Don's Rail Photos

 

After I got off of active duty in 1954, I went back to an Army Reserve unit where I had served for several months before being drafted into active duty in 1952. It was the 757^th Railway Shop Battalion which was pretty much supported by the Milwaukee Road and included a number of their people from the West Milwaukee shops. The commanding officer was one of the top people at the shops. After I had worked my way up to NCO in charge of training for the battalion, Harry Minter came up to me one day and gave me a large package full of pictures. He told me that he knew I had an interest, and he thought I should have them. You will find a few of these pictures on the page on Atlantics and on other pages as well. Two of the pictures were of narrow gauge locomotives and became the beginnings of this page.

Caledonia Mississippi & Western 2 was built by Pittsburgh in 1879, #395. It was renumbered CM&StP 417 in 1880, and to 1406 in 1899. Disposition is unknown.

The Iowa Eastern, incorporated March 1, 1872, took over the Milwaukee Chicago Cassville & Montana on March 23, 1872, and it became part of the CM&StP on March 30, 1882. It owned 14.49 miles of track between Beulah and Stulta, IA. We have no roster information on this locomotive which was acquired during the short 10 year life of this company.

1 was built by Brooks in April 1889, #1555, as J. E. Potts Salt & Lumber Co. 1. They sold it to the Ausable & North Western RR as 8. Then it was sold to Banner Lumber Co. and in December 1905 it became CM&StP 1400, Class NM-1. It was renumbered 1 in December 1912 and sold to Bellevue & Cascade RR as 1 on July 22, 1933. Three years later the line was sold for scrap.

2 was originally Chicago Bellevue Cascade & Western 1. It later became CM&StP 1401. Finally it was numbered 2. It's final use was power for the transfer table at the Milwaukee Shops. It was scrapped in August 1926.

2^nd 2 was built by Baldwin and was originally 2nd 2 of the Catskill & Tannersville, "a wonderfully fine, obscure, short-lived and picturesque competitor of the Ulster & Delaware's obscure Kaaterskill branch in the Catskills" according to Steve Delibert.

2^nd 3 was also built by Baldwin and was 2^nd 1 of the C&T.

4 was built by Cooke in 1882 as Denver South Park & Pacific 67. It went thru the various reorganizations to become Colorado & Southern 55 until it came to the St. Paul in 1918.

Pine River Valley & Stevens Point was 3 foot gauge between Lone Rock, WI, and Richland Centre (now Richland Center). It was absorbed by the St. Paul in 1880 and later standard gauges. PRV&SP "Richland Centre" was built by Porter in February 1876, #240. It was gone by 1887 and the disposition is unknown.

One of the box cars has been preserved.

Special thanks to Stuart Kurth for his roster information.

AMDG

2/28/2002

Remembrance of Saint Hedwig, Queen of Poland

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