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Sabtu, 22 Juli 2017

Throwback Thursday 23 CN GP9 4508 at Barrie ON in the Late 1970s

CN GP9 #4508 brings a short wayfreight southward past the Barrie, ON station on a summer's day in the late 1970's. There's just something about the boys sitting on the baggage cart that add an element of timelessness to the photo. Photographer unknown, scan from 35MM Kodak negative from author's collection.

Tonight’s Throwback Thursday takes us to Barrie, ON, about fourty years ago (the image was scanned from a negative, so actual date is unknown, but we can approximate it to somewhere around 1975-1982). In my opinion, if there was ever an image that captured the essence of railroading in Canada in the late 1970’s or early 1980’s, this shot comes close. There may not be a 52’ bulkhead flatcar in the consist or a VIA consist with “blueline coaches”, but a lot of the other elements that make this a classic CN shot are present: GP9, M420W, 3800 CF cylindrical hopper, Hawker Siddely van, and even a well-maintained passenger station. Each symbols in some way of Canadian railroading at the time, they combine to form a neat little scene that to me is a lot more than just a train in front of a station. The engines, both Canadian-built, CN 4508 and an unidentified MLW M420W exemplify the road’s two paint schemes at the time, the “wet noodle” and “zebra stripe”. A product of a 1961 corporate re-branding, the red, black, and white scheme has endured in some form for over 50 years to the road’s present image (though in my mind, the pinnacle of CN’s motive power aesthetics were achieved in the SD50F). Along with the GP38-2W’s, the M420W’s were the first units delivered with the zebra stripe paint scheme in 1973. A couple of 40’ refer cars trail the locomotives, as well as a 3800 CF cylindrical hopper, also built in Canada by National Steel Car in Hamilton, ON. A popular size with Canadian roads, similar cars were owned by CP, TH&B, Procor, and others. No doubt an HO model would bring a smile to many modelers faces as it is a rather involved kitbash project. Bringing up the markers is a Hawker Siddely CN wide-vision caboose; though it’s difficult to see, the CN noodle centred underneath the cupola point to a Hawker-built van in the CN 79200-79349 series, built 1967, rather than one of the more common Point Ste. Charles cabooses rebuilt at the roads’ Montreal shop from retired 40’boxcars. These cabooses featured vertical cupola faces (instead of slanted), different smoke jack locations, and different battery and equipment box locations than there PSC counterparts. Eric Gagnon has an excellent post about the CN caboose fleet on his Trackside treasure blog here. Some elements of the photo go beyond simply a nice photo from the late 1970’s: the baggage cart, a timeless fixture at many Canadian stations for years, stands at the ready, along with a couple of children who are probably in their 50’s by now! Equally as interesting are the “tickets and information” and “baggage checked here” signs hanging from the station; present day VIA service (which does not include Barrie) is a far cry from the days of simply walking up to the station and buying a ticket for a train operating that day. Other interesting elements: ornate woodworking and windows on the station waiting room, news stand, pay phone (when was the last time you saw one of those?), station sign listing daily departures, and the semaphores (!).

Not much of the scene remains today. CN 4508 would go onto become CN 4024 after emerging from the GP9 rebuild program undertaken at the Point Ste. Charles shops in the 1980’s and 1990’s. Eventually CN 4024 was retired and after languishing at Homewood, IL, the engine was sold to National Railway Equipment where it was likely scrapped or used in a genset conversion. CN’s M420W fleet was off the roster by the late 1990’s, renumbered to the 3500’s as they were transferred to branch line service (and to make way for new GE C44-9WL’s that showed up on the roster in late 1994. The ancient reefers are certainly long gone, in all likelihood falling to the scrapper’s torch, with the same fate probably claiming the hopper and van (though there are a number of 3800 CF hoppers still in service, though not likely many with CN). Barrie now has Monday-Friday commuter service provided by GO Transit, though the station (which still stands) is not used for passenger traffic. Actually, it’s not even Barrie anymore: GO Transit calls it ‘’Allandale Waterfront GO” station. One would in fact be hard-pressed to recognize the station building these days, as it has been considerably re-worked, with new red and tan paint covering the old white-painted wood in the image above. The tracks in the foreground on which the train is resting (once part of the Newmarket subdivision) have also been removed after abandonment in 1996.

A Google satellite image reveals that the station building still stands, though the tracks on the north side have been removed. The new GO Allandale Waterfront station extends south of the original station building.

New paint and a clay tile have given the station a completely new look. Despite the effort, it has reportedly sat vacant since 2011. Image from Google Streetview.

But for now, we can reflect back to the late 1970’s when the sun was shining and CN was still running trains through Barrie. And it even looks like I managed to complete this while it’s still Thursday!

‘Til next time,

Cheers,

Peter.

Readmore → Throwback Thursday 23 CN GP9 4508 at Barrie ON in the Late 1970s

Rabu, 05 Juli 2017

Throwback Thursday 28 CP Winter Action at Galt 1972 2014

The low winter sun illuminates CP C424 #4238 as it is about to pass the depot at Galt with an extra westbound in February 1972. Chuck Begg photo, author's collection.

