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Nostalgia & History > CGW Alco! Smoking, of courseDate: 02/04/25 09:00 CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: santafe199 Of the 1000s of Jim Watson images I’ve been merging into my main file, here’s another one that needed to detour via a thread here on TO. I know next-to-nothing about the Chicago Great Western. But I can say: “Enjoy the view!” :^)
1. CGW 54 leading a train in St Paul, MN in April of 1971. Original Ektachrome slide by the late James W. Watson. Thanks for looking back! Lance Garrels santafe199 ![]() Date: 02/04/25 09:37 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: NYSWSD70M santafe199 Wrote:
------------------------------------------------------- > Of the 1000s of Jim Watson images I’ve been > merging into my main file, here’s another one > that needed to detour via a thread here on TO. I > know next-to-nothing about the Chicago Great > Western. But I can say: “Enjoy the view!” :^) > > 1. CGW 54 leading a train in St Paul, MN in April > of 1971. > Original Ektachrome slide by the late James W. > Watson. > > Thanks for looking back! > Lance Garrels > santafe199 Very cool shot. The CGW RS2's didn't have MU capability if I remeber correctly. Date: 02/04/25 09:41 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: Roadmaster I imagine this is a transfer out of the former CGW State Street Yard west of the Mississippi River, which he crossed on the Robert Street lift bridge. He passed St. Paul Union Depot (off to the right) and is now turning past the SPUD roundhouse on its way somewhere, maybe just East St. Paul Yard. That's US 52 crossing over the tracks and the Mississippi River in the background.
Matthew Date: 02/04/25 09:45 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: swaool According to caption data at that site that archives railroad pictures, CGW 54 (77186, 8/49) would have become CNW 54 in 1968, and subsequently became the last unit in CGW paint on CNW and the last operating RS2 on CNW. Sold for scrap to Precision National in 1981. But wait, there's more. My buddy Jeff Van Cleve started building a CGW switching layout years ago, and this Walthers/Proto model was the first locomotive he bought for it, shown posing on his kitchen table before it went into service. What I found amusing was that Walthers had done the graphics so well that you could read the builders plate. But it had the wrong serial number and build date on it! They corresponded to City of Prineville Alco S1 #101!
mike woodruff north platte ne Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/04/25 16:34 by swaool. ![]() Date: 02/04/25 09:56 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: LarryDoyle And, dirty, of course.
-LD Date: 02/04/25 11:03 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: atsfer Iconic shot with all those SOO boxcars in the background....had a cab ride once with an ex SOO trainmaster and he told how it was such a small railroad and how he got to know so many of the workers and how an investigation usually went smoothly because most of the workers tended to be very honest about their errors.
Date: 02/04/25 11:57 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: callen77 Very cool shot!
Date: 02/04/25 13:13 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: santafe199 swaool Wrote: > ... But wait, there's more .........
Thanks for the extra info, Mike. And to Matthew: I'm not surprised this is a transfer move. I only called it a train because I can make out a human figure in the cab. Which tells me the train is probably coming toward the camera. I also wouldn't have been surprised to hear this "train" was only a switch cut. Back to Mike: That's a cool coincidence about Jeff's HO model. My late friend, photographer Jim Watson would have gotten a huge kick out of that! :^) Lance Date: 02/04/25 14:34 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: SR2 NYSWSD70M Wrote:
------------------------------------------------------- > santafe199 Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > Of the 1000s of Jim Watson images I’ve been > > merging into my main file, here’s another one > > that needed to detour via a thread here on TO. > I > > know next-to-nothing about the Chicago Great > > Western. But I can say: “Enjoy the view!” > :^) > > > > 1. CGW 54 leading a train in St Paul, MN in > April > > of 1971. > > Original Ektachrome slide by the late James W. > > Watson. > > > > Thanks for looking back! > > Lance Garrels > > santafe199 > > Very cool shot. The CGW RS2's didn't have MU > capability if I remeber correctly. That is correct! SR2 Date: 02/04/25 16:14 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: refarkas A superior scene!
Bob Date: 02/04/25 16:18 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: wabash2800 Notice how the cooling system has been changed and the stack is now cross-wise (when comparing the model with the later photo).
Victor Baird Date: 02/04/25 18:45 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: NCA1022 I love John Barringer's description of the Chicago Great Western (As I understand it, the CGW was envisioned by it's founders specifically as a rate-cutter competitor).
