Chicago & Alton RR

[wanswheel]

http://www.gstatic.com/hostedimg/04357594bce2a519_large

http://www.dhke.com/CRJ/21street.html

Mike

[DANCBQ]

Rich the C&A later GM&O tracks your refering to were their means of entry onto the PRR tracks to enter Union Station and are still used by Metra Heritage corridor commuter trains better known in GM&O times as the plug from Joilet.

[richhotrain]

When the Chicago & Alton RR reached downtown Chicago, just southwest of Alton Junction at 21st Street and Stewart Avenue, passenger trains connected to the PRR tracks just south of the lift bridge that crossed the south branch of the Chicago River and headed north into Union Station.  This can be seen in the diagram below.

If you look at the top left corner of the diagram, there are two Alton tracks running in a northeasterly direction, parallel to the IC and the AT&SF tracks which run just above them.  If you trace those two Alton tracks backwards, they appear to connect into the PRR tracks coming from the south.   There does not seem to be any connection from the double mainline Alton tracks coming from the southwest as described at the beginning of this thread.

Can someone verify for me that the Chicago & Alton RR used these two tracks northeast of Alton Junction and explain their purpose? 

I do know that the IC tracks that ran above and parallel to those two Alton tracks joined the St. Charles Air Line at 16th Street and ran east to the ICRR mainline tracks at the shore of Lake Michigan.  The AT&SF tracks running above and parallel to the IC track were tracks coming from the ATSF passenger car yard.  AT&SF passenger trains running parallel to the Alton tracks before Alton Junction then joined the ICRR tracks and crossed the PRR tracks and the 4 track C&WI mainline at Alton Junction and then left the ICRR tracks, joining the C&WI tracks to complete the trip to Dearborn Station.

Again, though, I am interested in an explanation of the Alton tracks northeast of the Alton Junction.

Thanks in advance for any help that anyone can provide.

Rich