The same view as above, 42 years later (3 January 2014). The MLW's are long gone, replaced by an ES44AC and a SD40-2 (also now gone). No longer is this location Galt, but now the city of Cambridge - unless you're a railfan, in which case this will always be Galt!

Today’s Throwback Thursday takes us back to the Winter of 1972. We’re at Galt, ON, standing in front of the CP depot that still bears the name of its’ Scottish novelist namesake (John Galt). A year later, the civic merger of Galt, Preston, and Hespeler would result in the city of Cambridge, where the modern counterpart photo was taken (even though I’m standing essentially where photographer Chuck Begg did 42 years earlier, I’m in another city!).

In this view, we see a CP westbound extra lead by three MLW C424’s, with the lead unit #4238 still in it’s as-delivered classic Tuscan and grey paint scheme. The unit is seven years old, built in 1965, and would survive another three years before being repainted to CP’s attractive Action Red paint scheme in early 1975. The engine would serve its original owner for 33 years until a sale in 1998 to New Brunswick East Coast Railway took the unit to the Maritimes. As Alco/MLW technology faded from the shortline scene, the unit was sold for parts to sister railroad Ottawa Central before being scrapped in March 2004.

Not only are the Burlington Route boxcar and the head-end stock cars long gone, but the scene itself has changed substantially as well. Absent in Chuck’s photo is the #8 highway/Dundas St. bridge constructed over the Galt yard and Galt Sub mainline. Auto traffic now dominates activity in the yard with a Toyota manufacturing plant located on the old Grand River Railway line a few miles north of the yard (the line merges into the yard near the Burlington boxcar on the other side of Samuelson street).

Though the scene has changed, Galt is still a busy place with several through freights and a daily local passing through on the main line. A pair of locals based at Wolverton yard east of Woodstock also call on the yard, heading up the old GRR line (CP Waterloo spur) to serve the Toyota plant. Additionally, the station and freight shed still stand, so it’s still possible to relive the scene in Chuck’s photo – too bad the MLW’s are gone though!

‘Til next time,

Cheers,

Peter.

Readmore → Throwback Thursday 28 CP Winter Action at Galt 1972 2014

Selasa, 06 Juni 2017

F Unit Friday 2 CPR 1432 at Banff Alberta August 1963

CP 1432 and 8129 spend a few minutes together on a pleasant afternoon in Banff, AB in August 1963. Uncredited slide, author's collection.

Well, I didn’t plan to do this as an F-unit Friday but once again Throwback Thursday was running late. We’re at Banff, Alberta, in August 1963 where we find CP 1432 leading the westbound Canadian in the late afternoon sunshine. There are a number of things in the photo that struck me as “really interesting” and help turn it into a mini time capsule of sorts.

First, the keen observer will note that the trailing unit on the train is in fact a Fairbanks-Morse engine. While CP did tend to keep the FM’s in the west, it is probable that not often they could be found on passenger trains (note the FM style of truck as well as radiators/exhaust stack). Likewise, the use of an SW1200RS in the west seems somewhat unusual. Typically associated with use on the DAR or Ontario branchlines, a switcher was maintained at Banff for a number of years to switch cars on and off the passenger trains stopping at Banff. Then, as now, the town remains a popular tourist destination, though the town’s connection to the railway is not what it once was. On top of CP 1432 is an interesting feature unique to the Canadian (not the icicle breakers) – the high-powered light aimed toward the sky used to illuminate the mountains as the train passed through them in the night. The idea was to light up the scenery for passengers riding in the dome cars, and even if it did not work too well, is an example of the blue-sky thinking that has largely disappeared from today’s railroading, and in particular Canadian passenger travel.

Additionally, it appears that the summer popularity of the train has exceeded what capacity the classy stainless Budd cars could provide, thus requiring that a number of older heavyweight cars be added to the train. A number, including some on this train, where painted with aluminum paint in an effort to blend them in with the rest of the consist, however it appears that a plain-jane maroon car has also been pressed into service. A lightweight CC&F baggage car has also been added and disturbs the streamlined stainless motif of the train.

While a Google street-view of the scene today shows that it is much the same (but with taller trees), the train in the photo above has indeed come and gone. CP 1432, built as #4041 in 1951 at GMDD London, was renumbered to 1432 in 1955, only to be renumbered back to 4041 in 1966 before again becoming 1432 in 1969. It was sold to VIA Rail upon formation of the crown carrier in 1978 but was later returned to CP and subsequently scrapped (despite a full repaint into VIA colors). CP 8129 served CP for many years before ultimately meeting its’ demise in a wreck at Laval, Quebec; it was subsequently sold to Andrew Merrilees in 1998. Many of the Budd stainless cars ended up being rebuilt by VIA Rail in their HEP refurbishment program and continue in service although the heavyweight coaches, baggage car and the FM unit likely have all long since been turned into razor blades.

But for at least a few minutes back in August 1963 CP offered the photographer a rather interesting scene to photograph. I wonder if the photographer found the slide as interesting as I do? Uncredited slide, author’s collection.

Cheers,

Peter.

Readmore → F Unit Friday 2 CPR 1432 at Banff Alberta August 1963