Nostalgia & History > Maroon Monday Choctaw Rocket?

3 Rock Island shots from the files of the late John Mills(Former Amtrak Manager).  Sorry, no notes were taken when I scanned these.  Since John spent most of his life in Little Rock, I would assume these are the Choctaw Rocket.  If anyone could identify the location, maybe that would help, although 2 of the shots are rural with no buildings to help identify.

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Love these photos.  Thanks for posting!

The first photo reminds me of the highway overpass in McAlester, OK  crossing over the CO&G tracks

These are fabulous photos of the mighty fine line. I hope someone can determine the locations, as that would add to the historical value.
Brian Stevens

Number two is a beautiful action shot of an EMC TA locomotive. What a treasure!
Bob

Choctaw rocket photos are quite rare, these are delicious !

Wow, great photos of the TAs!  Nice.

Andy

WrongWayMurphy Wrote: > Choctaw rocket photos are quite rare...

Yeah buddy! I think I can count on one hand the number of shots of Rock Island TA shots I've ever seen. Very nice stuff from the Late Mr. Mills!

Lance

These same photos showed up on Facebook Group Arkansas Railroad History. Reporting top photo is at the
Wright Ave bridge and MOP main. Second Photo is at Markham St bridge just past former HH tower and last photo is westbound about to cross Pinnacle Valley Road, running along beside Maumelle Creek.

What kind of track speed was allowed for passenger operations in those days?

According to a 1946 Arkansas Division employee timetable, maximum passenger train speed between Little Rock and Perry was 60mph, then 70mph between Perry and Booneville.  West of Perry, the line was relatively straight, while the first 30-35 miles from Little Rock had a lot of curves.  That said, all of the old head Rock Island engineers would routinely say that there were no speed limits; that those numbers specified in the timetable and on the trackside poles were offered merely as suggestions.

John Mills did indeed shoot quite a few photographs around Little Rock, and these would have been taken when he was in his late teens or early 20s.  As stated elsewhere in this thread, all three are in the Little Rock vicinity, all "west" (railroad timetable direction) of the Choctaw passenger station and Biddle yard.  The most striking view, of the TA rounding the curve, was taken just after the train had crossed over the MP double track mainline at HH Tower, located just south of the MP passenger station, so the speed was still slow enough to capture motion without blur.

The photo of the FP7 (perhaps 403) rounding the curve near Pinnacle Mountain is after the Choctaw Rocket had lost its Rocket designation, becoming simply the Choctaw. The rear car is a diner which was carried Memphis to Oklahoma City in this period (1951-52-53).  In August 1953 the conventional train was replaced by RDC service, the Choctaw Rockette, initially operating Oklahoma City to Little Rock, then OKC to Memphis, and ultimately Amarillo to Memphis.

Remember the Rock magazine (Andover Junction) published a lengthy 2-part article about the Choctaw Rocket in Volume 5 #1-2.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 04/13/15 17:50 by Arkrail.