Forgotten Lands, Places and Transit

Across the rolling hills and rugged landscapes of western Ireland, one can find peculiar relics of a dark chapter in the island’s history. These are the Famine Roads—routes that climb into the hills, twist through valleys, and often end abruptly, leading nowhere. Their haunting presence is a testament to the desperation and suffering endured by countless Irish peasants during the Great Famine of 1845–1852. "One of the many roads to nowhere built during the Famine" (Image via sboins on Reddit ) The Great Famine , or Án Gorta Mór, was a catastrophic period in Ireland’s history, marked by mass starvation, disease, and emigration. Over one million people perished, and another two million fled the country, profoundly altering Ireland’s demographic and cultural landscape. In an era dominated by the rigid doctrines of laissez-faire economics, relief efforts were minimal, and assistance often came with cruel conditions. Under the Poor Law and its amendments, relief programs were esta...

The Trestle of Trestle Park. FRRandP photo collection. Trestle Park is Milwaukee's tiny answer to the growing trend of linear parks in major cities which utilize abandoned railroad corridors, in the same vein as Philadelphia's Rail Park  and New York City's amazing High Line . While Trestle Park is much smaller than the other parks mentioned, after visiting it, I can say it nonetheless has a great charm in it's small size. Looking from one end of the park to the other. The Park opened earlier this year after being proposed and approved in 2017 . The signature trestle pictured, while certainly it's namesake, isn't part of the park. The park, located in the Historic Third Ward neighborhood south of downtown Milwaukee is part of the Third Ward RiverWalk, along the Milwaukee River. It is part of a large scale redevelopment of the area as well, which was quite obvious on the drive to the park. Many new condos, restaurants, and businesses make up the nearby...

In the early 20th century, the Pacific Electric Railway was the pride of Southern California, boasting over 1,000 miles of track and connecting Los Angeles with surrounding cities. Known as the "World's Greatest Electric Railway System," the system provided a comprehensive transit network that was unmatched globally. This system, established in 1901 by Henry E. Huntington, transformed Los Angeles into a hub of connectivity and efficiency. 1926 Map of the Pacific Electric Railway - Pacific Electric Historical Society Today,  Los Angeles ' Metro system is a shall of the PE's peak nearly 100 years ago, where one could reach nearly anywhere in LA and many places in the Inland Empire. The system was incredibly intricate, having both dedicated electric right of way but also using trackage of its owner, the Southern Pacific Railway. This complexity means that even today, we do not have a full picture of the extent of the Pacific Electric on our  Abandoned Railroad Map . ...

The Milwaukee, Menomonee Falls & Western Railroad , a subsidiary of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway (also known as the Milwaukee Road) began service in 1890, and quickly became known by the nickname of the Bug Line, running between Granville and North Lake, WI. ( Right of way ) Milwaukee, Menomonee Falls & Western Railroad Depot  at  Menomonee Falls. (Wisconsin Historical Society) This nickname, "Bug Line," is believed to have originated from the small size of the train and the frequent stops it made along its route, resembling the pattern of a bug crawling along a grapevine. When it comes to old timey railroad nicknames, I must say it's pretty obvious that the 19th century had more of a vivid imagination with regard to operations than we do today.  In addition to the main line, a track serving businesses along the Menomonee River in Menomonee Falls also existed west of the river, as shown below in a Sanborn Map. Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Menom...

The New Castle and Frenchtown Turnpike and Railroad Company (NC&F) was a pioneer in the history of American railroads. It was opened in 1831, making it the first railroad in Delaware and one of the first in the US. It ran for about 16 miles from New Castle, Delaware, on the Delaware River, to Old Frenchtown Wharf , Maryland, on the Chesapeake Bay.  It was intended to provide a faster and cheaper alternative to the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal, which opened in 1829 and connected the same two bodies of water. However, the NC&F faced competition from other railroads and canals in the region, and eventually became obsolete and abandoned. ( Right of Way ) Some sources, myself included at times, have labeled this as the first railroad abandonment in the United States, being abandoned in 1859. However, it is not even the first right of way to be abandoned in the State of Delaware, as that distinction belongs to the Dulaney Railroad . One could argue that this was the first comm...

If you have ever traveled by train in the United States, or even just come across the downtown of a major, or perhaps even a smaller city, chances are you have encountered a station named Union Station. From Los Angeles to Washington, D.C., there are dozens of stations with this name , some of them still in operation, some of them abandoned or repurposed. But why are they called Union Station? And what is their historical significance? Chicago Union Station (CUS) is always extravagantly decorated, even more so during the holidays! FRRandP photo, 2021. The name Union Station comes from the fact that these stations were built as joint facilities for multiple railroad companies that operated in the same city. Instead of having separate terminals for each railroad, which would be costly and inconvenient for passengers, the railroads agreed to share a common station where they could interchange traffic and offer connections to other lines. This way, travelers could access more destinations ...

The Ship of Theseus is a classic philosophical thought experiment that asks whether an object that has had all of its parts replaced over time is still fundamentally the same object.  The problem takes its name from the ship that Theseus, a legendary Greek hero, used to sail to Crete to slay the Minotaur. Bing AI Image The story goes that after returning to Athens, Theseus' ship was preserved by the Athenians, who gradually replaced all of its parts as they decayed over time. The question then arises: if all of the parts of the ship have been replaced, is it still the same ship? Or is it a new ship altogether? The Ship of Theseus problem has puzzled philosophers for centuries and raises fundamental questions about the nature of identity and change. Is identity based on the object's material composition or on its function? If all of an object's parts are replaced, does it lose its identity and become a new object? These questions have real-world implications beyond philosop...

I once read a story sent through an email chain which I've seen pop up every now and again, which asserts the fact that two horses standing side by side are roughly 5 feet apart is the reason that is the standard gauge of railroad tracks is 4'8 1/2". Created with Bing AI It isn't true , or at the very least there's far more that can be said on how standard gauge came into being. For example, the Southern Railway had a 5' gauge originally . I found this from a Trains forum posts which is one of a few of these stories to go around. I apologize in advance for the rough editing. Railroad gauge     Fascinating Stuff . . .   Railroad Tracks   The U.S. Standard railroad gauge (distance between the rails) is 4 feet, 8.5 inches.   That's an exceedingly odd number. Why was that gauge used?   Because that's the way they built them in England, and English expatriates designed the U.S. Railroads.   Why did the English build them like that? Because the first rail l...