Alliance, NE: BNSF/CB&Q Yard & Depots and Old Grain Elevators

Railyards: (Satellite, note how a new yard was built southwest of town to handle coal trains.)

Depot: (Satellite, according to the topo map below.)

Ed Heckman posted
Round house Alliance Ne. Pre 1952, before south side of the round house burnt down.

Craig Hensley Photography posted
A quick shot of the BNSF yard in Alliance just after sunrise.

Larry Hamilton: still amazed at the number of engines in storage!

Arturo Gross Flickr 1998 Photo

BNSF SD70MAC 9726 brings a loaded coal train into Alliance Yard from the south, another loaded train with C30-7 5522 and a third one with 2 executive MACs are also waiting to head east. Alliance NE Sept-1998.

1949 Bronco Lake and 1948 Alliance Quadrangles @ 1:24,000

Jim Arvites posted
View of the first Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad passenger depot at Alliance, Nebraska circa 1900. The station, built in 1889, was torn down and replaced by a new depot in 1912.

Mike Bartels: The old depot burned on Nov. 24, 1906. The new depot was built in 1907-08.

Jeff Bichl shared

The depot land is now a parking lot for a modern BNSF office building.

Street View, Apr 2012

Brian Garner posted
Alliance, NE

Dennis DeBruler commented on Brian's post

The foreground elevator is in the upper-right corner of this satellite image and the background elevator is in the lower-right corner.

https://www.google.com/.../@42.0949143,-102.../data=!3m1!1e3

Dennis DeBruler commented on Brian's post

The rectangular elevator peaking out on the right side of Brian's photo is also interesting.

https://www.google.com/.../data=!3m6!1e1!3m4...

Craig Hensley Photography posted three photos with the comment:

Alliance, Nebraska – The BNSF yard stretches across the prairie like its own city of steel and motion. From above, you can really see just how massive this operation is — endless tracks, rows of locomotives, and freight cars all moving through the flow of America’s supply chain.

Alliance became a railroad hub more than a century ago, playing a huge role in moving coal from the Powder River Basin, and the town has grown right alongside the tracks. Home to a major locomotive maintenance facility, one of the biggest in the US, with hundreds of engines cycling through here for inspections, repairs, and overhauls. 

Standing here, it’s easy to realize — this isn’t just a yard, it’s the beating heart of the High Plains, connecting small towns and big cities alike. With railroading remaining as one of the community’s biggest employers and a major point of pride. 

Alliance, NE - September 2025 

Jerad Wilson: I believe the up yard in north platte is bi directional as the alliance yare goes 3 directions. It was a main hub before the Cole boom as alliance was the cattle Capitol shipping more cattle I believe than any one yard. Also had huge cattle sale barm and stock pins.

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Chicago, IL: 1882+1930 Board of Trade Buildings

Chad Brown posted five images with the comment:

Built in 1882 and was the first commercial building in Chicago with electric lighting was the original Chicago Board of Trade building. When it was constructed it had a 320 ft. tall clock tower and housed a 4,500 lb. bell. Topping off the tower was a ship shaped weather vane. For a time, it was the tallest building in the city. It was also a very popular tourist attraction during the Columbian Exposition. When the federal reserve built its bank across the street, the CBOT was declared "unsound". The construction of the reserve building caused problems with the CBOT's flimsy foundation. The original Board of Trade was demolished in 1929 and construction of the current building began... [I found much of this description in ChicagoArchitecture] 

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MWRD posted
The old Chicago Board of Trade building is seen in this photo from October 22, 1898, with decorations for the Peace Jubilee celebrating the end of the Spanish American War. The photographer's journal describes the banner hanging on the building as, "Jubilee Decoration on Board of Trade. 'Commerce Follows the Flag.'"

3D Satellite

My experience is that it is hard to get photos of tall buildings downtown because they are surrounded by tall buildings and you can't get back far enough. This 3D image is actually a better view than I could take with a camera.

