Freight Service for CNS&M customers after 1963?

[daveklepper]

Then there are the surviving freight lines of Pacific Electric and even a bit of Sacramento Northern.

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

Most of the Iowa interurbans tended to be electrically-powered freight haulers who happened to have some local passenger runs, quite the reverse of the Indiana and Ohio interurbans which most of us (myself included) view as the norm.

Illinois Terminal appears to be an interurban (Illinois Traction) which bought a large steam-powered terminal road (the original Illinois Terminal). The interurban lines were abandoned in favor of trackage rights and the terminal road was absorbed by N&W.

[daveklepper]

Portions of the IT survived to this day in freight service, ditto the Warterloo Ceder Falls and Northern, Pacific Electric, and Sacramento Northern. Not a great deal of mileage. In the CERA Book, The Indiana Railroad, the Magic Interurban, Bowman Elder was quoted as saying something like "If we had concentrated on the coal business instead of buying the high speeds, we might have had some interesting possibities."

I agree. Instead of buying the highspeeds, they could have simply one-manned the existing most modern steel cars, bought some similar second hand cars to fill in the gaps left by scrapping the hard to maintain wood equipment, and concentrated on building up the carload freight business, and much of the line would have survived. Along with their bus substitution on lighter interurban lines and small city local lines, which did happen, they would have made it into WWII, which would have revived their fortunes. The passenger service would have quite much later, along with auto boom after WWII, but more of the trackage would have survived as freight operations by other railroads, which is true of the IT and WCF&N. Also the Crandic?

[Randy Stahl]

QUOTE: Originally posted by CSSHEGEWISCH

Interurban freight service is almost an oxymoron and this thread definitely demonstrates the point. Note that CNS&M applied for total abandonment of service and not merely discontinuance of passenger service. I doubt that North Shore would have lasted very long as a freight-only operation even if they dieselized.

Chicago Aurora & Elgin had even less freight service than North Shore and CA&E barely lasted two years as a freight-only operation.

I agree, but at least the CA&E had sole access to the Ovaltine plant, a volume shipper that the North Shore didn't have. Again the south Shore had an online power plant that was not owned by the utility that owned South Shore. The biggest exception to the rule that I can think of is the Fort dodge Line which although started as a passenger interurban successfully transformed into a profitable freight line. Later sold to the CNW it continued into the late century as a good source of revenue.
Randy

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

Interurban freight service is almost an oxymoron and this thread definitely demonstrates the point. Note that CNS&M applied for total abandonment of service and not merely discontinuance of passenger service. I doubt that North Shore would have lasted very long as a freight-only operation even if they dieselized.

Chicago Aurora & Elgin had even less freight service than North Shore and CA&E barely lasted two years as a freight-only operation.

[northwesterner]

The rails of the Skokie Industrial Line were taken out last year. The grade crossings were repaved, and the crossing warnings in the streets were scratched out. UP just took up the ties in the last couple of weeks. The portion of the Skokie Valley route north of Lake-Cook Road has been converted to a bike trail. The station at Deerfield Road is still standing, used by Bishop Heating and Plumbing

[Anonymous]

And I forgot Piester Oil in Northfield.
Mitch

[Anonymous]

When I first went to work on the CNW's Wisconsin Division, we had a job out of 40th Street known as "The Skokie Job." It worked 3 days a week, with the assignment going to the regular frieght pool. North of Dempster Street in Skokie, the CNW's frieght line swung over to the North Shore's now single track Skokie Line, all the way up to a spot known as Blodgett. Along this segment was at least one lumber yard that we switched on North Shore's old rails. The sidings still had the wire supports and crossarms, but no wire.

Mitch

[CSSHEGEWISCH]

The Weber Industrial Park service, next to CTA's Skokie Shops, was also taken over by C&NW, but without using any of North Shore's main line trackage.

[Randy Stahl]

A portion of the railroad survived in Kenosha Wi and was operated by the CNW for American motors. I believe the double track main was used to store auto rack cars and was torn up just a few years ago. The Skokie Valley route from Demster street northward was torn out exept for the 5 mile section that was purchased by the CNW for a freight line, again this track was abandoned a few years ago. I don't know if the track has been taken up yet. As for the rest of the road of service customers, they were out of luck. North Shore really didn't have a big frieght buisness, certainly not enough to keep the railroad running. North Shore, unlike South Shore didn't have an online power plant. The bulk of NSL traffic was simply shuttling cars around the different interchanges.
Randy
Ironically as I sit here writing this , a GP-7 with an M style air horn is whistling right outside my window. Only 2 chimes are working and it sounds soooo much like a NSL train !

[daveklepper]

What kind of freight service did North Shore customers get after the railroad was abandoned? Did any have service from other railroads? Did any pieces of the North Shore survive for freight and who operated them? I do remember the North Shore did have quite a considerable freight business.