Jasper, MN: Destroyed Grain Elevator and Modern Feed Mill

Elevator: (See below for a satellite image that I got while it was still standing.)

Feed Mill: (Satellite)

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Jim Morris posted

Ron Minor: This was a active shipper on the BNSF up to a couple of years ago. Is it going to be replaced?

John Harker: I remember when this was poured in 1980 ,I believe.

I worked with some guys that helped pour it.

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The final part of the Jasper Elevator structure was successfully brought down during the second round of demolition

Tom Foster: So sad, once was one of best elevators in SW, Mn.

It was a rather large grain elevator.

Street View, May 2024

It even had rail service. Removing a wood elevator is all to common, but removing concrete silos is very rare.

Street View, May 2024

This is probably the locomotive that we see in the background of the above view.

Street View, Jul 2025

Some of the bins had already been removed by 2025.

Street View, Jul 2025

Satellite

The town still has a feed mill.

Street View, Aug 2025

1967/68 Jasper Quad @ 24,000

Commerce (Los Angeles), CA: UP East Los Angeles (UPLA) and BNSF/Santa Fe Hobart Railyards

UP Yard: (Satellite)

UP Roundhouse: (Satellite, long gone.)

UP Backshops: (Satellite, long gone.)

BNSF Yard: (Satellite)

Today, both yards are intermodal yards. Although the UP yard does have an engine servicing facility about where the backshops used to be.

Railroad Repair Shops and Roundhouses 1850-1950 posted
Layout of the Los Angeles & Salt Lake subsidiary of the Union Pacific at Los Angeles as they looked in 1927. (Railway Mechanical Engineer)

1926/1939 Alhambra Quad @ 24,000

An addition was added to the erecting shop building.

1966/68 Los Angeles @ 24,000

Jul 30, 1952 @ 23,600; AR1VP0000180011

Digitally Zoomed
Dennis DeBruler commented on the post
Location: https://maps.app.goo.gl/5jDMthm7Vgr1zuX97.
Research: https://towns-and-nature.blogspot.com/2026/06/commerce-los-angeles-ca-up-east-los.html

"East Los Angeles Yard (UPLA): Situated in the City of Commerce along East Washington Blvd, this massive off-dock yard handles the bulk of domestic and international containerized cargo coming from the ports." [Google AI results]

The AI did a good job of combining information from PortsOfLosAngeles and wheree. UP's webpage is also of interest.

Lotus, IL: Junction: IC vs. Wabash

(Satellite)

The IC branch that this town was on was the former Havana, Rantoul & Eastern.

Andy Zukowski posted

The Wabash & Illinois Central Crossing in Lotus, Illinois

The former Wabash's Chicago to Bement line crossed an Illinois

Central branch that ran east-west between Leroy and Potomac.

This photo was taken 12/31/80, and at the time the Wabash was under N&W ownership and the IC was under the ICG flag. The ICG had just started pulling up this line in the preceding weeks, but the diamond here had yet to be pulled. The view is looking northeast. Photo from the Barry Lennon Collection

Larry Candilas commented on Andy's post
IC line was originally built in 1875 as a narrow-gauge line and was owned by the Wabash for a few years before the IC bought it. MP 17.3 Rantoul District; 1960 aerial
[It looks like the tower was in the northeast quadrant of the crossing.

Sara Anderson Olson commented on Andy's post
Hard to tell. No sign of a cross track.

Thomas Scoville commented on Andy's post
The Lotus depot survives on a farm just west of where the diamond used to be. [I could not find it.]
Richard Fiedler: Thomas Scoville that’s the replacement for the wood tower that was once there. I’m thinking the tower was destroyed in a derailment but I’m not sure. The replacement served as a train order office and a depot agency.

Richard Fiedler commented on Andy's post

Richard Fiedler commented on Andy's post

Richard Fiedler commented on Andy's post

No street view driver has driven close to this town. I don't think the elevator has rail service because NS still owns the route and I can't see a fall protector, but the elevator is rather big.

Satellite

Cropsey, IL: Lost/IC Depot

(Satellite)

Andy Zukowski posted
Illinois Central Railroad Depot in Cropsey, Illinois 1963

Sam Richards: This track is now the Bloomer Line.

Paul Jones: Foundation still exists.

Connor Bounds: Fairbury did a great job killing cropsey. Took their school and bank

Larry Candilas commented on Andy's post
MP 111.5 Bloomington District; early 1900s probably waiting for the "Bloomer Cannonball"

David Kennedy: Larry Candilas look at the difference in the old track by station. It is abandoned in the new photo. Plus the bushes are blocking the operator/agents view.

I could not figure out which smudge that is parallel to the tracks was the depot. Fortunately, Paul's comment above about the foundation allowed me to find its location.

1940 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Thanks to the Bloomer Line, the grain elevator is rail served and has grown a few times.

James Ransom, Oct 2025

James Ransom, Oct 2025

Pellston, MI: Museum/Pennsy/GR&I Depot

(Satellite)

GR&I = Grand Rapids and Indiana

Street side:

Street View, Oct 2024

Track side:

Street View, Sep 2024

Brian Coblentz posted
My grandfather photographed the former Pennsylvania Railroad station in Pellston, Michigan on July 10, 1978. The station originally was built by the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad. Jack Koehler photo

I.e. Xam commented on Brian's photo
Here is the depot in 2024.

There is a lot of open space in the middle of town because the GR&I had a small railyard here.

1958/59 Pellston Quad @ 62,500

La Crosse, WI: 1914+1929-69 Allis-Chalmers/La Crosse Plow Co.

(See below for satellite information.)