"The Chicago Board of Trade Building is currently the 37th tallest building in Chicago [accessed Sep 2023]. It stands 184 meters, 605 feet, and has 44 floors. The building has a faceless statue of Ceres (goddess of agriculture) as a reference to the exchange's heritage as a commodity market." [kiddle]

Street View
I learned about these two statues from the 1882 building in ChicagoDetours. So I used Street View to verify the location of the statues. Note the face of the statue on the right. Obviously Google has developed software to look for faces and blur them out to protect privacy because no human would protect the privacy of a statue.

By TonyTheTiger; recropped by Beyond My Ken (talk) 01:26, 1 October 2012 (UTC) - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21844074

I was researching the statue on the CBOT because I was looking for the name of the goddess depicted by the statue on top of the 1930 art deco skyscraper that replaced the 1882 building. It is the Roman goddess of agriculture Ceres. The building is 600 feet tall, and it was the tallest in Chicago for decades. It has no face because the sculptor figured no one would see the details anyhow from over 600 feet away. "However, there was another reason why ignoring details was probably wise – within just a few weeks of being placed, the statue was completely blackened by soot from smokestacks, and didn’t get a bath for 12 years!" [MysteriousChicago]

Actually, the building was 604' or 605' tall, depending on source. Those few feet are important because it allowed the CBOT to retain the title of Chicago's tallest when the 601' tall Prudential Building was built. But it remained the tallest because the statue counts as part of its height whereas the antennae on the Prudential does not count.

The statue is a 31' aluminum sculpture. [sah-archipedia]

Many railfan photos of trains entering and leaving the La Salle Street Station have the top of this building in their background. This 1951 example shows that it still dominated the skyline. (And it shows that buildings had their own water tower for fire protection.)

New York Central System Historical Society posted
An array of trains at LaSalle Street Station, Chicago, Illinois, September 1951. Left to right: NYC 675, a Rock Island suburban train, NYC 4033 and 4024 and an unidentified class K11 Pacific. (NYCSHS Collectio)

Raymond Kunst added seven photos with the comment: "Chicago Board of Trade at 141 W. Jackson, it was razed in the late 1920's, making room for the current building.

*Photos curiosity of Chicagology.

https://chicagology.com/goldenage/goldenage014/"

Raymond Kunst shared

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Hinsdale, IL: Metra/CB&Q Highlands Depot

(3D Satellite)
My objective for this trip was the one-lane Oak Park Bridge that was built with a turntable because it was soon going to be replaced that you see in the background of this photo. Fortunately, I did take an overview shot so that I got a picture of the depot.

20140603 0012

Digitially Zoomed and Brightened+30

Bill Molony posted
The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy depot at Highlands.

Lorenzo, IL: Santa Fe Depot

(Satellite, it is hard to believe that there was a town here)

Bill Molony postred
The Santa Fe depot at Lorenzo - circa 1950.

This entire industrial park plus the BNSF yard to the west was built since 2012.

1939 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Remeoville, IL: Santa Fe Depot

(Satellite)

Bill Molony posted
The Santa Fe depot at Romeo.

The town's grain elevator were across the tracks and a little to the north.

1939 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Gilman, IL: IC and TP&W Union Depot and Junction

(Satellite)

1905 photo showing tower and part of a roundhouse and a water tower. A view from the south

20141013 0206

 

Jim Arvites posted
View of an eastbound Toledo Peoria & Western Railway freight train crossing the CN (former Illinois Central) mainline at Gilman, Illinois on September 17, 2023.
(Keith Pokorny Photo)

Roger Kujawa posted
C.R. Childs RPPC Of The I.C.&T.P.&W. Union Station Depot At Gilman, Illinois
Michael Matalis shared
One of my favorite spots to fan. It has really changed over the years!

 

John Stell posted
IC-TP&W Gilman depot with southbound IC passenger train  Date 2-18-19 unknown photographer.  John Stell collection.
Thomas Dyrek: I don't think the date is correct. This depot was demolished in 1909 to make way for the current one.

