) wide horseshoe shaped tunnel which was 160 feet (49m) underground. Twenty-eight workers died in construction related accidents during this project. The tunnel extended from the Niagara Power Company Powerhouse. The tunnel displaced 300,000 tons of rock and required 20 million bricks and 2.5 million feet of lumber to line and shore the interior." [NiagaraFrontier]

The limestone used to clad the steel-framed buildings came from the tunnel excavation. [archipedia]

Percy, IL: Lost/Joint GM&O+MoPac Depot

(Satellite)

 

Andy Zukowski posted
Railroad Depot in Percy, Illinois 1911
Richard Fiedler shared

Charles Geletzke Jr. posted
Joint GM&O-MP depot in Percy, Illinois on March 17, 1973. (C. H. Geletzke, Jr. photo)

Noe Gutierrez: Photo is looking NE from S 2nd Street, with E Wabash Ave immediately behind the depot. The structure disappeared in the 1980's, leaving only an overgrown patch of ground, and the interchange track in the foreground has been severed at both ends.

Richard Fiedler shared

Brad Wallin: The Pink depot! It was painted red one time only to fade to pink. I remember seeing it when I was a kid but it’s long gone now. Tracks are still there but only the GM&O sees any use.

Richard Fiedler shared

Neal McDaniel: Did that depot sit on the northeast side of the diamond with the GM&O?

Dennis DeBruler: Neal McDaniel If I correctly understand Noe's comment on Charles' post, it was in the southeast quadrant of the diamond.

GM&O was the north/south route, and MoPac was the east/west route.

1917/46 Coulterville Quad @ 62,500

Springfield, OH: East Street (YK) Junction Tower: DT&I vs. Big Four

(Satellite, according to Scott's map below, it was closer to York Street than East Street.)

Tyler Dixon posted four photos with the comment:

NYC/ Big Four East St tower

Springfield, OH

Interchange with the DT&I

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Scott Heiden commented on Tyler's post

Rich Giles posted via Dennis DeBruler

Barrington, IL: C&NW and Metra Depots

C&NW: (Satellite, it was moved.)

Metra: (Satellite)

Andy Zukowski posted
Chicago & Northwestern Railroad Depot in Barrington, Illinois. 1917

Larry Candilas: MP 31.5 Harvard Sub

Bob Jungmann: Moved the entire station to become "Chessies" restaurant a few blocks away---worht going to see.

Richard Fiedler shared

Dennis DeBruler commented on Bob's comment
https://maps.app.goo.gl/nrRy37LDS7o8P3sW6

Metra Depot:

Street View, Jun 2024

Lemont, IL: Remodeled/Chicago & Joliet Electric Substation and Waiting Room

(Satellite)

Andy Zukowski posted
Chicago and Joliet Electric Railway Interurban Substation and waiting room at Lemont, Illinois. Postcard Dated 1910

Joseph Obrien: This building still exists in a remodeled state. It still used for electricity purposes.

Dennis DeBruler: Joseph Obrien A 1923 topo map shows that the railway did street running on Main Street. I looked for this building, but I could not find it. Please provide a street address.

Joseph Obrien: Dennis DeBruler It's a little west of the Lemont rd. bridge. On New Avenue south side of the road. A bunch of power lines running to it.

Very little resemblance to the original structure as far as the front facade.

Dennis DeBruler commented on Joseph's second comment
Thanks, I was on the wrong side of the Lemont Road Bridge. https://maps.app.goo.gl/iK7SXvb8kXkk1Wux5

Andy Zukowski posted
Chicago & Joliet Electric Railway Sub Station, Lemont, Illinois. 1912

Chadron, NE: Nebraska Northwestern Roundhouse and Lost C&NW Depot

Roundhouse: (Satellite, it is extant.)

Depot: (Satellite, based on the aerial photo below.)

Jim Arvites posted

View of the old Chicago & North Western Railway passenger depot and divisional headquarters at Chadron, Nebraska circa late 1940's. From Chadron the mainline went east to Omaha, and west to Dakota Junction. At that point the line split, one line going west into Wyoming to Casper and Lander, and other north to Rapid City and the Black Hills. Unfortunately the station was torn down a number of years ago.

(C&NW Historical Society Archives)

Mike Bartels: Torn down in 1986 after being replaced by a modern office building used only a few years.

Satellite

1980/81 Chadron West and 1970/72 Chadron East Quads @ 24,000

Oct 15, 1966 @ 22,000; AR1VBOT00010092