Nostalgia & History > The venerable city switch job

When railfans of a certain age think about Emporia, KS they inevitably recall images of the endless menagerie of blue & yellow power pulling the equally endless parade of trains stopping for crew changes, block switching and the like. Even further back (but rapidly thinning out) would be those who recall the mighty fleet of Warbonnet-led passenger trains calling at the 2-story red brick, trimmed-in-limestone passenger station which doubled as the Eastern Division headquarters.

But often lost in the shuffle were the handful of switch jobs that tended to the city’s various industrial areas. One of my earliest memories of Santa Fe action in Emporia was the very day I arrived in town to apply for my first RR job as a track laborer. On that spring day in 1974 I remember seeing an old 2400-something(?) switcher shoving a gondola past the depot, through downtown and right on out to the east side of town.

Years later, now employed in Santa Fe train service I remember being in my car at the Commercial St crossing as a westbound hotshot was pulling the rear end up to the depot for a rolling crew change. As the waycar cleared the crossing I, along with my surrounding fellow motorists began that familiar creep forward in anticipation of crossing gates lifting. But no! Here came a 1500 Class S-4 with a string of hoppers bound for the Bunge elevator complex at East St. I’ll never forget the 2 switchmen sitting on the engine’s back deck, chuckling because they knew they were ‘sticking it’ to us motorists for an extended few seconds.

So even though I shot the switch engine seen below last summer, I’m posting it in in the Nostalgia forum for obvious reasons. Historic memories of an old Santa Fe function which is surprisingly still around in these post-merger days. Not to mention the the blue & yellow Santa Fe paint, still alive & kicking…

1. BNSF 2836 in the famous Santa Fe yellow bonnet livery is yard-bound at the Commercial St crossing, returning from the industrial area around NR Jct on the east side of Emporia, KS.
Photo date: August 29, 2018.

Thanks for thinking back!
Lance Garrels
santafe199



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/16/22 02:34 by santafe199.

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