Illinois Terminal Class C number 1595

On Saturday, April 24, 2010, the Illinois Traction Society convention visited the Museum of Transportation. Conventioneers started the day with a bus tour of the high line in the city of St. Louis, a drive over the McKinley Bridge, and a visit of former IT sites in Granite City. That afternoon, they arrived at MOT, and we had a surprise:

The previous Thursday, MOT traction volunteers pulled the Class C out from it's normal position, under cover, and spotted it for photographs. We even erected a set of stairs, so conventioneers could tour the inside of the Class C. I didn't get a chance to take a peek inside, as I was running the regular service streetcar.

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Macassar of the Innocents

That was pretty bad, wasn't it? That's why we're making all new antimacassars for IT 277. Here's one of the first production ones turned out by my daughter Esther, and they look great. Once they are finished, I'll get the words "Illinois Terminal" silk-screened along the bottom, as on the originals.

I also brought out a repaired armrest. Restoration of the IT cars has had to take a back seat for a while due to the Trolleyville acquisitions, but they're not being forgotten.

Update: Our old friend Dick Lukin wants me to point out that they're not white, it just looks that way due to the flash picture in the darkness, I guess. The color is actually more of a buff. And he says:

I was the last passenger trainman collecting tickets on the last IT train [yes...train....two cars] from Danville. I just happened to have my uniform in my car and at the last minute, there were so many people wanting to ride the last train that the conductor dug out a half motor and coupled it up to the motor. I went to my car and dressed in my IC uniform and lifted tix on the last train. Lots of fun in those days.

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Thank You For Waiting....

....your call is important to us. Sorry, we're still on hold at Cleveland, so all we can do is have patience. I can, however, give you a more detailed explanation of why we're waiting. The CA&E cars have to be moved to the Brook Park shops, as mentioned earlier. The GCRTA system, however, runs entirely on cab signals. The CA&E cars don't have cab signals (duh!) and there is nothing available to pull them with, so they will have to run under their own power. Evidently, then, the only way they can move is if the rest of the railroad is shut down, and that only happens between 1:00 and 3:30 AM, and any other project such as track or signals has priority over Tim O'Donnell and his antiques. He was hoping to move the cars this week but was shoved aside; he's now hoping for next week. So we wait. At least we won't make you listen to Muzak.


As I arrived today, Gerry Detloff was moving trucks in the material yard to make room for the installation of the big EMD sign, which will be another noticeable improvement to the property. I offered to help, but as soon as I had walked away to change into work clothes, he found that the big fork lift was stuck in the mud. The only solution was to call Diamond Towing Service, so nothing more got done today.

A lot of switching has already been done, and there's plenty more. Here we see that the portable sub has been moved outside. Some of this is due to the imminent arrival of the Trolleyville collection, and more to the completion of Barn 11. The hope is to get everything that doesn't either look presentable or is being worked on out of Barns 6, 7, and 8.


My daughter Esther has made a prototype Illinois Terminal antimacassar, and here it is in the 277. It hasn't been lettered yet, but silk-screening can be done easily by a commercial establishment. We will need about 40 of these to equip the 277. Anyone in this area who could help with the sewing and would be willing to make some of these should contact me via email. Thanks!

Next, here are some pictures of our new Q Havelock baggage car #993. Ted's crew are working on cleaning it up for use as a library storage facility.

Finally, I can't tell you about it yet, but there's an exciting new (electric car) acquisition in the works. So stay tuned!

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The Illinois-Missouri Terminal Railroad

While looking through some papers in the Robert E. Bruneau collection, I noticed a couple of unusual memos from the IT. The first says that on June 15, 1956, the name of the company would be changed to "Illinois-Missouri Terminal Railroad Company." Ten days later, on June 25, the name was changed back to IT. I'd never heard about this; had anyone else? What could they have been thinking?

And I suppose I could scan them in if you don't believe me.

