Wendover, UT: Lost/Western Pacific Roundhouse & Water Tower and US-40

Roundhouse: (Satellite, a guess based on several Google Earth images.)

Water Tower: (Satellite)

US-40 Overview

Tim Starr posted

When researching the Wendover roundhouse five years ago, I saw that the little town was used as an air force base during World War II, but didn't quite realize its importance until a few years later when watching an episode of Mysteries of the Abandoned (one of my favorite shows). It was actually used as a training facility for crews (including the Enola Gay) that dropped the nuclear bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima, Japan. 

The community of Wendover, bordering the great Bonneville Salt Flats, was nearly passed over as a stop on the Western Pacific as it was constructing tracks west out of Salt Lake City due to the extreme lack of water. Shafter, Nevada, about 40 miles west of Wendover, had a stable water supply and better living conditions for workers. However, railroad directors calculated that the additional distance from Salt Lake City would result in about $100,000 more in overtime expenses paid to workers compared to the cost of hauling water to Wendover. This made Wendover the practical choice, if not the most desirable choice. 

In 1905 a division yard and eight-stall roundhouse made of wood and timber framing was built on the southeast side of town. The photograph above shows the roundhouse a short time after it was built, highlighting the mostly treeless, arid environment. Water had to be piped in from 23 miles away at Pilot Springs to wash out and fill up the boilers. 

Dieselization began before World War II, as soon as officials realized that the new type of motive power could operate around the clock without stopping for water. Rather than purchase 4-8-8-4 engines during the war like the Union Pacific did, the WP opted to use Electro-Motive FT units instead. This not only eliminated the water issue but avoided the need to upgrade several turntables. The roundhouse had therefore outlived its usefulness after the last steam locomotive ended its run and was demolished in 1952, replaced by a one-stall diesel house. The only traces remaining of the roundhouse are the outlines of a few concrete stall foundations in an otherwise empty field. (Utah State Historical Society photo)

The town has no use for the roundhouse, but it does have a use for the water tower.

Street View, Aug 2024

You can tell this is a wilderness area because there are only 1:250,000 scale maps in the 50s and 60s.

I see the Air Force base was already closed in 1955. And this topo map taught me that US-40 went through this town.

1955/75 Elko Quad @ 250,000

This is the worst satellite exposure that I have seen. The oldest aerial photo I could find was 1953, and it also had a bad exposure.

Satellite

So I checked out Google Earth. On the right side of this image below the center, we see a semi-circle of trees. As I flipped through the Google Earth images, that was the only consistent semi-circle.

Google Earth, Apr 2023

Mena, AR: KCS Roundhouse and Museum/Depot

Roundhouse: (Satellite, it was long gone by 1950s.)

Depot: (Satellite)

Rick Shilling posted
1898 Kansas City, Pittsburg and Gulf Railroad Roundhouse and Turntable, Mena, Arkansas. Reorganized as Kansas City Southern Railroad in 1900.

Track side:

Street View, Sep 2013

Street side:

Street View, Feb 2024

Erica A., May 2024

Lacifer Y, Mar 2023

Kevin Strope, Aug 2024
The sign says: "First Telephone Exchange in Polk County."

1900 is a long time ago. I think the roundhouse was long gone even by 1958.

1958/59 Potter and Mena Quads @ 24,000

Given the curve in the photo and the fanout of tracks, I think the roundhouse was down around today's Ekena Millworks.

May 14, 1955 @ 23,600; AR1VIM000060174

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

Chicago, IL: 1881-1960s Rock Island/Pullman Depot and Pullman Roundhouse

Depot: (Satellite, the land is now used by a filling station.)

Roundhouse: (Satellite)