"A mountain railroad, built in prarie territory, serving a traffic vacuum." Date: 02/04/25 19:40 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: santafe199 Love that quote! 😎
Posted from iPhone Date: 02/05/25 07:41 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: ntharalson Roadmaster Wrote:
------------------------------------------------------- > I imagine this is a transfer out of the former CGW > State Street Yard west of the Mississippi River, > which he crossed on the Robert Street lift > bridge. He passed St. Paul Union Depot (off to > the right) and is now turning past the SPUD > roundhouse on its way somewhere, maybe just East > St. Paul Yard. That's US 52 crossing over the > tracks and the Mississippi River in the > background. > > Matthew I'm goiing to dispute this. As I look at it, this train is probably a transfer from the East St. Paul Yard to the St. Paul Bridge and elt yard near the Milwaukee's St. Paul Yard. The building on the left of the photo is the SPUD Roundhouse and you can just see the Kellog Avenue/thrid Street viaduct in the background. I'll let Larry Doyle confirm or dispute this. Very nice shot, glad to see it. Nick Tharalson, Marion, IA Date: 02/05/25 10:04 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: rantoul Date: 02/05/25 11:29 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: Roadmaster ntharalson Wrote: "I'm goiing to dispute this. . . . "
I looked at several things, including the high voltage power lines and the design of the bridge, to arrive at my judgement regarding the photographer's vantage point and 54's direction of travel. Another thing to consider is the roundhouse, which is what I will use to back up my assertion that this train is turning to go west on the former GN or NP east of SPUD (and diverge from the former GN main at Westminster Tower if it is going to CNW's East St. Paul Yard). Please consider photos #3 and #4 in this post by Marty Bernard: https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11,4956022,4956022#4956022 In both photos, the river, which is south of the roundhouse, is visible in the background. Union Depot is to the west of the roundhouse, off to the photographer's right. Division Street Tower, Hoffman Avenue, Dayton's Bluff, Pigs Eye Yard and the Belt Yard are all east of the roundhouse, to the photographer's left. The roundhouse's chimney and power service poles (and transforners?), as well as fuel tanks, are at or near the west end of the roundhouse; all of these things can be seen in the photo of 54. So, 54, while taking the curve leftward past the west end of the roundhouse, is turning northward, away from the river, putting its train on a course to travel timetable west on the BN, whether to Westminster or somewhere else. The map Rantoul posted shows Robert Street bridge, with the Milwuakee and former Omaha Road mains west of Union Depot running along the top of the map. Matthew Date: 02/06/25 08:00 Re: CGW Alco! Smoking, of course Author: ntharalson Roadmaster Wrote:
------------------------------------------------------- > ntharalson Wrote: "I'm goiing to dispute this. . . > . " > > I looked at several things, including the high > voltage power lines and the design of the bridge, > to arrive at my judgement regarding the > photographer's vantage point and 54's direction of > travel. Another thing to consider is the > roundhouse, which is what I will use to back up my > assertion that this train is turning to go west on > the former GN or NP east of SPUD (and diverge from > the former GN main at Westminster Tower if it is > going to CNW's East St. Paul Yard). Please > consider photos #3 and #4 in this post by Marty > Bernard: > https://www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?11 > ,4956022,4956022#4956022 In both photos, the > river, which is south of the roundhouse, is > visible in the background. Union Depot is to the > west of the roundhouse, off to the photographer's > right. Division Street Tower, Hoffman Avenue, > Dayton's Bluff, Pigs Eye Yard and the Belt Yard > are all east of the roundhouse, to the > photographer's left. The roundhouse's chimney > and power service poles (and transforners?), as > well as fuel tanks, are at or near the west end of > the roundhouse; all of these things can be seen in > the photo of 54. So, 54, while taking the curve > leftward past the west end of the roundhouse, is > turning northward, away from the river, putting > its train on a course to travel timetable west on > the BN, whether to Westminster or somewhere > else. > > The map Rantoul posted shows Robert Street bridge, > with the Milwuakee and former Omaha Road mains > west of Union Depot running along the top of the > map. > > Matthew In taking a LONG second look at the shot, I'm going to retract my original post and agree with Roadmaster here. Looking at the bridge in the background, it appears to be the Layfette viaduct which was buit over the SPUD lead in the 1960's. That would indeed make this a transfer from either State Street or Wesstern Avenue yards, more likely the former, as that was the ex-CGW yard. My bad on the original comment. Nick Tharalson, Marion, iA |