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CNW SD40-2 6847, built in March 1974, idles in Union on a partially cloudy May afternoon. The crew breifly discusses what their plan is to pull the locomotives in tow out of the shop and to move CNW 6847 onto a seperate track. Today's plan was to get CB&Q SD24 504 out of the shop to use the outdoor crane to replace the radiator, and CNW 6847 was the designated shop switcher for the day. While this may look like a scene straight out of a 1980s Chicago and North Western railyard, in reality CNW 6847 is currently owned and operated by the Illinois Railway Museum and was switching power around the Diesel Locomotive Restoration Shop.
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Union, Illinois, USA
May 24, 2025
Canon EOS 60D
Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS
Lima 1949
Union Pacific 900075
Steam Rotary Snow Plow
UP 900075 is a steam-powered rotary snow plow. It is effectively a giant snow blower, with its steam engine – housed entirely within the streamlined car body for easier maintenance in winter conditions – powering a large blade at the front that throws snow to the side of the tracks. It is not self-propelled and was designed to be pushed by a locomotive. Diesel-powered rotary snow plows are still employed by railroads but the last steam-powered rotary plow was retired in the 1970s.
Electro-Motive 1982
Amtrak 945
AEM-7 main line passenger locomotive
Amtrak 945 is an 11,000 volt electric passenger locomotive built in LaGrange, Illinois. It is the fastest locomotive at IRM. It was designed for a maximum speed of 125mph, which it would reach in service on the Northeast Corridor between Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington DC. It was retired in 2018 and acquired by IRM, where it is preserved as a static display.
PC&F 1975
Milwaukee Road 992300
NE Caboose
Milwaukee Road 992300 is a standard railroad caboose designed for general freight service over the Milwaukee Road system. It has a widened (or “extended vision”) centered cupola on the roof to provide the conductor better visibility over his train.
GE 1960
Union Pacific 18
D-E Turbine A Unit 8500 GTEL
Union Pacific 18 is an example of the most powerful locomotive ever built in America. Rated at 10,000hp, it consists of the cab unit; the main power unit containing a turbine engine, similar to a jet engine, numbered 18B; and a tender to carry fuel for the turbine. The railroad designed these locomotives specifically to pull freight trains between Omaha, Nebraska and Ogden, Utah and 18 is one of only two in preservation. Their poor fuel economy and high maintenance costs of the turbine led to their retirement in the late 1960s.
The above texts all come from the IRM website.
www.irm.org/
National Train Day was a marketing thing that Amtrak came up with. They had some interesting displays of equipment at Union Station in Chicago. They quit it because they didn't have the budget for it. But, as usual, things created by the government never truly fade away. 😜
Here are some pictures I took at Union Station in 2010.
Illinois Railway Museum
Union, Illinois 42.227986, -88.527277
July 27, 2024
My Illinois Railway Museum album
COPYRIGHT 2024, 2025 by Jim Frazier All Rights Reserved. This may NOT be used for ANY reason without written consent from Jim Frazier. 20240726to27cz7-6397-2500
The 33rd Annual Vintage Transport Extravaganza
Illinois Railway Museum
Union, Illinois 42.227525, -88.522752
August 4, 2024
COPYRIGHT 2024, 2025 by Jim Frazier All Rights Reserved. This may NOT be used for ANY reason without written consent from Jim Frazier.
20240804cz7-7184-Edit-2500
South Shore 803 leads a freight train over Olson Road, at the Illinois Railway Museum.
On a 1937 Packard
Same hood ornament, but the opposite side. Much different look and feel.
The 33rd Annual Vintage Transport Extravaganza
Illinois Railway Museum
Union, Illinois 42.229569, -88.528490
August 4, 2024
The Goddess of Speed Project
COPYRIGHT 2024, 2025 by JimFrazier All Rights Reserved. This may NOT be used for ANY reason without written consent from Jim Frazier.
20240804cz7-7158-2500
Frisco decapod (2-10-0) 1630 @ Union, Il. (194102)*
Construction of a track spur at the Illinois Railway Museum, Union, Illinois, August 2014. Contractor is Volkmann Railroad Builders.
The machine on the rails appears to be a Geismar DC5/10 Power Pack.
Construction of a track spur at the Illinois Railway Museum, Union, Illinois, August 2014. Contractor is Volkmann Railroad Builders.
A layer of ballast has been placed, and soon the railroad ties will be laid on the ballast.
A PCC streetcar from the Museum's collection is seen operating in the distance.
Construction of a track spur at the Illinois Railway Museum, Union, Illinois, August 2014. Contractor is Volkmann Railroad Builders.
With a bucket of tie plates.
Construction of a track spur at the Illinois Railway Museum, Union, Illinois, August 2014. Contractor is Volkmann Railroad Builders.
Seen in the foreground are two fish plates (also known as joint bars or splice bars), used to hold two pieces of rail together at a joint.
Construction of a track spur at the Illinois Railway Museum, Union, Illinois, August 2014. Contractor is Volkmann Railroad Builders.
The machine on the rails appears to be a Geismar DC5/10 Power Pack.
A small part of the museum's collection of steam locomotives is seen in the background.
Construction of a track spur at the Illinois Railway Museum, Union, Illinois, August 2014. Contractor is Volkmann Railroad Builders.
The metal pieces seen on the ballast include tie plates, spikes and fishplates.
Construction of a track spur at the Illinois Railway Museum, Union, Illinois, August 2014. Contractor is Volkmann Railroad Builders.
The equipment on the rails appears to be a Geismar Power Pack, probably DC5/10.
Construction of a track spur at the Illinois Railway Museum, Union, Illinois, August 2014. Contractor is Volkmann Railroad Builders.
Construction of a track spur at the Illinois Railway Museum, Union, Illinois, August 2014. Contractor is Volkmann Railroad Builders.
Construction of a track spur at the Illinois Railway Museum, Union, Illinois, August 2014. Contractor is Volkmann Railroad Builders.
I think this machine is a Geismar Power Pack, probably DC5/10 model.
C&NW 8646 and 8701 during the storage time at the Illinois Railway Museum. The moon rises over C&NW 6847 as the clouds and stars streak overhead.
