T.G.'s Photography Blog

 While hanging out on the "Green Bridge" in Minoa, New York, last Sunday, I captured some photographs of CSXT 2561 switching a block of intermodal cars on the east end of DeWitt Yard near CP282. The locomotive had pulled the long cut of cars onto Track 1 of the Syracuse Terminal Subdivision (STS) at CP282, since Track 4 was going to be blocked by a track inspector.  CSXT 2561 CSXT 2561 was built as Louisville and Nashville (LN/L&N) 4051. The locomotive is a GP38-2 and was built by Electro-Motive Division (EMD) in 1972. The L&N became a subsidiary of the Seaboard Coastline Railroad (SBD/SCL) in 1971. In 1982 the L&N was fully absorbed into the SBD/SCL. Sometime between February 1983 and May 1984, the locomotive was re-lettered as SBD 4051.  CSXT 2561 is shoving a block of intermodal cars from Track 1 (to the left) of the STS at CP282. In 1980, the locomotive became part of CSX Corporation's railroad family when the SBD/SCL merged with the Chessie System of ra...

In the spring of 2004, I came across Railroad Switching Service of Missouri's (RSM) newsprint train, which delivered boxcars of newsprint to the St. Louis Post Dispatch in downtown St. Louis. This switching operation utilized the Illinois Terminal's (ITS) former Highline Bridge in North St. Louis, as well as the former ITS subway tunnel under the northern edge of downtown. I was lucky to come across this operation and capture the few images that I did because a few months after I took these images, the delivery of newsprint to the St. Louis Post Dispatch ended in June 2004. I was able to photograph the newsprint delivery operation on a couple of different days, but the following photographs are from only one of those days. RSM 2020 South of Branch Street In the first image, above, RSM 2020 (sometimes referred to as RSSM 2020) shoves a pair of empty boxcars south from Branch Street. The crew would set out the empty boxcars at the southern end of this small rail yard, a...

TRRA 1239 - Brooklyn, IL Terminal Railroad Association (TRRA) 1239 is on the point of a train switching on the south side of TRRA's Madison Yard. Trains that are switching on the south side of the yard will often pull down toward the crossing at Canal Street/Bend Road (where this shot was taken from) and then make a back up move into the yard. TRRA 1239 is an EMD built SW1200 series locomotive that was built in April of 1965, according to RR Picture Archives (an external link, which will open in a new browser window). MRS boxcars Behind the locomotives are three old Manufacture's Railway (MRS) boxcars. The MRS was a small local St. Louis switching railroad that was originally owned by Anheuser-Busch. When InBev bought Anheuser-Busch, it sold the MRS Railway off to Foster Townsend Rail Logistics, Incorporated. Photo taken: February 26, 2006. Brooklyn, Illinois.

TRRA 1517 , TRRA 1503 , and TRRA 1510 are on the point of a train making a switching move, on the eastern approach to the Merchants Bridge over IL Route 3. The train was performing switching operations at TRRA's Madison Yard , which is about a half a mile east of this location. The train stopped over Route 3, and then made a back up move toward the yard. The Merchants Bridge crosses over the Mississippi River between Venice, IL. and St. Louis, MO. Photo taken: February 26, 2006. Venice, Illinois.

February 18, 2012. Ste. Genevieve, Missouri. Under cloudy skies, UPY 1342, HCLX 3852, and LLPX 2263 are switching cars that are either coming from or going to the Mississippi Lime Company. Photo © Tom Gatermann.

MRS 255 - St. Louis, MO Manufacturers Railway System 255 leads a switch job south down the tracks in the middle of 2nd Street. The locomotive and its train were heading back to the MRS yard after doing some switching at a business near Barton and 3rd Street in south St. Louis. These days, business on the 2nd Street trackage is pretty much all gone. The largest business on the line, a chemical company, closed many years ago leaving only a couple of smaller businesses to support the line. Photo taken: St. Louis, Missouri. December 27, 2004.

TRRA 1517 is on the point of a local doing some switching at TRRA's North Market Interlocking, on the TRRA's Merchants Subdivision, south of Branch Street. North Market Interlocking is where BNSF Hannibal Subdivision joins the Merchants Subdivision, in north St. Louis. The track on the left side of the image, behind the yellow hopper, is the BNSF's Hannibal Subdivision.  In the background is the old Illinois Terminal Highline Bridge . The Highline Bridge is an almost mile long bridge that snakes its way across north St. Louis between Branch Street, on the north end, and Hadley Street, on the southern end. The bridge's northern approach comes down to grade level at Branch Street, about a block or two to the left of where this photograph was taken. BNSF's Hannibal Subdivision also crosses Branch Street , next to the Highline Bridges north approach. Photo taken: December 11, 2004. St. Louis, Missouri.

TRRA 1503 - St. Louis, MO TRRA 1503 leads its train under Adelaide Avenue on the TRRA West Belt Subdivision, in North St. Louis, Missouri. This train had made its way from the TRRA's Madison Yard in Illinois, across the Merchants Bridge over the Mississippi River into St. Louis, and then onto the West Belt Subdivision. The train was making its way north to North Belt Junction, at Carrie Avenue. At North Belt Junction the TRRA North Belt Subdivision and the West Belt Subdivision interchange with each other. TRRA 1503 According to RR Pictures Archives, TRRA 1503 was built in 1967, for the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis. The locomotive is an EMD SW1500 model. Today, the locomotive is owned by GMTX leasing, and is now numbered as GMTX 149. The TRRA, a few years ago, sold off their switcher model locomotives and bought larger locomotives with more horsepower to handle its switching operations. TRRA West Belt Subdivision The West Belt Subdivision runs betwe...

MRS 256 - St. Louis, MO Manufactuers Railway System (MRS) 256 shoves a cut of MRS boxcars off the MRS' 2nd Street trackage toward an industrial siding. The industry that was to receive the cut of box cars was a block over on off of 3rd Street. The MRS The MRS was a small switching operation that was owned by the Anheuser-Busch Brewery. When InBev bought Anheuser-Busch, the railroad was sold off. Now Foster Townsend Rail Logistics, Inc. operates the railroad. The railroad still switches the brewery complex and also does a lot of engine rebuilding. However, I believe that all of the 2nd Street trackage has been abandoned. The 2nd Street trackage isn't used much these days due to most of the customer base going away. In this general area there were three customers who received weekly rail service. The largest customer at this location was a chemical plant which was closed and torn down. At one time the 2nd Street trackage ran for just over two miles from the MRS yard...