Council Grove, KS: MKT Depot, Old Grain Elevator and Reused Boxcars

(Satellite)

Street View

I noticed the For Sale sign. I wonder if the caboose and old gas engine comes with this property.

Street View

Kathy Black posted four photos with the comment: "This one had a unique feature to me, as I'm not an elevator expert. Were the box cars for storage? Council Grove KS 3/2020"

Bob Summers The railroads sold box cars that were no longer in service and many were used at elevators to store misc items and bagged products.
Bob Summers The few elevated ones I recall like these were used for bulk feed produces, like pellets, that would break up if run thru an elevator. The farmer would back his truck under the boxcar and be loaded through a gate they would have made in the floor. Most were ground level and used for bagged product or misc tools and equipment. Few survive because they were old when retired from the rail road many years ago.
Dennis DeBruler I followed both abandoned railroads through town. With the large round bin, it should be easy to spot. But I couldn't find it. Would you give me the street names for an intersection that is close to this elevator?
https://www.google.com/.../data=!3m6!1e1!3m4...
I did find the former-MKT depot:
https://www.google.com/.../data=!3m6!1e1!3m4...
UP abandoned the MoPac route.
Kathy Black Dennis DeBruler - There weren't any tracks, and I didn't note the streets. Let me check.
[She replied with a map that showed the northwest quadrant of Market and 4th Streets.]
Dennis DeBruler The size of the steel bolted tank struck me as being rather large. According to Google Map's scale it is about 50' in diameter. A 1971 aerial photo does not show it. It does show up in a 1981 aerial.

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Dennis DeBruler commented on Kathy's post

Those diagonal buildings were gone by 1991. With this resolution, it is hard to tell if the spur is gone. A 1970 historic aerial shows the spur still went south of Market Street and the diagonal buildings still existed. The building down by Main Street had a boxcar spotted at it and it may have been the MKT freight house.

Google Earth, Oct 1991

By 2002 the spur is gone because this building has been built on the right-of-way.

Google Earth, Apr 2002

Art LH posted seven photos with the comment: "Council Grove Kansas."

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Saline C: Eldorado, IL: O'Gara Coal Mine #8

(Satellite, the Gospel Assembly Church built on the north side of the mine's land.)

Roger Kujawa posted
O'Gara Coal Co. Mine No. 8, El Dorado, Illinois. 1910s Pc. This was on the NYC Cairo Line.
Roger Kujawa posted
postcard O'Gara Coal Company No. 8 El Dorado Illinois Posted 1914
Tommy Clark: I do believe that's where my Grandfather was fatally injured 1935. Charles Gilbert "Chaulk" Clark.

Directory

Springfield Map

For the most part, the town grew north while the mine grew south.

1938 Aerial Photo from ILHAP

Note the image in the upper-right corner.

Raymond Barr posted
The postcard tells you these are the coal mines of Eldorado, Illinois. There were a couple more on the outskirts of town and many more in Saline County. The numbered mines were O'Gara Coal Company mines. The Big Four, Illinois Central and Louisville & Nashville railroads served these mines.
Bill Juntunen: Is there any signs of the mines today?
Raymond Barr: Only one site has not been redeveloped. The others have a church, a fertilizer plant and a homestead over them. The undeveloped property has one brick building and a lot of junk and weeds.

East Brady, PA: 1928 Trail/Pennsy Red Bank Coaling Tower, Phillipston Turntable and Brady Tower

Coaling Tower: (Satellite, since the Armstrong Trail goes right under it, there are quite a few photos.)
Turntable: (Satellite)

Tower: (Satellite)

The Pennsy RoW that followed the Allegheny River is now the Armstrong Trail. Between the coaling tower and the turntable is the east portal of the Brady Tunnel.

Scoty Carion posted two photos with the comment:

Redbank Coaling Tower, near East Brady, Pa, USA. This tower would provide coal from local mines for steam engines on this Pennsylvania Railroad main line from Pittsburgh, PA to points north, including Buffalo, NY.