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Dave's Depots - Transfer House, Decatur, Illinois

Yesterday, I found myself in Macon Count to appear in court before Judge Weber and argue a motion for summary judgment. It seems that every time I go to Decatur, it is cloudy and dreary. I took a photo of the Transfer House, but it did not come out, so I'm using a public domain photo from the Wikimedia Commons by Douglas Grhone.

Sitting in a park in downtown Decatur is the Decatur Transfer House. This structure used to sit literally in the middle of the intersection of East Main Street and North Main Street. All streetcar lines, and for a time, cars of the Illinois Traction System, passed by the house on their way through town.

The house was encircled by a loop which all car lines fed into.

Later, the IT moved its tracks, and stopped using this portion of the city system. Decatur went to the bus in 1936, but the Transfer House remained in service. Later, the building was moved to a downtown city park, where it sits today in good condition.
This is the last Dave's Depots for a little while. I'm off to Rolla, MO for the weekend, and then off to Kauai, Hawaii for 8 days. For the event in Rolla, Hicks Car Company member Frank needs to brush up on his reading of Genesis, Chapter 2.

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Beehive of Activity

There was a lot happening today, much of it in preparation for Members Day - ahem, Museum Showcase Weekend. One thing that had nothing to do with Members Day was the revenue operation of the 308 and 309. The cars seemed to run fine all weekend with nary a problem, today operated by our illustrious crew caller, Jim West.


I spent most of my day working on the 205. The first order of business was to sand down the rough spots in the paint and re-spray them. As seen at right, these were pretty numerous due to my lack of skill in spray-painting, but by the end of the day the situation had been rectified and the car not only had a nice smooth coat of primer, but had lost that unsightly newspaper masking.

I did some work on other areas of the 205 as well. I cleaned off and spray-primed the switch group covers under the car, as seen at left. At some point coming up I can spray-paint these black, which will help the appearance of the car considerably. On this side of the 205 the switch group boxes are the only really obvious under-floor equipment besides the trucks, on which I haven't decided exactly what to do. They'll need to get painted black one way or another though.

I also did some Bondo work - at left is seen the impressive amount of Bondo applied today to the bottom of the second window post from the west end left-side door - and some wire-wheeling. The corner post at the northeast corner of the car was wire-wheeled, as was some more of the anticlimber at the west end.

Late in the day, an exciting development occurred - the Return of the Tangerine Flyer! The 277 made its return to the high iron today after some inspection work by crew of Car Department workers, but with an improvement over its previous appearance last October: this time observation car 234 was in tow! The three-car train made quite a striking appearance on the railroad; two car line trips and one main line trip were made. The latter was the first time the 234 has ever been on the museum's main line east of Seeman Road, as the railroad was extended to its current terminus since the last time the 234 had operated on the main! Weather permitting, this train will be operating this coming Saturday, the 19th - so don't miss it!

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Illinois Terminal Fan Trip - 1963

Our friend Tom Cornillie found this advertisement for the Illini Railroad Club in a used book store in Oakland, Cal. The year is 1963. Tom points out that $19.95 was a lot of money in those days. When they got to Avon Yard in Indianapolis, they visited CA&E car 308 which was stored there at that time. Thanks, Tom!

The picture, of course, shows an earlier fan trip using only 233 and 234. I don't know the IT well enough to tell you where this is, but notice that the bracket arms are still in place over the track, so it wasn't long after electric service ended in 1956.

Update: Dale Jenkins says: "The train is between Bement and Monticello; southbound. That is Illinois Highway 105 in the foreground. This is the same site that had a large pyramid to mark a location of a famous Lincoln debate." Thanks!

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Running Around in Circles

For a change of pace, I spent the day operating Illinois Terminal 415 on the museum's streetcar loop. The 308 and 309 were operating on the mainline throughout the afternoon with Jeff Obarek as motorman; the recently adjusted brakes on the 308 were said to operate just fine. Public attendance seemed decent and the weather was gorgeous. My conductor for the day was Bevin Brouillet (above right). The 415 is actually designed with a conductor's position directly behind the motorman though it can be (and usually is, at IRM) operated as a normal one-man car.

