Nostalgia & History > unit Backward, local Meandering

Here’s a Santa Fe branch line local running on a piece of my old Middle Division working territory. And it presents a stark contrast to the 70 MPH hotshots I was accustomed to riding on the main line out of Emporia. This short little train is running in central Kansas between Lyons & Galatia, and just happens to be on Frisco trackage rights in this photo. Santa Fe ran mostly compass north out of Lyons on the Frisco to Lorraine to access its own trackage running further west out to Galatia.

This is my old “Little River” district. Although it did not physically connect with its namesake town, which is located due east of Lyons. Little River was on the old McPherson District running from Marion, on the old Rock Island, through McPherson & Lyons out to Ellinwood where it connected with the old 5th District running from CH Jct in downtown Hutchinson through Ellinwood, Great Bend & Larned out to Kinsley, following the “great bend” of the Arkansas River -which ain’t exactly no “little river”, either. (I hope you’re getting all this ’cause there’s gonna be a pop-quiz in the morning... ;^)

I believe photographer Tom Carlson was traveling on KS hwy 4 and caught this train heading back down the branch toward Lyons. The permanent stop board on the left indicates the train is near Frederick at the crossing with the Mop’s old “Colorado Eagle” main line running from Osawatomie in the east out to Pueblo, CO in the west. I worked over this line at least once. And I have a photo to show for it in this link: ( WAG Wednesday: Frederick, KS then & WAY back when! (trainorders.com) ). I don’t recall ever working any further west than Lorraine. If I had worked the next 5.6 miles into Holyrood I’m 99.9% sure I would have shot a slide of the Holyrood depot...

1. AT&SF 2858, running long hood first leads a local train stopped on SL&SF trackage at the ex-Mop crossing at Frederick, KS on October 17, 1990.
Original Kodachrome slide by Tom Carlson, from the Daniel Archer collection

Thanks for back looking!
Garrels Lance (199-santafe)
Archer Daniel (Chief-SKO)



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/13/23 02:19 by santafe199.

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Interesting story about Frederick on Wikipedia.  So true for many small towns in Kansas!  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick,_Kansas

Nice shot, Lance!  I have an uncle that lived and farmed near Galatia.

RC Lundgren

santafe199 Wrote:

> This is my old “Little River” district.
> Although it did not physically connect with its
> namesake town, which is located due west of Lyons.
> Little River was on the old McPherson District
> running from Marion (on the old Rock Island)
> through McPherson & Lyons out to Ellinwood

The Little River District originally did leave the McPherson District at Little River.  The branch from Little River to Holyrood was built in 1887, and the extension to Galatia was finished 32 years later in 1919.  Santa Fe abandoned the bit from Little River to Lorraine in 1971 in favor of trackage rights on the former Frisco from Lyons.

Thanks for sharing the photo.  When I was a kid I used to study the Santa Fe system map (I was a strange kid), and that little line to Galatia always fascnated me for some reason.  Dad and I drove the length of it 1990, but unfortunately Santa Fe didn't offer up a train while we were there.  Looking at the site of the crossing in contemporary Google Streetview imagery, the trees/shrubs in the background have me thinking 2858 is heading west toward Galatia in the afternoon: https://goo.gl/maps/g52Rr8HEuXVpbJRb8 

Evan_Werkema Wrote: > … The Little River District originally did leave the McPherson District at Little River…

That doesn’t surprise me at bit. Historically that makes complete sense. But that’s the first I’ve ever heard that part of the story. Without having access to my time books I think I only worked through Little River twice in my career. And I had no clue that I should’ve been looking for signs of the old branch, or even WYE track scars in the area. I did however get a back-lit shot of a my work train sitting near the old depot area…

Posted from iPhone

No idea how/why this blankety-blank cell phone tried to double up on my response to Evan. Many times I’ve wanted to take a sledgehammer and make a fine-tuning adjustment on this piece of crap…

Posted from iPhone
Down on the Emporia Sub new double track at Gladstone listening to 4 blankety-blank EBs in a row up on the La Junta Sub…



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/25/21 13:34 by santafe199.

santafe199 Wrote:

> And I had no clue that I should’ve been looking
> for signs of the old branch, or even WYE track
> scars in the area.

