CHICAGO LAND SYSTEM - ATTN: Chicago Railfans

[Green Bay Paddlers]

Anyone know when the BNSF local services the Argonne spur?

[Anonymous]

The local is usually Southbound through Joliet in between 5:00 and 7:30 P.M. That's when I usually see it, but I'm not sure about the Woodridge/Romeoville Branchline. I'm at Joliet Union Station all the time. I've there two or three times a week. I live about 15 minutes from the station. Hope this helps. [:)]
Nick

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know when the local runs out of the BNSF's Joliet yard toward Lockport and Lemont? Also, when does the local run up the Woodridge/Romeoville branchline?

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by sommerkamp

can someone help me locate where [ashland ave.] rail yard is. whose yard
is it by name of railroad. do all railroads have access to it. i have seen trains
at a number of places in greater chicago, including roosevelt blvd in the late
50s when all the passengers were open and several outlying sites. i just
cannot find where ashland ave. is located. thanks for your help.
[e-mail]

Ashland Avenue Yard is located between Western and Ashland avenues near 39th Street (Pershing Road). It's now a Norfolk Southern facility. The neighborhood is a little risky, and access to the yard is difficult.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by BNSFLaGrange

Can I take the South Shore Line out to Hammond Indiana? When I say Hammond I mean the Rail Junction named Hammond as listed on the Chicago Rail Junctions site.

The Hohman Avenue (Hammond) crossing is less than a mille south of the South Shore station. The station itself is on Hohman. It's not a long walk.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by dbld1218

Ok, BNSF LaGrange, i have some answers. i grew up in Mt. Prospect and recently moved to NW side of Chicago (3 blocks from MD-N Grayland Station) so this area is my specialty. See if i can help.
#1 - The UP Cragin line only operates from Mayfair about a mile south, serves one maybe two industries. When the one car train does runs its usaully in mid-morning.
#4 - Like CNW1995 said the "sandman" which runs at night. i know Sat. mornings around 6:00 a train departs Chicago Ave Yard for Proviso. And 2 auto trains each way between Proviso and Janesville.
#5 - That CP train is #183, Bensinville to Twin Cities intermodal daily.
#6 - No, WSOR here at Mayfair, NB 11:00p & SB 1:30a. On slow days the NB may go thru here as early as 7:30p.
#7 - A few years back the SB came thru W. Chicago Between 8-9:00a. Not sure now.
#8 - Yes, the EB, train MNABE may still pass B17 at 9-11:00a.
#13 - Belive it switches on Tues. & Thurs.
#14 - Yes, WC is still fairly common. DMIR i wish. But a few IC units have been popping up.
Hope this helps.

I work for CP Rail and I bill this train everyday from 4541-4865

[MP173]

Ok, I just spent 30 minutes on the Northside switching website. I highly recommend it to any Chicago railfans. It is a great site, with many articles, photographs and documentation of a nearly vanished aspect of railroading in Chicago.

ed

[MP173]

This has been a great thread. One of the neat things about Chicago railroading (and there are tons of neat things) is the diverse operations.

Think about it...

1. Super mainlines
2. Hump yard at Clearing
3. Big Industrial carriers such as the Harbor and J.
4. Drawbridges
5. Industrial settings that are gritty, yet extremely interesting (southeast side)
6. Towers

I can go on and on, but this is a great railroading center.

Now, a few comments...Ralph, sorry I didnt respond back to you earlier - what tower did you operate in? Looking back, I meant to say Halstead and Cermak, instead of Pershing. But, you have my interest in that Chicago River Industrial line....where does it run from and to and connect with the IHB? Looking at my CORA map,. I see a line branching north off of the NS line to Ashland Avenue Yard (between Halstead and Ashland ) which goes north to around 35th Street. It is near Best Kosher (BTW, the best hot dogs in Chicago are at the Best Kosher outlet). If I remember correctly that line winds thru a scrap metal company and from there....I dont know.

The Chicago Northside switching website looks promising. Does anyone know if the line to Navy Pier is still in operation. There is a drawbridge over the Chicago River that is tucked into near northside buildings...sure would be an interesting photograph.