 

Andy Zukowski posted
Illinois Central and Toledo Peoria & Western Railroad Depot in Gilman, Illinois (1907)
Jim Kelling shared
Gilman, Illinois (junction station, now brick)
Jim Kelling: Replaced by a brick station long ago, now used for storage by the current railroad, Canadian National.
Larry Foht posted a different exposure of this photo
Andy Zukowski posted again
Union Train Depot in Gilman, Illinois. 1907
Richard Fiedler shared
Andy Zukowski posted a third time

 

Andy Zukowski posted
Illinois Central Railroad Depot in Gilman, Illinois. 1955

In 2014, the grain elevator that we see in the right background of the above photos was still standing.

20141013 0193 via Dennis DeBruler

But I see that it is now all gone.

Street View, Sep 2024

Craig Hombert commented on Andy's post
Sanborn Map Company, May 1906

Larry Candilas commented on Andy's third post
IC MP 81.0 & TP&W MP 24.6; IC 1940s track chart

Andy Zukowski posted
Illinois Central & Toledo Peoria & Western Railroad Depot in Gilman, Illinois. 1907
Richard Fiedler shared

Jim Kelling: Rebuilt as a brick junction station.

Some of several photos posted by Eric Berg with the comment: "In case some people haven't seen these...photos from 1935 and by John W. Barriger III."

[I think he was eastbound on the TP&W. A, c and b were taken as he rode on the back of the train from west to east and are looking West. They must have stopped in town so that he could take d, which on the west side of town looking East.]

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The above appear to be looking West whereas this one is looking East.

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1940 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

John Stell posted
IC-TP&W Gilman depot on 11-3-04. John Stell slide. Randy Smith and I wonder what date TP&W moved into this depot and closed the office in the old freight house?
John Stell posted
IC depot at Gilman also had agency for TP&W. It housed TP&W agency from 1967 when I went to work on TP&W. Someone posted the TP&W freight house had a TP&W operator. Not sure when that would have been. John Stell slide on 11-3-04.
[The comments discuss the agents who used to work here.]
John Stell posted

The vacant land in the above photo used to have the TP&W freight house.

Andy Zukowski posted
Toledo, Peoria & Western Depot at Gilman, Illinois in May 1960.
Kendel Robinson: Beautiful picture! But it seems odd that you can’t see any tracks or the diamonds? The IC at this date had at least three tracks that crossed the TPW by the depot if not four. Dennis DeBruler: The building on the left looks like it would be the TP&W freight house. Andy Zukowski shared Richard Fiedler shared Andy Zukowski posted again Toledo, Peoria & Western Depot at Gilman, Illinois in May 1960. Photo by I.W. King and from the collection of Joel King.

Michael Clark: Also the IC depot if I’m not mistaken. Still there the last time I was in town.

Connor Bounds: Michael Clark yep. It is.

Richard Fiedler shared

Jim Kelling shared

Illinois Central station in Gilman Illinois shared with the Toledo, Peoria & Western.

NOLA Rails posted
IC passenger trains at Gilman1969.
[This would have been the north side of the depot.]
Paul Jevert shared

Greg Borgwald posted three photos with the comment: "Gilman, IL, 8-12-82."

Charlie DeWeese: That office was in the depot in the northwest quadrant of the crossing when I broke in there for a couple of days in 1958 or 1959. I was told that a tower had existed there before the CTC was put in..

Kerry Powell: Been there many times. Operator controlled signals from Gilman to Otto. TP&W crossed the IC there also. [all black panel] [His punctuation of the "all black panel".]

Charles Tapper: A mix of US&S and GRS equipment.

Jon Roma: The US&S panel was apparently put in the depot first; a couple years later, they closed the tower that sat in the SW corner of the IC/TP&W crossing, and that was replaced by the GRS panel.

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This support building must have been built since 2004.

Roger Kujawa posted nine photos of the depot.

Mort Goddard: TPW didn’t run that many trains in the 60’s when I worked there but I will never forget the TPW running the atomic train which you better not stop. It was armed with gaurds also and ran at a reduced speed.