LandmarkByTheRivers
"This circa 1960 aerial photo shows part of the old Allis-Chalmers factory complex, looking west from above North Third Street, between Pine and Badger streets. The La Crosse Allis-Chalmers plant produced tractors and other agricultural implements, operating from 1929 to 1969. All the buildings in the foreground have since been razed and the Tribune building now occupies the area at lower left. The building with the rooftop aviation markings and the building to its right remain standing on North Second Street. and were recently added to the National Register of Historic Places."

The taller industrial building in the above photo is now apartments.

Satellite

Even the smokestack has been preserved.

Street View, Jul 2025

hmdb
"The La Crosse Plow Company Building was constructed in 1914 and expanded through 1938 as a manufacturing building. Its continued expansion created a large multi-part building and adjacent were ancillary support buildings and sheds utilized by the La Crosse Plow Company, and later the Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company. The building is ... significant for its association with the agricultural machinery and equipment manufacturing industry, a leading industry in La Crosse, that developed to become regionally influential. The agricultural machinery and equipment manufacturing industry was important in La Crosse as the city’s dominant industry and largest employer. The La Crosse Plow Company, which incorporated in 1893, quickly grew from its blacksmith shop roots to become the region’s largest producer of plows and other agricultural implements. As part of its nation-wide expansion, the Allis-Chalmers Company, of West Allis, Wisconsin, purchased the La Crosse Plow Company in 1929, making the La Crosse facility one of nearly a dozen such facilities around the country. Allis-Chalmers was, throughout the mid-20th century, one of the largest tractor and agricultural implement manufacturers in the country. The period of significance or this building is from 1914, when the construction on the original section began, to 1969, when Allis-Chalmers stopped production and sold their holdings in La Crosse."

J and L Videos posted
The Allis Chalmers Factory In La Crosse Wisconsin:

Daniel Anton: What did they make there?

Jim Palmer Jr: Daniel Anton tillage and seeding equipment. Closed in the late 60s and production was moved to LaPorte.

James Paul Tewes: If I remember right plows, they bought out the Lacrosse plow co. Don’t quote me but I think some 100 series were made there too.

Ricahrd Beirne posted
The Allis Chalmers complex was quite large at one time. The Freighthouse restaurant was also a working railroad freighthouse. This shows both the old Post Office and Courthouse, along with the Stoddard hotel and a number of other buildings now gone. I am guessing late 1950's based on the cars that can be seen.

Norm Farrington: My parents and I every so often used to park along front street and watch the huge metal stamping presses at Allis Chalmers stamp out the red hot metal parts .

Craig A. Olson: It looks to me like the 1965 flood. Front street is covered with water.

Steven Beezley: The new courthouse is standing and yes it looks like the 65 flood.

1956 La Crescent Quad @ 62,500 and 1963 La Crosse Quad @ 24,000

I didn't watch the video because the volume was too low for me, but I did spot a new view of a plow share.

5:38 @ 1:20
Allis Chalmers Show: Allis Chalmers La Crosse Factory

Louisville, KY: East Liverpool (MN) Tower: L&N vs. C&O

(Satellite)

Tim Shanahan posted

Jack Fravert photograph:

On a hazy September 3; 1976, trains (left to right) #148, #140 and #173 vie for track space through East Louisville's MN Tower. C&O trains joined (or left the L&N at this point, following the tracks on the right toward the Ohio riverfront (except for the C&O's George Washington, which used Union Station from 1963 until 1971). Jack Fravert

When I could not find the C&O on a detailed map, I found a C&O map to determine how the C&O got to Louisville.

appalachian-railroads and multimodalways

So, the C&O went to Louisville from Lexington. When I looked east of Lexington, I found the C&O. In fact, the C&O joined the L&N in Lexington.

1956 Louisville Quad @ 250,000

Since the C&O left the L&N to go to the 7th Street Station while the L&N curved South to go to the Union Station, it was easy then easy to find the "MN" junction on a detailed map.

1950 New Albany, 1951 Louisville East and 1951 Jeffersonville Quads @ 24,000

This confirms that the C&O used the L&N to access Louisville from Lexington.

Ronald Boles posted
The Chesapeake & Ohio's George Washington train did not run on the Louisville & Nashville (L&N) for the majority of its route, but it did use a portion of L&N track to access Louisville on the Old Road.

David Morse: Between Lex and Lou it ran on the L&N’s Old Road. [That makes me wonder where the L&N New Road was located.] It originally ran Lex-Midway-Frankfort—Chrishtiansburg-Eminence-La Grange-Lou. C&O wanted to cut down their transit time between Lex & Lou and looked into moving to the Southern’s Louisville Southern track. Lex-Versailles-Tyrone-Lawrenceburg-Shelbyville-Louisville. Actually ran test trains on this route. The L&N had a very favorable trackage rights agreement with the C&O. Basically C&O paid half the MOW costs and salaries. L&N built the Christiansburg-Shelbyville track to keep the C&O on the Old Road. L&N did not see this track. Their trains took the long way to Lou. C&O’s contract did not allow them to stop at Christiansburg. This meant people in C-burg going to Lou had to take the L&N trains on the long route. C-burg citizens went to the Kentucky Railroad Commission to get them to order the C&O to stop at C-burg. KRC ruled they could not order the C&O to break their contract with the L&N.

Mike Gillespie: Best looking train into Louisville. And its 94 miles of trackage rights on the L&N from Lexington to Louisville was not insignificant.

Jamie Millard: The first three cars paid for the last four. [The first three cars would be baggage cars carrying express freight and US Mail. The last four cars would be passenger cars.]