My greatest find ever!! (dial up warning)

[jguess733]

Hello all. I volunteer my time with an organization called Lost Horrizons. We are a non-profit organization based in Tacoma, Wa. Our mission is to restore the historic ferry M/V Kalakala. Anyhow the site where she is moored is an old industrial complex with an abaondoned grain elevator. What I found this morning at the site is a very beautifully restored 4-8-4 with Ferroequus painted on the tender, coupled behind it is what I believe to be an F40PH with the reporting marks FLNX it's road number is 418. And coupled behind it and on an adjacent track is about half a dozen Hi level passenger cars like what Amtrak uses. Two of them are have cabs for use in push pull service. Thier reporting marks are MTDX. The tracks are owned by Tacoma Rail. Can anyone shed some lite on all this wonderful equipment? I'm sorry the photo's are so dark, but it was a typical overcast day. I'm going back out tomorrow and I hope to take some more/better photos. Here are the ones that I have.

[penncentral2002]

Here is what you found - http://www.goldenpacificrr.com/hi_fi/GPRR.html

[Datafever]

Read more -

http://upspolitics.blogspot.com/2006/08/ferroequus.html 

and the site of the owner

http://www.goldenpacificrr.com/hi_fi/GPRR.swf 

EDIT: Oops, Zack, you are just too fast for me. 

[CopCarSS]

Wow...I had forgotten how good Reading T1's looked!

[Anonymous]

Ferroequas----hmm, 'Ferro' means 'Iron' and 'Equus' means horse.  Somebody had a sense of humor!!

[Modelcar]

 

..............Photos....dark or not, I enjoyed them.

[Anonymous]

 

..............Photos....dark or not, I enjoyed them.

Agreed.

[Train Guy 3]

Pretty good looking steam locomotive there. Looks a funny pulling those double-decker passenger cars.

[TimChgo9]

I was cruising around Joliet today (hopelessly lost) and I saw a bunch of old bi-level passenger cars with the MTDX reporting marks on them.... of course, they looked nowhere near as nice as the one in the picture.  They were in a railyard, east of the river in Joliet, probably about a mile or so from down town, past Silver Cross hospital... or something.  I really have no idea where I was, but anyway...I thought I would mention that...

[ericsp]

Interesting array of owners of that equipment.
TPHX is Thomas Payne Holdings
FLNX is R.P. Flynn, Inc., dong business as Ohio Railway Supply
MTDX is Midwest Transportation & Development Corporation

[ndbprr]

It's my understanding that those cars in the EJ&E yard in Joliet are for the proposed loop train that will hit all the burbs around Chicago.

[CNW534]

Ditch lights?  On a steam loco?  Someone needs to be smacked up good.

Mark

[TimChgo9]

It's my understanding that those cars in the EJ&E yard in Joliet are for the proposed loop train that will hit all the burbs around Chicago.

We've been hearing alot about that around here. I have also been hearing a persistent rumor for about the last 5 years, that there will be METRA trains on the IHB "soon"....  I can't see how that would be possible, given that line's congestion, but, the rumor I keep hearing is that it will connect the South Suburbs with O'Hare, or some such thing.  One of my mom's neighbors was talking about the commuter route. Is that supposed to run on the EJ&E, or is METRA going to build a whole new right of way??? I have heard both stories. 

[Anonymous]

Due to the port of Tacoma inlarging the container storage yard where 2100 and the F40Ph and bi-level cars where parked GPRR had to find some place else to park the equipment.

Also it has been posted on other forums that someone had taken/stolen the Reading lines logo off the locomotive and removed the number boards from the headlight 

[Anonymous]

Ditch lights?  On a steam loco?  Someone needs to be smacked up good.

Mark

What?! Does not the Ditch lights qualify this engine for Mainline service?

Is it possible that she is running again?

She has been sitting some time, look how dry those rods are and how dull the wheels. Hardly a spot of oil on anything. What are they doing to that poor bairn?

[CANADIANPACIFIC2816]

Very nice pictures of that Reading T-1. I wish I lived much closer to where she is, I'd be getting pictures of her myself if I did.

CANADIANPACIFIC2816

[spbed]

Hello I am going to be in Tacoma in May. Exactly where is this treasure located in Tacoma?

 

 

Hello all. I volunteer my time with an organization called Lost Horrizons. We are a non-profit organization based in Tacoma, Wa. Our mission is to restore the historic ferry M/V Kalakala. Anyhow the site where she is moored is an old industrial complex with an abaondoned grain elevator. What I found this morning at the site is a very beautifully restored 4-8-4 with Ferroequus painted on the tender, coupled behind it is what I believe to be an F40PH with the reporting marks FLNX it's road number is 418. And coupled behind it and on an adjacent track is about half a dozen Hi level passenger cars like what Amtrak uses. Two of them are have cabs for use in push pull service. Thier reporting marks are MTDX. The tracks are owned by Tacoma Rail. Can anyone shed some lite on all this wonderful equipment? I'm sorry the photo's are so dark, but it was a typical overcast day. I'm going back out tomorrow and I hope to take some more/better photos. Here are the ones that I have.

[MOJAX]

Great Photos, thanks for sharing!

[zardoz]

Those bi-level cars look to be ex-CNW (ex-Metra).

[Anonymous]

They are Pullman cars built for the C&NW then used by METRA one of the cars not used is a lounge car 7900 I think where people cound buy cans of beer,soda, coffee and sandwishes so I belive there are a total of 6 of these bi-levels.

Also the GPRR did run the train last summer from Augest to October and plan to run again this summer so check the website

www.goldenpacificrr.com for more info!

[CShaveRR]

It's my understanding that those cars in the EJ&E yard in Joliet are for the proposed loop train that will hit all the burbs around Chicago.

We've been hearing alot about that around here. I have also been hearing a persistent rumor for about the last 5 years, that there will be METRA trains on the IHB "soon"....  I can't see how that would be possible, given that line's congestion, but, the rumor I keep hearing is that it will connect the South Suburbs with O'Hare, or some such thing.  One of my mom's neighbors was talking about the commuter route. Is that supposed to run on the EJ&E, or is METRA going to build a whole new right of way??? I have heard both stories. 

First of all, those former Metra cars are not going to be used on the "STAR" line, or anywhere else.  They've been retired, and would go to anyone who wants to pay a buck plus shipping and handling (if you look inside, they'd need plenty of work to make them passengerworthy again).  The stories I've heard about the proposal mention the use of DMU (diesel multiple unit cars) purchased specifically for the new service.

Both stories you've been hearing about the new route are correct--or half correct, anyway.  The plan is to build a new right-of-way from somewhere near O'Hare, west along Interstate 90 to South Barrington, then join the EJ&E right-of-way for the trip south through Spaulding, West Chicago, Eola, and Plainfield to Joliet.  What I'm unclear on is whether the service will continue east along the EJ&E to Chicago Heights, via Matteson.

But I'm not worried--I don't expect to live to see this expansion.