At the end of the day, just when I was leaving, I happened upon a switch move involving the museum's attractive CB&Q S-4 Hudson, 3007. I was able to take a rare photo of the engine in the sunlight, out of its usual habitat in Barn 9.

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Illinois Terminal Photo Album

The elevated line in St. Louis, August '95.

Note: All photos from the Krambles-Peterson Archive are copyright
and may not be reproduced without permission!

Most of the rest are mine unless otherwise noted.

Bement to Urbana (Nov. 2008)

The substation at Bement is being used by the highway department, I guess. The main line made a 90-degree bend around this building. See this picture from Don Ross.

Not much is left of the IT trestle over Camp Creek, just south of the MRM site. One could still walk across it back about 1975.

The Bondville substation is in good condition.

Urbana

This is the old IC/Wabash station in Urbana, which was also used by the IT when passenger service was routed onto the bypass. The IT ran along the other side of the depot, where the brick warehouse is now located. The depot is used by a theater group, which explains the plywood stacked against it.

This bridge in Urbana was part of the IT's freight bypass around Champaign-Urbana. The rest of the line is pretty much obliterated.









This was the Railway Engineering lab at one time; it had a track entrance through this door for a spur off the old IT main line, which ran through the foreground. The University's interurban test car was stored here. It's long been used as an aeronautics lab. The overhead crane is still inside.

The Transportation building next door is decorated with these snazzy flanged wheels and wings.





A couple of waiting shelters still in existence: 1) for the University. At one time a car line ran right across the Quad.









2) For the old County Home east of downtown Urbana.










One of the earliest ancestors of the ITS system was the horsecar line between Urbana and Champaign. The only remaining part of this little system is this bridge over the Boneyard. I believe this part of the route was abandoned when the line was electrified, so the bridge's survival is amazing. It was in somebody's back yard for many years.



It's been refurbished and is now part of a city park. The layout of the park completely changed the landscape. The creek doesn't actually run under the bridge anymore, and the fill over it has been removed. But it's nicely preserved.

Bloomington

Two recent photos by Tim Fennell.

2007 pictures by Jim Vaitkunas.

(L) This is a diamond in the rough.

Danvers

Pictures taken in 2007 by Jim Vaitkunas.

The substation at Danvers is now in use as a private residence.

Decatur

The abutments for the IT's famous bridge over beautiful Lake Decatur are still standing. June 2009.







The Decatur station along the freight bypass route is now in use as a church.

Harristown

Harristown is the next town west of Decatur. Here is the substation, now being used as a furniture store, with the body of car 535 behind it, used as a residence. May 8, 1998.







It doesn't look that much different today, I believe.

Girard

This substation is now in use by a gardening supply store. Notice (R) that the rails are still in the street, for a couple of blocks through town.

For an in-service picture at this same location, see the top photo here!

Fithian

Pictures taken in 2007 by Jim Vaitkunas.

Mackinaw

Pictures taken in 2007 by Jim Vaitkunas.

Where'd all those trees come from? They sure weren't there when this famous substation was in service!

The Mackinaw sub is used by several businesses and is well maintained.

Pictures taken in 2012 by
Chuck Amstein.

Union

Just to keep everyone confused, there are (at least) three Unions in Illinois. This is the one in Logan County along the IT. It's about 170 miles south of IRM's Union in McHenry County.





The Union sub is abandoned and derelict.

Pictures taken in 2012 by
Chuck Amstein.

IVDIV
(East to west)

Minooka

Here is the Minooka substation,which is still in use by a machinery company (and possibly as a residence?) It's located on Wapella Street. I now regret not taking pictures of the Wapella substation before it was demolished four or five years ago. (Wapella is between Decatur and Bloomington.)



