Tuesday, March 17, 2026

Carson City, NV: Nevada State Railroad Museum and Lincoln Highway

Turntable: (Satellite)

Virginia & Truckee Railway posted
This snapshot from the early 20th century captures the Carson City Railroad buildings in a quieter moment.
Although vegetation reclaimed parts of the yard, these locomotives remind us that the rails remained a powerful symbol of connection, industry, and progress.
Today, the legacy of those operations continues through the preservation and revitalization of historic routes. 🚂
Roger Eyrich shared

It has an armstrong turntable. According to some comments on the above post, this is not the original location of the roundhouse.
Street View, Aug 2023

CarsonRailroadMuseum

This is the oldest topo map that I could find, and the railroad is already abandoned. 
1956/58 Carson City Quad @ 62,500

An an aerial photo didn't help.
Apr 15, 1953 @ 20,000; AR2CB0000020077

Lincoln Highway


When I noticed that Google Maps also used the label Lincoln Hwy for US-50, I did some research as to how the Lincoln Highway got from US-30 at Granger Junction to US-50. See the <update> section in Lincoln Highway Overview.
Satellite


Monday, March 16, 2026

Greenbush,MN: Wood Grain Elevator

CHS: (Satellite, this is the one in Brian's photo)
Co-Op: (Satellite)

Brian Allan Martin posted
Went ice fishing earlier this month and on the way back got to stop and take several photos. This is in Greenbush, Minnesota. Taken 02/04/2023.

It looks like it has a fall protector, but it is painted blue instead of yellow. The Great Northern route is marked as Minnesota Northern Railroad on a USGS map. Since that would be a shortline, CHS may get good rail service and be able to load unit trains.
Note the old elevator in the right background. I could not find this on the satellite image. I even fired up Google Earth, and looked at images older than Sep 2012, but I still could not find it. I'm perplexed.
Street View, Sep 2012

Are these trucks for dry fertilizer or animal feed?
Street View

This end of the co-op handles feed while the other end handles fertilizer. I don't think bulk delivery trucks handle seed. The middle of the co-op handles grain.
Street View

The other side of the CHS elevator. They added several bins. I wonder what they store in those bins.
Street View, Sep 2023

This strikes me as a short cut of hoppers for grain, but a long one for fertilizer.
Satellite

Todo: check out Erskine. Are they using concrete for the new storage?

Sunday, March 15, 2026

Glen Carbon, IL: Junction: Trail/ICG/IC vs. Trail/IT/St. Louis, Troy & Eastern

(Satellite, Mont, IL, is now in the boundaries of Glen Carbon)

The IC route is now the Glen Carbon Heritage Bike Trail, and the Illinois Terminal route is now the Madison County Transit Goshen Trail.

John P. Kohlberg posted twelve photos with the comment: "ICG's North Local meeting ITC's 203 at the north end of the siding at Mont, Ill., on ICG's (IC) Springfield District, May 1975.    Robert F. Schramm Kodachrome(s)."
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Dennis DeBruler shared

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11
Dennis DeBruler shared

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Saturday, March 14, 2026

Benton Harbor, MI: Lost/Union Station (C&O/PM and Big Four)

(Satellite, a long shack now sets on part of the land.)

Walter Jung posted
Union Station, Benton Harbor Michigan - not posted, date c. 1910.
Donna J Lippert: On North Shore Drive
Tim Shanahan shared

Pere Marquette came up north along the lake, went through town, and left to the Northeast. Michigan Central came up along the west side of the river and terminated in this town. I don't think it got to the Union Station. Big Four came up from the Southeast, went past this station and terminated along the north side of the river.
1930/46 Benton Harbor Quad @ 62,500

Apr 20, 1969 @ 20,000; AR1VCEV00010046

At first, I thought that it was the big black rectangle in the northeast quadrant of North Shore Drive and the PM tracks. But that location did not correlate with Walter's postcard. Then I noticed the white rectangle just south of the Big Four mainline. But that also didn't correlate with the postcard. Then I saw the rectangle with all of the bumps on the roof in the southwest quadrant of the tracks and North Shore Drive. That does correlate with the postcard. The view in the postcard is looking Southwest with the train on the curve of the PM tracks. Note that the PM passengers have to cross the Big Four tracks to access their train.
Digitally Zoomed

Friday, March 13, 2026

Cleveland, OH: Winton Motor Carriage Co.

(HAER; Satellite, the initial buildings may have been along Berea Road east of Madison Avenue; Satellite, but the buildings in the screenshot below have been replaced by a Amazon warehouse and parking lot.)

I knew that Winton developed large engines. I did not know that it started as a bicycle and then a car manufacture.

"Significance: Early auto maker; the nation's largest in 1899. Culmination of manufacturing methods and plant designs. Developed during Cleveland auto industry's first stage." [HAER_data]
The auto industry was just starting in 1899 because Winton was the largest with a sale of just 100 gas-powered cars.