Anyway, lets keep this thread going.

ed

[passengerfan]

I too have many fond memories of Chicago arriving and departing by train many times from Union Station, LaSale St. and Central Station. Also traveled from the Northwestern Station and probably my fondest memories are arriving in the loop downtown on the Electroliners to and from the Great Lakes Naval Base. The stop on the base was not served by the Electroliners they just flashed through but we soon learned that the Electroliners did stop at Waukegan so we went to waukegan to catch the faster Electroliners to and from the loop. Visited Milwaukee a few times while their as well. This was the year before they were discontinued.

[Anonymous]

Hi all. Just wanted to say hi. I am an engineer for the UP based in West Chicago. Born in Galesburg, Raised in Santa Fe, and through a long weird twist of events ended up back here. I don't begin to think I know everything about railraods in Chicago, but if any one has some questions, feel free to post em here I check in occasionally , and if I know any answers I'll post them back. Illinirail is a yahoo group owned by one of my co-workers, and is also a great source of information and opinion on railroading in illinois.

[Anonymous]

What a great thread!
I was born and raised in Chicago, along the B&OCT main and PRR 59th yard st. hump yard . Forrest Hill crossing with the BRC and Wabash (N&W) was just a few blocks south.
I saw a lot the Chicago roads had to offer in those days, including the Capitol Limited with domes and Slumbercoaches, new NP SD-45's being delivered the roundabout way to CB&Q via B&O south to Blue Island, then back north to Clyde yd., a Trainmaster assigned regularly to the hump job, the first C&O Roadrailers on the Pere Marquette passenger trains, most every diesel model on the huge PRR/PC, and B&O rosters or the numerous transfers and road trains that went through Forrest Hill crossing. All those road names and colors on those 40 foot Boxcars from everywhere! What great memories!
Things have changed a lot due to mergers, abandonments, etc. and some of the south side junctions are not what they used to be. Pullman Junction is nowhere near as busy, the PRR Panhandle line is gone. NS and CSX have moved all the old C&O and Wabash operations elsewhere, so Forrest Hill (75th ST.) isn't the same any more, but one can still see Metra, CSX intermodal and transfer operations on BRC and CSX.
Ashland ave. is now NS ex CR/PC/NYC/Chicago Junction or Chicago River & Indiana, built to mostly serve the old Union Stockyards and related industries.
Just be smart, safe and respectful, maybe take a friend or two along. Some of those neighborhoods are rough.
JImmy

[northwesterner]

There is a lot more at this website http://www.mannresearch.com/chicagoswitching/v3/.

[Anonymous]

Found something, I think/hope.

Lakewood avenue. I stumbled across it while looking for something on Microsoft Terraserver.

http://terraserver.microsoft.com/image.aspx?T=4&S=9&Z=16&X=4451&Y=46423&W=1&qs=lakewood+avenue%7cchicago%7cil%7c&Addr=N+Lakewood+Ave%2c+Chicago%2c+IL+60613&ALon=-87.6617419&ALat=41.9524870

I also found this site.

http://www.mannresearch.com/lakewood/

Anybody know any more about this?

[Anonymous]

MP173: Unles I am wrong, the road that switches in and out of...down around Halsted and Pershing, should be the Chicago River Industrial Railroad. It too is another small road that does a lot of that, along with the Indiana Harbor Belt. They used to go down there, back when I worked for the Harbor to switch cars around and put a train together, called the "hot train" because they had so much time to grab it and take it from down there to the Blue Island Yard of the IHB, to make connection with a train that was being put together to go East toward New York. I remember it, because my dispatcher used to make the other 2 tower operators west of me mad. If we knew that train was headed my way, the dispatcher would tell me, that under no circumstances was I to let any other train go east ahead of the "hot train!" If I did it could have cost me my job. Those were the fun days. Someday if we ever meet, I can fill you in on anything else I mgith know about the IHB and their tactics.

ralph zimmer [e-mail] ([e-mail] was my old email address)

[MP173]

Street running....well sort of.