Bridge abutments for a small creek just west of Minooka.

Morris

The Morris sub is partly a pizza place, and partly empty, it appears. Tenants come and go. Adaptive reuse is the only thing that keeps these buildings from being razed. The two buildings are nearly identical except for the revolting paint.

A few blocks west of the substation is this bridge over another creek, with a park path over it.

Marseilles

This is the hydroelectric plant at Marseilles. (L) The south (river) side; (R) the north side.






Details of the north side. The trestle in front of the plant appears to still have rails on it, but there's no way to get closer. The area is fenced off and dangerous.

Canal Bridge at Ottawa (Sept. 1980)

The Illinois and Michigan Canal crossed the Fox River at Ottawa on this bridge. When the canal stopped operating, the IT's Illinois Valley Division relocated onto the old towpath.




Here's where the track ran. The trolley wire supports are still in place. A bicycle/hiking path has been built here, but otherwise the bridge is largely unchanged since 1980.

So let's imagine piloting the 415 on this route!







This is the canal part of the bridge. They say it's the largest bridge of its type in the world.

Ottawa

This building at one time housed the CO&P ticket office on the ground floor and company offices on the second floor. The ground floor, at least, has been heavily remodeled.

Utica

The battery sub at Utica, which of course hasn't moved but is now in somebody's back yard.












This must really impress any guests -- who else has something like this in their yard?

PRESERVED ROLLING STOCK

Car 101

At Fehling Road in Granite City, Nov. 13, 1949. Photo by George Krambles, Krambles-Peterson Archive.

At Wood River, Oct. 11, 1952. Photo by William C. Janssen, Krambles-Peterson Archive.

Car 234

Let's take a tour of the IT business car 234. This is the only surviving product of the Danville Car Company, and one of only a few interurban observation cars preserved. Let's start at the rear and work our way forward.

Here's the rear platform. President Taft stood here while campaigning for reelection in 1912.



Through the open door, we enter the main compartment. There are parlor car chairs for about ten people, plus tables for drinks and snacks.

Notice the rods in the ceiling, so curtains could be hung to provide additional sleeping space in emergencies.


Further forward, there are sections that can be set up either for sitting or sleeping. However, unlike Pullman sections, the upper berth is created by folding up the seat backs, which are hinged at the top, and installing a steel rod to hold them horizontal, as seen here.





Let's look into the tiny kitchen compartment, just big enough for one man. So it's hard to get good pictures. On the left is the sink and metal countertop, with the ice box above it. On the right is the coal-fired stove.

Here's the rear platform, one side of which has the hot-water heater compartment. Watch your step as you exit via the front stairwell.

Car 241

This was the earliest piece of IT equipment selected for historic preservation, I believe, and one of the earlier interurban cars preserved. It is now stored under cover at MOT near St. Louis.

Photos 7/11/09 by Frank.

Car 277

This is a standard IT combine, built by St. Louis Car Co. in 1913, preserved at IRM, the only one of its kind.

E. Peoria c. 1952, photo by William C. Janssen, Krambles-Peterson Archive. Note the ex-C&LE freight trailer the 277 is towing.

At Danville, Apr. 20, 1952. Photo by Henry M. Stange. Krambles-Peterson Archive.

At E. Peoria, Aug. 22, 1952. Photo by George Krambles, Krambles-Peterson Archive.

Meeting the 276 at Chatham, Oct. 12, 1952. Photo by William C. Janssen, Krambles-Peterson Archive.

At North Chicago, Sept. 1956. Photo by Glenn Andersen. Krambles-Peterson Archive.

Here we see it in operation in September 2008.









Let's take a look inside the cab. One at a time, please, there's not much room here. First we see the controller and brake stand, as well as the hand brake on the right.



The supplemental reservoir for the M-22A brake valve is located inside the cab over the motorman.
