The wye was a bit west of the depot, as shown in this old map: http://www.historicmapworks.com/Map/US/24722/Little+River++Crawford++Galt++Pollard++Wherry++Noble/

I've got some personal experiences concerning the Little River District, Lyons, etc if anyone cares to listen to the printed word.

When I was about twelve I spent a couple of weeks with my oldest brother who was a fireman on the MOP local at Geneseo, KS.  He invited me to go to work with him.  His engineer didn't think I should ride the engine so I rode the caboose.  We went to Lyons, KS and switched the salt mines, then returned to Geneseo.  I'm guessing we travelled on the Frisco line as I've never been aware of any MOP lines running N - S in this area.  Anyone have any information on the MOP lines between Geneseo and Lyons?  This was my second train ride, the first being on the Rock Island Rocket from Wichita to Herington, KS with my mother and brother when I was about 4  or 5.

I hired out on the Santa Fe in 1962, getting severed in 1964.  During this time I worked trains 87 - 88 a whole lot (Emporia to Ellinwood) as it was the least desirable job we had and I was on the bottom of the seniority ladder.  I never really got to see much of Little River itself but it was kinda pretty with its trees compared to the wheat fields all around it.

We'll fast forward to Feb. 3rd 1973.  I'm making my first trip as an engineer.  It happens to be on the Lyons road switcher with conductor Jon Carrier.  We would switch out the loaded salt cars at the mines and take them to Ellinwood.  I don't recall if we ever went to Lorraine or not.  I worked the Lyons job off and on for a couple of months.  Then when I'm in the engineer's pool a couple of years later I catch a work train on the Little River / Galatia District.  Spent 5 days unloading ties, then back to Lyons.  About 30 days sums up my experience in that part of Kansas. 

KskidinTx Wrote:

> We went to Lyons, KS and switched the salt mines,
> then returned to Geneseo.  I'm guessing we
> travelled on the Frisco line as I've never been
> aware of any MOP lines running N - S in this
> area.  Anyone have any information on the MOP
> lines between Geneseo and Lyons? 

Missouri Pacific had a line from Sterling to Geneseo, KS that passed just east of Lyons.  It crossed the Frisco line south of town, and then the two lines ran parallel about a mile apart as far as the MP main line.  The Frisco line is gone, but the ex-MP line still exists and is operated by Watco's Kansas & Oklahoma RR:

https://www.watco.com/service/rail/kansas-and-oklahoma-railroad-ko/

santafe199 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
 (I hope you’re getting all
> this ’cause there’s gonna be a pop-quiz in the
> morning... ;^)

I had to get out a map and follow along...

Andy

Evan is right on this as there is a MOP line on the East edge of Lyons that goes up to Geneseo. Used to go on North to Kanopolis back in the day. Also, Little River is 9 miles EAST of , NOT WEST of Lyons,   and then 1 mile  North of Hwy 56.  The wye in Little River, I don't know anything about it but I see there was a salt mine there. Maybe that was to come up and turn around and take salt cars back down East.
Also, the MOP line came into the West side of Geneseo and the Frisco line was about 6 or 7 miles to the West of Geneseo  where it crossed the E-W line  of the  MOP at Hwy 4    upkpfan



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/25/21 20:08 by upkpfan.

I knew the MOP had a line from Wichita to Lyons and it only made sense that they had a line on north to Geneseo.  I just didn't even remember anything about it when I was working there in '73.  I ran into a fellow from Geneseo here in Temple who remembered the Santa Fe going through it but couldn't remember when it was abandoned.  I later found out the Little River to Lorraine portion was abandoned around 1970 which was before I was working in the area.  Thanks to everyone who responded.
Mark

upkpfan Wrote: > ... Little River is 9 miles EAST of , NOT WEST ...

Yup. Another typo (now fixed). Thanks for jumping on it...