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On This Date in Railroad History

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Posted by cherokee woman on Sunday, July 18, 2010 6:38 AM

JULY 18 1846
First international trains between the U.S. and Canada run from Portland, Maine to Montreal on the Atlantic & St. Lawrence Railroad.

JULY 18 1858
The Pennsylvania Railroad introduces the smoking car on its first through run from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh.

JULY 18 1959
Last steam run on the Nickel Plate.

JULY 18 1968
Last Santa Fe California Special trips.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Monday, July 19, 2010 12:20 PM

JULY 19 1860
First railroad reaches Kansas.

JULY 19 1967
First air-conditioned New York City subway car.

JULY 19 1968
Santa Fe discontinues Dallas connection of the Texas Chief.

JULY 19 1987
Red River Valley & Western begins operation over 667 miles of ex-Burlington Northern trackage in North Dakota.

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Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 7:04 AM

JULY 21 1836
The first steam railroad in Canada, the Champlain and Saint Lawrence Railroad opens from Laprarie on the St. Lawrence River to St. John on the Richelieu River (16.5 miles).

JULY 21 1873
Jesse James and his gang hold up their first train, a Rock Island express at Adair, Iowa and escapes with $3,000. The train's engineer is killed when the train is derailed prior to the robbery.

JULY 21 1877
After a violent clash between railroad strikers and State troops in Pittsburgh, a battle and riot ensues in which 2000 freight cars are burned and $10,000,000 in railroad property is destroyed.

JULY 21 1898
Alaska's first railroad, the narrow gauge White Pass & Yukon Railway, opens.

JULY 21 1952
Earthquake forces closesure of Southern Pacific mainline at Tehachapi, California for 25 days.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Thursday, July 22, 2010 11:25 AM

JULY 22 1906
Chicago's last cable car route, the State Street Line, ends operation.

JULY 22 1909
Construction begins on the Oregon Trunk.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Friday, July 23, 2010 5:18 AM

JULY 23 1877
Passenger service begins on the first municipal railroad in the U.S., the Cincinnati Southern, between Cincinnati, Ohio and Ludlow and Somerset, Kentucky.

JULY 23 1945
Vista-dome cars introduced to service on the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad between Chicago and Minneapolis on the Twin Cities Zephyr.

JULY 23 1959
Last regular Union Pacific revenue freight run to use steam. UP 4-6-6-4 #3713 to Cheyenne Wyoming.

JULY 23 1963
Last run for the Chicago & Northwestern Twin Cities 400.

JULY 23 1966
New York Central tests jet-powered RDC in Ohio.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by gopherstate on Friday, July 23, 2010 12:19 PM

July 23, 1981 - Last ICG train leaves Sioux Falls, South Dakota eastbound for Cherokee Iowa.  The consist is one rebuilt Geep, one empty Rock Island box car, one empty TTX pig flat, one snowplow and one side door caboose.  About 15 miles of the Sioux Falls District would be operated as an industrial lead out of Cherokee for a number of years following the removal of track in South Dakota and Minnesota.

Matt

 

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Posted by cherokee woman on Saturday, July 24, 2010 6:52 AM

JULY 24 1870
The first railroad car to travel from the Pacific to Atlantic coasts, arrive in New York.

JULY 24 1877
Patent # 193,357 issued to Joel Tiffany for the first really successful refrigerated car design.

JULY 24 1986
ICC rejects merger of Southern Pacific Railroad and Santa Fe Railway.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Sunday, July 25, 2010 7:29 AM

JULY 25 1832
A cable chain breaks while demonstrating Granite Railway's incline to several visitors resulting in the first railroad fatality.

JULY 25 1922
President Harding orders federal rail and coal controls to ensure distribution of food and fuel.

JULY 25 1953
First use of subway tokens in New York City.

JULY 25 1967
Construction begins on San Francisco's Market Street subway.

EDIT:  July 25, 1948, Singer/songwriter Steve Goodman, was born.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Monday, July 26, 2010 5:43 AM

JULY 26 1847
Moses Garrish Farmer builds First miniature train for children to ride.

JULY 26 1877
Railroad strike expands from coast to coast, becoming the first nationwide strike against the railroads.

JULY 26 1884
The East Cleveland Street Railway becomes the first electric streetcars as it begins operations in Cleveland, Ohio.

JULY 26 1972
Erie Lackawanna declares bankruptcy

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 11:38 AM

JULY 27 1844
Long Island Railroad opens first section of track to Greenport.

JULY 27 1959
First revenue train on Southern Pacific's Great Salt Lake Fill.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Wednesday, July 28, 2010 6:16 AM

JULY 28 1871
Tracklaying for the Denver & Rio Grande Railway begins in Denver.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Friday, July 30, 2010 6:48 AM

..JULY 30 1902
The largest locomotive in the world is wrecked at Denver, Colorado.  (Can anyone give more info on this?)