Google Maps location:

Coaling Tower

https://maps.app.goo.gl/MnMBoD1vA6dTVf6s5

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Tim Shanahan shared a Tracee Renee Barton post of seven photos.

Tracee Renee Barton posted the same photos in a different order and provided a video link.

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sarco64, Aug 2015

Joe Stobert posted six photos with the comment:

Red Bank Coaling Tower on Armstrong Trail just above Red Bank Creek, between East Brady and Templeton PA and Phillipston Turntable on Armstrong Trail at Phillipston PA near East Brady. Some added shots from my drone!

Clyde McGeary Fairbanks-Mooris coaling tower.
Pete Stephen Now the Armstrong Rail-Trail. A great trail. They have cleaned up the turntable. And the Brady Tunnel is now being restored.
Jeff Miller shared

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Joe's Drones and Exploring, Feb 2019

Two of the five photos posted by Rich Tallis in Jan 2022:

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Redbank Coaling Tower…awaiting grant funding to be rehabilitated.

 

Ralph Davis posted
This is a former coaling tower on the Pennsylvania railroad near Rimer Pa along the Allegheny River.  It must have been quite a sight back in the early 1900’s.  Not sure what the motive power was on this line, maybe the K4 ?

Dan Young: I believe it was built by Fairbanks Morris in 1929.

Justin Calvin: Pretty much everything made its way up this line. My buddy has a log book of all the motive power that was used on that line. It included a q2 at one point. But mainly L1s, k4s, G5s, I1s, and the occasional m1. I know m1bs made there way up that line in the 50s to haul Nixons train to oil city.

Peter Reszar commented on Ralph's post

Dave Kuntz Drone Photos posted four photos with the comment: "The 1877 turntable in Phillipston PA.  One of the few turntables I've found that can actually be walked on as it is now in a public park, where it would make a good very large merry-go-round."

Dave Kuntz Drone Photos shared with the comment: "One of the best trailside attractions I have ever seen!"

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13 photos of the coaling tower and turntable

Brady Junction Tower

Darren Reynolds posted

PRRs "Brady" tower  this the most Unusual and Obscure places on the PRR.. 1960

This is the only picture I could find of "Brady" tower

Photo by: Maynard Krug

David Mulhollen: Enginehouse [by the turntable] was at Phillipston on the Low Grade

George Andy Harmon: Junction of Allegheny Branch and East Brady Branch to Phillpston Yard in Clarion County

Bruce Bird: It’s right outside of the Brady tunnel , the foundation is still visible. [Note in a satellite image because of too many trees.]

Daniel C Ccarrol Jr. shared

Michael Matland commented on Darren's post
Great find, first time saw this. There was a yard and engine terminal near there. Near Red Bank.
[The arrow is wrong. The tower was further to the left near the tunnel.]

Mike Tharan commented on Darren's post
operators would either ride on a yard shifter engine or drive part way down from PH yard then walk. Brady was a very important location in its time ~ an Interlocking, Interlocking Station, Block Station and Train Order Office, and Block Limit Station. Allegheny Branch, Northern Division (at one time). Red Bank and Brady were MP "0". 64.6 miles north from Pittsburgh (0.0 mp). From Red Bank (where the Low Grade Secondary starts eastward at the mouth of Redbank Creek) was MP 63.5 and Brady Tower was MP 64.6 north of Red Bank. The Division Post for the Pittsburgh Division was MP 63.4, again all these are on the west side of the Allegheny River and in close proximity to each other. Brady Siding starting at MP 61.0 heading north as well. Travel was designated for both directions N and S with permission on Brady Siding. The Allegheny Branch (at that time) also started at same location and ran north to Oil at MP 129.5 from Pittsburgh. Bridge was another few miles to MP 132.3 now on the East side of the Allegheny River after Brady Tunnel. When I conducted 50 years ago+ the Allegheny Branch was the Oil City Secondary to us. Answer any questions? This is the short version for those not from the region. 🙂 Hope this has helped some.

I included the road so that the curves in the road allows me to determine the distance of the tower east of  the tunnel.

Apr 21, 1962 @ 28,000; AR1VAIU00020029