The Illinois Railway Museum is one of the largest railroad museums in the US, located in Union, IL. It has active rolling stock along what used to be the right of way of the Elgin & Belvidere Electric Railway, having been in its current location since the early 1960's.
IRM 1630 - An ex-Frisco steam engine, running during my 2014 visit.
According to its website, "the mission of the Illinois Railway Museum is to educate the public as to our nation’s railroad and railway history by collecting, preserving, and restoring rolling stock, artifacts, structures, and related transportation equipment for display to the public; exhibiting and operating restored rolling stock and equipment on a demonstration rail line; and collecting, preserving, and maintaining a reference library of publications, technical information, and other materials regarding railroads, railways, and related forms of transportation for research and other purposes."
The museum has dozens of engines, many restored, some soon to be restored.
In its infancy in the 1950's, the Railway Museum was located along the former right of way of the Chicago North Shore & Milwaukee, another interurban railway, in North Chicago, IL.
The museum's history is noted on this sign along what was once the entrance to the museum.
As one might guess from the fact that it's been located along two abandoned interurban rights of way, the museum tries to keep the history of Chicago's interurban network alive, and puts a major focus on these
passenger operations, as well as the CTA and former city trolley/electric lines.
This is the oldest surviving piece in IRM's collection; a relic of horse-drawn trolley cars from Chicago's earliest street railroad.
I'd visited the railway museum twice before 2019; once in 2014 and again in 2017. One thing that's always struck me about the museum is that each time I've visited, I've learned something new, or seen things in a different light than I had previously. My first visit, I was most interested in the steam engines. My second, I was looking for historical documents, maps, and books for sale (something the IRM has improved on with their new gift shop)., and this last time, I spent much of my time looking at the interurban cars. With that in mind, I figured I'd share my photos of my visits.
IRM 1630 lets off steam as it backs onto the mainline of the Illinois Railway Museum. Obviously, it's an ex-Frisco locomotive.
My most recent visit was on a day that was supposed to be sunny and warm, but it wound up storming through a majority of my visit. I didn't stay long, and all of the rolling stock managed to remain operational.
One of the operational diesel engines running during 2017.
A US Army Transportation Corps switcher on display each of my visits.
The trolley is a fully restored remnant from Chicago Surface Lines, saved only after it was converted into a storage shed, as all other trolleys of its type were scrapped. The restoration also includes ads from the days of when they trolley was in service. This helps to capture what a typical day was like riding those trolleys.
There are nine barns for displays; three of which are devoted to interurban rolling stock. Trolley trips do a circle around the museum, allowing you to see some of the areas of engines yet to be restored as well. The steam and diesel engines runs for about 4 miles south along the aforementioned Elgin & Belvidere Electric Railway ROW.
The exterior of the in-service trolley.
There are all sorts of pieces of rolling stock, many of which would be difficult to spot were they not preserved here.
One thing I wish the museum had was more maps and books. But that's the history buff in me talking.
Leaving the IRM in 2017, I managed to catch the tail end of a diesel run.
Ultimately, there are enough static displays and train rides to keep the family of all ages occupied for an entire day, even in the rain, and plenty of railroad history to be learned, with many volunteers willing to discuss things further if you ask. I didn't picture everything, and like many things, visiting them in person will leave much more of an impression than seeing pictures and videos.
US Navy Steam Locomotive, one of the displays in the steam barn.
In addition to being huge, these wheels, and the tires on them, make for some interesting YouTube videos. FIRE!
A boxcar which appeared to be undergoing restoration on the tracks north of the steam barn.
Unfortunately, this beauty wasn't in action on our most recent visit.
A functioning wig-wag crossing, one of several at the museum.
It appears the museum is undergoing further expansion as of our last visit. I wonder what's coming!
The museum is well worth the drive to Union, and hopefully it's an enjoyable visit you learn a thing or two from.
A New Hampshire state legislator in the 1850's suggested that Sylvester Marsh, who was planning a railroad line from the base to the summit of Mount Washington, New Hampshire, should be granted the charter; not just to the summit, but to the moon as well, for how impossible such a railroad line would be. At over 6,200 feet in height, Mount Washington is the tallest mountain in the Northeastern United States, and its summit is well above the tree line, making the ascent feel similar to the much higher mountain terrains in the Rocky Mountains. Despite the incredible prominence of the mountain, Marsh was undeterred, and even put $5000 of his own money towards the project, which helped secure the charter for the railroad. In 1868, Marsh would prove his detractors wrong when his railroad was completed, one of the first rack and pinion railways in the world, and to this day the second-steepest grade in existence. This line is the Mount Washington Cog Railway , which we visited during La
With the hundreds of thousands of miles of abandoned railroad corridors in the world, it's no surprise that some of the most amazing infrastructure humanity has ever built was eventually abandoned, or re-purposed. And indeed, many bridges, trestles and viaducts have been lost to history, such as the Brushy Creek Viaduct in Alabama. But there are also many which still stand today which serve as reminders of bygone days, the folly of man, or the power of Mother Nature, or some combination thereof. Here are 11 such bridges. 11) Goat Canyon Trestle, Jacumba Hot Springs, CA (32.729167, -116.183333) Image: CoachellaValley.com Goat Canyon Trestle is the largest standing (for now) wooden trestle in the United States, and in spots is 200 feet off the ground, and 750 feet long. Built in the 1930's, it's actually a lot younger than it looks, since by the 1930's, steel had all but replaced wood as the preferred construction material for bridges. It was made out of woo
I will start today's blog by stating that I am not a fan of the Chicago-Kansas City Expressway . Or, more specifically, I am not a fan of "Route 110" in either Missouri or Illinois, mostly because it has been functionally obsolete since the day it was first legislated into existence 11 years ago on May 27th, 2010. How is it that a highway designated that recently considered forgotten? Probably because nobody knew what to make of it even when it was originally designed. Even in this article explaining the Chicago-Kansas City route, or CKC, the number 110 doesn't come up once. Today I'm going to explain why I'm not a fan of this road, why it exists, and what I think would help tremendously in making the road a somewhat legitimate part of Illinois' highway system. Wikipedia Commons Map of IL/MO-110 , or the Chicago-Kansas City Expressway, or the *shudders* CKC. Let's start with the actual route itself. Shouldn't a Chicago to Kansas City Expressway b
Comments
Post a Comment