Go east on Division off of the Kennedy. Around the 1000 block look south. There is a street running at an angle towards the loop. While I have never seen a train there, tracks are in the middle of the street and often there is a car of lumber parked there.

Also, down on Pershing Ave, west of Halsted there is a shortline that operates. Tracks run adjacent to the street and cross over and go north.

ed

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by slopes09

I've lived in the suburbs my whole life. I grew up watching the Santa Fe in its last year or two(little did I know it at the time). I have a few questions though.
First, is there anyway to get into BNSF's Corwith Yard, or a good place to watch it from?
Second, are there any places in Chicago where there is still street running?
Thanks a lot!

some street running for local traffic going between plants and western ave yard (BNSF) between 16th st and the canal to the south. "central illinois railway", check it out. another cool shortline I recently discovered is the "manufacturer's junction railway", I think that's the name of it, over there in cicero. Got some good pictures of it, including the old sign. the lots in pretty crummy shape, but it's an old, old spot. IT's abandoned, and to explore the property you'd be trespassing, but I'd be inclined to say it's worth it...old roundhouse, weigh-station, right underneath the big ol' brick tower off of ogden avenue and cicero. Beautiful old spot with a lot of history. access is behind the strip mall at cicero and cermak. check it out, but don't say I sent you.

and hey ralph, thanks for the info. you seem to be a d-mn passionate train fan, there are a lot of us in chicago, makes me happy to live here. The four or five IHB workers I've talked to have always been pretty friendly and enjoyable to talk to. One of them even gave me a little key-chain Pretty units, too.

[Anonymous]

To techguy57: I read your question then went to my google, and typed in the words Pullman District, and found an awful lot of information, including upcoming events.
I will save you some of the work though, just go to http://www.pulmanil.org/ and you should be able to find upcoming events, along with the History of the Pullman district. I usually have nothing else to do, and am an avid railroad fan, having worked for the IHB. So good luck.

ralph zimmer [e-mail] (old email: [e-mail])

[Anonymous]

to: cnw8835, Interesting question about the bottle train. I see it once in a very great while. The old inland steel plant where they go to and from is having one of their buildings torn down, right along side of where the bottle trian would come in and pour part of its contests to. Now I like you am wondering about the outcome of it. Like I have mentioned so many times before, check out RailroadData.com and see if there might be any kind of information about the questions you asked. That is the only way I know of finding anything out. I wish I knew someone from the NS, then I would ask them, but I only know a former dispatcher from the IHB.

ralph zimmer [e-mail] (old email was [e-mail])

[Anonymous]

To Joeyalone: if you have a scanner and want to listen to the Indiana Harbor Belt RR, go to 160.980 for railroad activities in the Chicagoland area. That is the main frequency that the IHB uses for most of their movements.
Another funny thing about the IHB is the facvt that when you look up to see where a lot of your other big roads have dispatchers at is out of state, but the IHB has their dispatchers in one office in Calumet City, right next door to the CSX System. The CSX operates on 160.230 or 160.320. I have just about every frequency needed to listen to all the local rail lines around Chicago and suburbs. I have also seen the IHB section of the dispatch center. I used to work for them, and went in there a little over a year ago, to see about trying to get back on. I was told then by an old friend that I wouldn't want to come back, to which I told him: "if you love trains and railroads as much as I do, yes I do!" He never said another word. He said in order to hire out I would have to go out to the Hammond, Ind yard to put in my application. So far I haven't found a ride out there.

ralph zimmer [e-mail]

[Anonymous]

I've lived in the suburbs my whole life. I grew up watching the Santa Fe in its last year or two(little did I know it at the time). I have a few questions though.
First, is there anyway to get into BNSF's Corwith Yard, or a good place to watch it from?
Second, are there any places in Chicago where there is still street running?
Thanks a lot!

[spbed]

Ah weather must be getting nice their with all this talk of Chicago. I went to Dolton last year & found it quite exciting. [:o)][:D][:)]

Originally posted by ralph zimmer

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

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