Se UtahRails for a move comprehensive history of Winton Engine Co.

18:25 video @ 4:28
HAER OHIO,18-CLEV,25A--2 [The caption is wrong]

I first learned of Winton when studying EMD because GM bought the company for their diesel engine expertise. Winton had been producing diesel engines for marine applications. GM and Winton engineers jointly developed the 201A 2-stroke diesel engine for the locomotive application.
@ 13:33

Note all of the line-shaft belts in the bay on the right.
HAER OHIO,18-CLEV,25A--1 [The caption is wrong.]

10:23 video @ 0:52
Winton moved to Cleveland in 1884 and founded Winton Bicycle Co. in 1891.

@ 3:25
Winton sold 20 cars in 1898. He invented the first semi "hauler" in 1898 to help deliver his cars.

@ 7:52
In 1912, Winton founded the Winton Gas Engine and Manufacturing Co. to produce large marine engines. He quickly switched from gas to diesel and produced the first American diesel engine in 1913.

In 1934, Winton powered the first train pulled by an American-diesel locomotive.
@ 8:26

I could not find the intersection of 73rd Street and Clinton Road on Google Maps.
8:56
Winton diesels were used in a lot of submarines plus other Navy ships. But demand plummeted after the war. GM closed the Cleveland plant in 1962.
 
This was the first prototype that Winton built in his bicycle shop.
ClevelandHistorical

I think this is what he produced during 1898 when he sold 20 cars.
AmericanHistory

TheHenryFord, cropped

HeritageMuseumAndGardens
 "He introduced his first “motor wagon” in 1896, then became the first American manufacturer to sell a car to the general public in 1897. A Winton was the first car to cross America from coast to coast in 1903. The company’s motto was “It Will Go.”
"This car is one of exactly 100 that were produced by Winton in 1899, which was considered a remarkable example of mass-production at the time."

Winton did the first car reliability demonstration trip in 1897 from Cleveland to New York. He was disappointed by the small amount of publicity that it received. So, in 1899, he made a second trip that was sponsored by the Cleveland newspaper Plain Dealer. He was "accompanied by reporter Chas. B. Shanks, who sent daily reports of the trip to about 30 newspapers....Shanks's reports of the trip are credited with firmly establishing the French term "automobile" in the American language over rival terms used to describe the new vehicles. Winton and Shanks attempted to be the first persons to drive across the country in 1901, again sponsored by the Plain Dealer. Leaving San Francisco on 20 May 1901, they were forced to give up the journey 31 May when their car became stuck in the desert sands near Imlay, NV. A Winton automobile did make the first successful cross-country drive in 1903 but neither Winton nor Shanks was involved in that journey." [case]

Most HAERs are accurate, but the report for Winton has several errors. For example, the captions for the first two photos are switched. But the really bad error is that they don't have photos of the buildings that are in the top screenshot of these notes. Were the buildings torn down before they were documented? The buildings for which they do have photos are extant on the north side of Berea Road.
Street View, Aug 2024

I got this aerial photo to confirm that the buildings in the top screenshot were probably south of Madison Ave. I think the intersection in the lower-left corner of the top screenshot is 10th Street and Berea Road and that we are looking a little south of East in that photo.
Apr 1, 1952 @ 24,000; AR1PI0000020003

One of the industrial spurs that served the factories along 10th Street still serves ASK Chemicals. I put a red cross on that spur on this map.
1953/55 Lakewood Quad @ 24,000

Thursday, March 12, 2026

Lake Forest, IL: Lost/Chicago, North Shore & Milwaukee and Metra/C&NW Depots

CNS&M: (Satellite)
Metra: (Satellite)

Chicago, North Shore & Milwaukee Depot


Nick Renkosik posted
On display at The Lantern in Lake Forest, IL.
Joseph Obrien shared

Metra (UP-N)/Chicago & North Western Depot


Street View, Aug 2024

Metra

Both


I knew C&NW had a route close to the lake that helped create the North Shore suburbs and then a later route further inland that they built for freight trains. What I did not know is that CNS&M had routes parallel to both C&NW routes.
1960/ Weukegan [sic] and 1951 Highland Park Quads @ 24,000

1939 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Wednesday, March 11, 2026

Virgil, IL: Lost/CGW Depot

(Satellite, I think this is the remnants of the platform.)

Andy Zukowski posted
Chicago Great Western Railroad Depot in Virgil, Illinois. 1958
Richard Fiedler shared

Note the short white line west of Meredith Road and just north of the long white line. I think the long white line was the CGW right-of-way, and the short white line was the platform. As in Andy's photo, the depot is just north of the platform.
1939 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

I think this is the building to the right of the depot in Andy's photo.
Street View, Sep 2022

Fortunately, the building has been restored.
Street View, Aug 2025