Nostalgia & History > Rock Island Abandonment pics in Iowa

In April of 83 Vic Polewski (Ex Rock Dispatcher) and I drove over the recently abandoned Golden State Route from Ainsworth to Allerton IA. It was a sad day to say the least. The first pic is at Brighton. Dan

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IIRC I'm standing on the N&W branch to Ottumwa at Belknap looking Southwest. Dan

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All that was left at Eldon IA. Dan

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The depot outside of Centerville. Dan

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IIRC looking west across the Milwaukee at Seymour IA. Dan

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By far the worst track I have ever ridden a passenger train over was on a trip on Rock Island's Golden State through SE Iowa in 1966. In 1980, I drove by this same line segment and it was so decrepit-looking it was hard to believe that a passenger train once rode over it. A few years later, this segment was ripped up altogether.

Thanks for the photos. I "retro-railfanned" this region last summer looking for remnants of the Rock. Not much left except the depot in Fairfield which is now a credit union.

Does the Centerville station still exist? Could anyone give me detailed directions on how to find it?

Bob

Great series. Even though it can be sad and painful, I find it fascinating to see abandoned rights of way and try to imagine what "used to be". Whether standing along the South Park at Kenosha Pass in Colorado, or the Modoc, there is something so mystical about it. Close your eyes and you can almost hear the train coming.

I always had a fascination with the Rock Island. And for my money, Iowa was what the R.I. was all about. The two always seemed to really "belong" together.

R.I.P. Rock Island, sorry to see you gone.

Soo Line Hoghead

Here is a few more views. This is at Otero Siding. Dan

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Couple of SP boxcars and another boxcar off to the left were left behind. Don't know what their fate was. Dan

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Looking west from Eldon. I understand this bridge is no longer there. What river is that? Dan

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Don't try this at home!! I was glad it wasn't my car. Dan

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Thanks for the great series of abandonment shots. Whenever I have the opportunity for "one last chance" and seeing an old railroad right-of-way, I do the same, although I haven't yet tried driving my vehicle across a railroad bridge. - Tony J.

it's the des moines river.
JC

Imagine if this line still existed and were in UP's possession. Intermodal trains from LA could continue up the Golden State route from KC all the way to Davenport, then up the DRI line to Clinton, then onto the ex-CNW main into Global 1-2-3. Suddenly, UP's intermodal capacity issues would be reduced to just getting the Sunset Route enhanced west of El Paso (which is slowly but surely getting done). Schedules competitive with BNSF could be offered. Market share could soar. UP coal trains and intermodal trains could largely run on separate railroads (something BNSF now enjoys) instead of getting tangled up all the way across Nebraska.

Now that we are out of transcon capacity in North America, the massive disinvestments in infrastructure of the 1980s are coming back to haunt us. It will cost an order of magnitude more to replace it than it would have cost to bank it and then upgrade it.

But everybody in RR industry back in the 80s was a pessimist. The focus of the managers was on "rationalization" and cost reduction. The focus of the investors was on liquidation, the RRs were worth much more dead than alive. Just ask Henry Crown.

Best regards,

Rob L.

sounds like a good plan but the line across illinois would still be bottled up. Maybe would have to instal a third main to Rochelle.
JC

JasonCNW Wrote:
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> sounds like a good plan but the line across
> illinois would still be bottled up. Maybe would
> have to instal a third main to Rochelle.

Yes, of course. Better yet, they should continue a third main to connect up with the existing end of third track in the suburban commute territory. Relatively cheap.

RL

rob_l Wrote:
> Yes, of course. Better yet, they should continue a
> third main to connect up with the existing end of
> third track in the suburban commute territory.
> Relatively cheap.
>
> RL
>

Not really that cheap anymore. The extension of Metra service from Geneva to Elburn is coming in at almost $3 million/mile. Part of that cost is due to the extensive signal upgrades that UP wants and another part is due to the extran earthwork needed to accomodate 25' track centers.

rob_l Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Imagine if this line still existed and were in
> UP's possession. Intermodal trains from LA could
> continue up the Golden State route from KC all the
> way to Davenport, then up the DRI line to Clinton,
> then onto the ex-CNW main into Global 1-2-3.
> Suddenly, UP's intermodal capacity issues would be
> reduced to just getting the Sunset Route enhanced
> west of El Paso (which is slowly but surely
> getting done). Schedules competitive with BNSF
> could be offered. Market share could soar. UP coal
> trains and intermodal trains could largely run on
> separate railroads (something BNSF now enjoys)
> instead of getting tangled up all the way across
> Nebraska.
>
> Now that we are out of transcon capacity in North
> America, the massive disinvestments in
> infrastructure of the 1980s are coming back to
> haunt us. It will cost an order of magnitude more
> to replace it than it would have cost to bank it
> and then upgrade it.
>
> But everybody in RR industry back in the 80s was a
> pessimist. The focus of the managers was on
> "rationalization" and cost reduction. The focus of
> the investors was on liquidation, the RRs were
> worth much more dead than alive. Just ask Henry
> Crown.
>
> Best regards,
>
> Rob L.

Rob,

Hear, hear! Good buddy Vich and I checked out the CRIP Memphis line in detail in '81 and hyrailed the MILW from Marengo WA to Miles City the same year. The losses of those lines were tragic; "the nation pays again"...

JK

genrail1 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Rob,
>
> Hear, hear! Good buddy Vich and I checked out the
> CRIP Memphis line in detail in '81 and hyrailed
> the MILW from Marengo WA to Miles City the same
> year. The losses of those lines were tragic; "the
> nation pays again"...
>
> JK

Yet if you had walked into 1416 Dodge Street in 1979 and tried to convince them to buy the Milwaukee, not to mention the Rock Island, you'd have been considered a deranged lunatic.

Marengo to Miles City is quite a long ways by hyrail...