And here's one of my favorite features on the 277: the reverse lever (red arrow). What do you do if the air brake system fails? Reverse the motors by throwing the reverser. On multiple unit (MU) cars, the reverser is located under the car and is thrown electrically. But what happens if you have also lost DC power, such as if the pole has dewired? On the North Shore or CA&E cars, you'd be out of luck. So the IT installed a home-made mechanical linkage to the reverser. The motorman could pull back on this lever and throw the reverser in an emergency.






Now let's look at some of the interior. Here's the water heater compartment. The coal scoop is on the door, and at the lower left is the steel box which still holds IT company coal. To the right is the Peter Smith hot water heater.










At the rear of the main compartment, the last seat has a desk for the conductor to do his paperwork on. There are four slots, but they're not labeled, so I don't know exactly what they're for.

It would be nice to have some cold water. Ah, here's the spigot. But what's behind that door above it?

That's strange, it's just another door. It says "ICE HERE".













It folds out and down, instead of to the side, and look, it's an official "Ice Door" made by the H G Co., whoever they were.












Then here we have the thermostat , first aid box, and controls for the car's primitive air conditioning system, c. 1940.










Inside the washroom compartment, on the right we see the back of the ice box we looked at earlier. (On top of it is a loose piece of wood, not part of the system.)











And finally, here's some sage advice from Illinois Terminal. The town you flush in might be your own!

Car 415

On the viaduct at St. Louis, Dec. 22, 1956. Photo by Bob Mehlenbeck, Krambles-Peterson Archive.

Car 518

See the detailed car history here. This is the interior as of Oct. 2008.

Most of the interesting features on this car are at the front end (which would usually have been the rear end on the IT.) Here's the wreck tool box over the vestibule door.








This is the Peter Smith water heater. Originally there was a wooden partition between the heater and the seat; this seems to have been removed when the car was in use as a classroom. We have the original drawing, and I plan to build a new one when I get a chance.










The stained glass window in the toilet compartment is still there, although covered over by the exterior sheet metal. You can barely see it in this photo.








It's difficult to take a picture of such a small room. It's in good condition, and used for storing spare items such as an oil can.

Locomotive 1565

Victor gave me a copy of this hand-colored postcard of the brand-new 1565 pulling a freight train back in ITS days.









At Forsyth c. 1953, photo by William E. Robertson, Krambles-Peterson Archive.

Locomotive 1575

Preserved at MOT in St. Louis. Photo 7/11/09 by Frank.

Line Car 1702

Don't be embarrassed if you don't know what a line car is. Back in 1960, when this car was acquired for the Museum, it was to be sent on its own wheels over the railroads to North Chicago. But nobody on the major lines such as IC or C&NW had any idea what a "line car" was or what it might look like. So it got lost, being shuffled from yard to yard as the various yardmasters wondered "What in the world is this thing?!?" So Bob Bruneau got on the phone and started calling around. Finally he got the reply, "Well, we've got this thing that looks like a house on one end and a porch of some sort..." "THAT'S IT!!!" he shouted. "It's supposed to go to North Chicago!"

Photos from the IRM Collection.











Answer to the riddle: This car is equipped with everything needed for working on the overhead lines, such as a movable platform on the roof, ladders, wire reels, and tools of all sorts, hence "line car."

Rail Bus

This, of course, is the Illinois Terminal's little rail bus #206, which provided service to Grafton. It's now on display at MOT near St. Louis. Photo by David Wilkins, taken in January 2005 right after completion of a cosmetic restoration. It was then placed under cover, where it is now on display.

PAPER

All of the documents displayed here come from the Robert E. Bruneau Illinois Terminal Collection unless otherwise noted.



The Illinois Terminal hopefully started showing off its new streamliners in the fall of 1948. There was a brief epidemic of optimism about passenger service among many railroads immediately after the war, but the IT was the only interurban line to be infected.

Advertising flyers, about 6 x 10.

Oops, there must be something wrong with these new trains....












A couple of 5 1/2 x 7 calendar cards.

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