Railroaders' Nostalgia > The Emporia I Remember

My-oh-my, the memories a photo like this can conjure up! I was fortunate enough to have experienced the real Emporia, KS before yard size reduction, crew district consolidation, division re-alignment, branch-line spin-offs, & a major merger (pick one, pick ALL) changed this once vibrant Santa Fe terminal forever.

Back in “the good-ol’ days” Emporia had a 24/7 engine servicing facility, with a ghost-structure 32 stall roundhouse still standing. Emporia also had a 24/7 mechanical force, namely carmen. It had separate east & westbound yards and at one time was said to be the largest flat (non-hump) yard on the entire Santa Fe system. At one time Emporia was home base for local trains radiating out to half a dozen different destinations. And even after Amtrak take-over there were 4 long-distance trains calling at the passenger station every day. For 3 months in the summer of 1972 that total briefly expanded to 6 daily trains. The entire 2nd floor of that station building housed HQ offices for the Eastern Division, and the terminal itself was home base to Middle Division road crews.

Let’s take a close look at the image below: The photographer is standing under the west end of the passenger trainshed. The red-brick platform has been there for decades, witnessing countless passing trains and many thousands of human footsteps. Visible in the left third of the image, way in the background is part of that 32-stall RH that would last until the winter of ’83-’84 before being razed.

The small army of train crewmen on the right -some of them deadheading- are congregated just outside of the wire office on the west end of the station building. This was the official on-off duty point for all crews, both divisions. Train orders & all other necessary items of information were received here, cut by busy operators who worked this 24/7 “open office of communication”. The Eastern Division chief & regular trick train dispatchers occupied offices just this side of the Wire Office, with the main Amtrak ticket office & waiting room one “notch” closer. These crewmen are crossing the westbound main track and are about to board a hotshot pig train which has just arrived on the eastbound main track. Next door is running yard track #3, a sort of auxiliary main track that provides much-used access to & from the main yard itself. Next track over was used as a storage track for passengers cars that connected with passenger trains running through town. And beyond that are the east & westbound freight yard leads respectively.

The 2 vehicles lurking at the left are at the far west end of a strip of land used by many different parked vehicles, railroad employee & railfan alike. In fact, this very parking strip was used by railfans who had arranged “Meet me in Emporia” encounters. They used to coordinate here and go shooting in several different areas, including the Chase County Flint Hills. Or they would just sit there all day long and witness an endless parade of trains in both directions. It was especially great for modelers! They could photograph an unbelievable menagerie of engines & cars rolling through town. At night the pure white lights seen through the 2 trainshed supports supplied perfect illumination for tripod, time-exposure photography. I know, because I utilized that light many times!

This image is from a slide now in the collection of my friend, Mr Daniel Archer. I shot a great many slides in Emporia before Kodachrome died. And many of them could have evoked the same personal memories that inspired this thread. But I like the idea of using a slide from an unknown photographer. In a way, it represents the 100s of railfans who have made the sojourn to/through this once great RR arena known as Emporia, Kansas! Sic transit gloria mundi...

1. AT&SF 5619 leads 3 more big burners on very hot looking pig train, probably 881 at Emporia, KS. A crew change is taking place between Middle & Eastern Division crews, with a couple of DH crews likely involved. This photo was taken on a semi-overcast evening in August of 1977. The cloud cover probably provided a bit of relief from what was otherwise just another stiflingly hot & humid summer day in the Land of OZ...
(Photographer is unknown, from the Daniel Archer collection)

Thanks for listening!
Lance Garrels (santafe199)
Daniel Archer (SKOChief)



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/07/21 03:16 by santafe199.

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When I happen to be in the area, I always swing by to see whats left, and the memories flood in for me too. I've stood on that platform many times, waiting for my train, or hanging around to watch the train I just came in on, leave town. And it's sad to think about how significant it all was to so many, compared to what's left of it now.

Posted from Android

I spent the night in Emporia last week enroute to get my new Greyhound puppy (in Olpe). I didn't even venture to the depot. The town is shabby and seems to have fallen on hard times, economically, with the loss of the crew change and who knows what else. (Emporia was a home terminal, wasn't it?)

eljay Wrote: > ... Emporia was a home terminal, wasn't it?

Yes it was. I mentioned that at the end of my 2nd paragraph, but it gets sorta confusing. Emporia was HQ for the Eastern Division, but was an away-from-home terminal for E.D. road crews who were based out of Argentine. It was 'home terminal' for Middle Division road crews whose HQ was Newton, KS...

Lance/199

Did Emporia have more then just the two tracks with platforms?

mundo Wrote: > … Did Emporia have more then just the two tracks with platforms?

Up into early 1977 there were 3 red-brick “finger” platforms between tracks 2, 3 & 4, in addition to the main red brick platform, so the first 4 tracks out from the depot were passenger tracks in those glory days. Up to its discontinuation in 1958(?), the motor car tr #25 & #26 “launched” from and returned to track 4…

Posted from iPhone

Thanks Santa FE 199,   I figured as a busy station, it would have needed more then two tracks.  I never asked Arbuckle about this.

Love that shot and thanks for the story, Lance!

RC Lundgren

Wonderful information and great photo, thanks very much for sharing.