Daniel Bovino posted
Rock Island Railroad depot once located at 111th and Langley Avenue. The building was designed by Solon Beman. It was demolished in the early 1960's. George Pullman had this station built in 1881. Mr. Pullman was in a pique when the ICRR wouldn't play ball with him. George wanted the IC to give his workers extended free passes to and from Chicago. The IC said no, so Mr. Pullman ran a spur line from the Rock Island tracks at 95th Street south to Pullman. It served for a while as an alternate depot. Whether it did much passenger "through" service is unknown. Most out of state rail traffic (from the east) came via the Michigan Central to Kensington whose station was, in the mid '80's at ground level near the present day Kensington Avenue viaduct. For years Kensington station did duty as a Western Union shipping stop as well as occasionally serving as classroom space (while the Pullman School was being built). It also served as a worship space while Solon Beman (George's architect) designed Holy Rosary (Irish) Catholic church and Elim Swedish Lutheran church. Both of these places were west of the tracks. The Pullman Civic organization (then less than a year old) OK'd the demolition of the Rock Island depot...folks weren't elightened yet, and the PCO wanted the world to see that Pullman wasn't only home to deserted old buildings and was concerned about its future. The gas station quickly went up, went through several owners and was given a new faux Pullman look when the latest tenants moved into the spot some years back. Jimmy Fiedler shared Michael Bose: In the 1960s, there seemed to be a concerted effort to demolish any Solon S. Beman designed structures. Not just his, but also Adler & Sullivan's buildings, too. It went too far beyond Daley's "Urban Renewal" to just be that the buildings were old. Most of them were only 60 to 70 years old, about the same age as any buildings are now that replaced the Art Nouveau inspired designs that were wrecked. Beman is my favorite Chicago area architect, and was the architect of choice by both Pullman and the Illinois Central near the turn of the last century. Richard Fiedler shared

This shows the Pullman Railroad and its connection with the Rock Island at 95th Street.

1929/30 Calumet Lake Quad @ 24,000

I noticed the roundhouse just south of 111th Street on this arial. Taking another look at the topo map, we can see it there as well.

1938 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Fresno, CA: Lost/SP Roundhouse

(Satellite, the land is now used by Annexscale for a transloading facility.)

Mark Mcgowan posted
An undated photo of the Fresno, Ca. roundhouse and turntable. The short turntable limited its use to the many small locomotives used in switching and local service with larger locomotives turned on the wye just north of here. (Guy Dunscomb) Terry B. Carlson: At the left of the RH is an ALCO S-1 Switcher. They were built April 1940–June 1950. Picture would have to have been after 1940.

The roundhouse was between SP and Santa Fe tracks, but the turntable was on the SP side. The photo shows a water tower near the turntable, but this map marks one as west of the roundhouse. So I'm confused.

1964 Malaga and 1963 Fresno South @ 24,000

St. Cloud, MN: BNSF/GN & Amtrak/NP Depots and GN Roundhouse

GN Depot: (Satellite, it also has a BNSF MOW SECTION HOUSE label.)

NP Depot: (Satellite)

GN Roundhouse: (Satellite)

GN Depot

Street View, Oct 2022

Marty Bernard posted
GN Station at St. Cloud, MN on July 30, 1976.  Mark Malamy photo

NP Depot

Wow, this town has two extant, big depots.

Street View, Jul 2023

Street View, Jul 2019

It's nice, and rather rare, to see Amtrak preserve a train station as a train station.

Jack Weis, Apr 2022

The route going West was GN, and the route going north was NP.

1950/52 St Cloud Quad @ 62,500

Remnants of the roundhouse foundation are still visible in Jan 2026.

Satellite

Steubenville, OH: Lost Acme Glass Works and Pennsy (Panhandle) Roundhouse, Depot & Freight House

Glass: (Satellite, some of the buildings are extant.)

Roundhouse: (Satellite, the land is now used by a stripmall.)

Depot: (Satellite, provided by Chris P. Bacon post below.)

Freight House: (Satellite, provided by Chris P. Bacon post below.)

Historic Fort Steuben posted and instagram

🏭 Quick History: Acme Glass Works, Steubenville (c. 1800s–1900s)

One of Steubenville’s major industries, Acme Glass Works was founded by skilled glassmakers (many from Pittsburgh) and operated for decades by the Gill Brothers Company. By the early 1900s, it had grown into one of the largest lamp-chimney factories in the United States.

Acme produced lamp chimneys, globes, reflectors, and early electrical glassware—vital for oil, gas, and early electric lighting. At its peak, the factory turned out hundreds of thousands of chimneys each week, shipping across the U.S. and overseas.

With rail access, nearby fuel sources, and a large skilled workforce, Acme helped make Steubenville a true “Workshop of the World.” The plant employed hundreds and played a major role in the city’s economy and community life.

When electricity made oil and gas lights obsolete, it sounds like they tried to transition to glass insulators.

A study in photo colorization.

PeachRidgeGlass, this webpage has photos of a lot more glass factories

ebay

ebay

The only industrial development was on the south side of the city. The W&LE was by the river and this plant. The railroad that went through the town and over the bridge was the Pennsy.