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Saturday, July 31, 2010 7:21 AM

JULY 31 1809
First practical US railroad, horse-drawn cars on wooden track, Philadelphia.

JULY 31 1847
Monon Route chartered.

JULY 31 1851
The 5'6 gauge, broad gauge, is adopted as the standard gauge for Ontario and Quebec. The broad gauge was used until about 1870.

JULY 31 1940
43 killed in train accident at Cuyahoga Falls, OH.

JULY 31 1956
Great Northern ends Cascade electrification.

JULY 31 1971
Monon merged into Louisville & Nashville.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Sunday, August 1, 2010 5:46 AM

AUGUST 01 1836
Tuscumbia, Courtland & Decatur Railroad decides to uses sandboxes on locomotives to prevent them from slipping on squashed grasshoppers.

AUGUST 01 1873
Andrew Hallidie demonstrates practical cable car system on Clay Street Hill in San Francisco.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Monday, August 2, 2010 6:41 AM

AUGUST 02 1873
First trial run of San Francisco cable car, Clay Street between Kearny & Jones.

AUGUST 02 1919
Railroad workers strike for higher wages, ask for profit sharing and government ownership.

AUGUST 02 1924
SP&S Transportation Co. incorporated (motor buses)

AUGUST 02 1965
Florida East Coast resumes state-ordered passenger service.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Friday, August 6, 2010 7:23 AM

AUGUST 06 1867
A group of Cheyenne braves derail a Union Pacific train near Plum Creek, Nebraska.

AUGUST 06 1922
40 killed in train accident at Sulpher Springs, MO.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Sunday, August 8, 2010 6:41 AM

 AUGUST 08 1829
The Stonebridge Lion becomes the first English steam locomotive to travel on a track in America between Carbondale and Honesdale, PA on the Delaware & Hudson. It was found to be too heavy for the track and was converted to stationary use soon afterward and the D&H resumes using horses to pull its trains.

AUGUST 08 1865
Patent #49,227 issued to Samual Calthrop for a streamlined train.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by CShaveRR on Sunday, August 8, 2010 9:34 AM
That would be the Stourbridge Lion. I believe it actually fell through a bridge.

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

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Posted by cherokee woman on Sunday, August 8, 2010 12:56 PM

 Thanks for the info, Carl!

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Sunday, August 8, 2010 1:12 PM

1963

Britain's "Great Train Robbery" took place as thieves made off with 2.6 million pounds in banknotes from a train they stopped north of London.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Monday, August 9, 2010 6:03 AM

JULY 09 1905
Special train chartered by Walter Scott (Death Valley Scotty), departs Los Angeles and makes record run to Chicago in 44 hours, 54 minutes.

JULY 09 1908
Ruth Trust Company incorporated (SP&S Ry.)

JULY 09 1918
Worst railroad accident in U.S. history occurs when two passenger trains collide near Nashville, Tennessee killing 101.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Tuesday, August 10, 2010 5:23 AM

 

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AUGUST 10 1885
The Baltimore & Hampden Line becomes the first commercial electric railroad.

AUGUST 10 1887

81 people are killed and hundreds injured at Chatsworth, IL when a burning bridge collapses under the weight of a crossing train.

AUGUST 10 1972

The Illinois Central and Gulf, Mobile & Ohio merge to form the Illinois Central Gulf Railroad.

AUGUST 10 1973

First BART train travels through trans-bay tube to Montgomery Street Station.

 

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Wednesday, August 11, 2010 5:20 AM

AUGUST 11 1955
Last Wabash steam locomotive in use, #573, is retired at the St. Louis Museum of Transportation.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Thursday, August 12, 2010 12:13 PM

AUGUST 12 1988


Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad (Katy) operations taken over by the Union Pacific Railroad.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Friday, August 13, 2010 5:16 AM

AUGUST 13 1939
24 killed in train accident at Carlin, NV.

AUGUST 13 1960
East Broad Top Railroad reopened as a tourist railroad.

AUGUST 13 1965
Pacific Electric Railway merges with parent Southern Pacific Railroad.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Saturday, August 14, 2010 5:33 AM

AUGUST 14 1900


Railroad tycoon Collis P. Huntington dies.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Sunday, August 15, 2010 6:49 AM

AUGUST 15 1863
Submarine HL Hunley arrives in Charleston on railroad cars.

AUGUST 15 1870
The Kansas Pacific Railroad reaches Denver.

AUGUST 15 1947
Rock Island completes $15 million, five-site Iowa relocation projects.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Monday, August 16, 2010 2:49 PM

AUGUST 16 1851


International rail service opens from Laprarie, Quebec to Rouses Point, New York.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Tuesday, August 17, 2010 5:25 AM

AUGUST 17 1897
W B Purvis patents electric railway switch.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."
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Posted by cherokee woman on Wednesday, August 18, 2010 5:37 AM

AUGUST 18 1883
Canadian Pacific Railway reaches Calgary.

Angel cherokee woman "O'Toole's law: Murphy was an optimist."

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