1904/04 Steubenville Quad @ 62,500

Pennsy (Panhandle) Roundhouse

It does show up on the above topo map. Both railroads through town and the one across the river were owned by Pennsy.

Historic Fort Steuben posted
The Steubenville Round House, shown on the 1877 map of Steubenville, Ohio, stood at the corner of Washington Street and North 7th Street.
[The rest of the description is roundhouse platitudes.]

Pennsy (Panhandle) Depot

Chris P. Bacon posted
The third generation station on the PCC&St.L line was constructed by the PRR which built a larger station at the same location as the station listed above. Sanborn maps show a larger station building there with the date built as 1911 listed (PRR valuation records confirm that date). This new station included a tunnel under the tracks with stairs or an elevator to a platform with a canopy between the tracks. (GPS: 40.36185,-80.617343).

Pennsy (Panhandle) Freight House

Chris P. Bacon posted

A second generation freight house was constructed just north of the original freight house at the corner of 6th and North Streets in 1881 (according to PRR valuation records). (GPS: 40.363542,-80.616603)

Pittsburgh, PA: Pennsy Roundhouses destroyed during riot by striking workers in July 1877.

Roundhouses: (Satellite)

These roundhouses and the railyard shown below in a topo map supported the Pittsburgh Depot.

Jackson-Township historical preservation posted
Burnt out Pennsylvania Roundhouse at Liberty Avenue and the 28th Street Bridge in Pittsburgh during the Railroad Strike and Riots of July 21-22, 1877. In July, after refusing to negotiate with striking workers in Pittsburgh, the Pennsylvania Railroad brought in militia from Philadelphia to end the walkout. When the Philadelphia militia fired into a crowd killing 20, enraged Pittsburghers attacked the troops and burned the rail yards. By the time the rioting ended, some 40 people had died, one hundred locomotives and 1,000 rail cars had been destroyed and 39 railroad buildings were burnt to the ground.
(Photo from https://www.facebook.com/OddPittsburgh/) 
[This was the one just west of 28th Street.]

John Gombita commented on the above post

John Gombita commented on the above post
The previous map is from 1872, This map is from 1882. Many properties and railroad structures were not rebuilt.

Jackson-Township historical preservation posted

Destroyed locomotives and railroad carsat the burnt out Pennsylvania Roundhouse at Liberty Avenue and the 28th Street Bridge in Pittsburgh during the Railroad Strike and Riots of July 21-22, 1877. In July, after refusing to negotiate with striking workers in Pittsburgh, the Pennsylvania Railroad brought in militia from Philadelphia to end the walkout. When the Philadelphia militia fired into a crowd killing 20, enraged Pittsburghers attacked the troops and burned the rail yards. By the time the rioting ended, some 40 people had died, one hundred locomotives and 1,000 rail cars had been destroyed and 39 railroad buildings were burnt to the ground. 

(Photo from https://www.facebook.com/OddPittsburgh/)

James Louis: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Great-Railroad-Strike-of-1877

[This is the one just east of 26th Street because we can see the other one in the right background.]

The roundhouses were part of a railyard that served the Pittsburgh Depot that was on the west end of the yard. The railyard also helped serve the many industries that we see on the Sanborn maps.

1951/51 Pittsburgh East Quad @ 24,000

Digitally Zoomed

Both transfer tables are depicted rather weirdly. The western one has as many tracks feeding it as there are tracks in the building. The eastern one doesn't have any tracks feeding it.

Even without a fire, these backshops would probably have been replaced with shops in railyards in towns with cheaper land. For example, Altoona.

Digitally zoomed from 1872 map above

Tim Starr posted
Double full-circle, 32-stall Pennsylvania RR roundhouses in Pittsburgh, 1872. Both were burned down in the Great Railroad Strike of 1877.

Old American Life posted
[This photo is so bogus, it is obviously created with AI. (e.g. locomotives don't park on the roundhouse walls.) I didn't bother to read the text.]

Lost/Boston & Maine Roundhouse

(Satellite, Amesbury Riverwalk to the south was the B&M right-of-way.)

Larry Smith posted four images with the comment: "Amesbury, MA. had a turntable and roundhouse i believe in the fiftys both were demolished. but the tt pit is bared by the rail trail. amesbury was a termanis. almost 4 miles long, it split at the Salisbury station"

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1944/44 Newburyport West Quad @ 31,680