February 19, 2020 - An southbound Metra train arrives at the Jefferson Park Metra Station with engine128 leading during the evening rush hour from downtown Chicago, Illinois as the golden light of the day begins to fade from the sky.

An southbound Metra train arrives at the Jefferson Park…

February 19, 2020 – An southbound Metra train arrives at the Jefferson Park Metra Station with engine 128 leading during the evening rush hour from downtown Chicago, Illinois as the golden light of the day begins to fade from the sky.

February 20, 2020 - Chicago Transit Authority brown line train 414 to Kimball makes its way on the downtown Chicago "L" loop as a green line train waits for a clear at CTA Tower 12 at the Van Buren & Wabash junction, as they head toward the Adams/Walbash Station in downtown Chicago, Illinois.

Chicago Transit Authority brown line train 414…

February 20, 2020 – Chicago Transit Authority brown line train 414 to Kimball makes its way on the downtown Chicago “L” loop as a green line train waits for a clear at CTA Tower 12 at the Van Buren & Wabash junction, as they head toward the Adams/Walbash Station in downtown Chicago, Illinois.

February 20, 2020 - A Chicago Transit Authority Green Line train heads toward the loop in downtown Chicago, Illinois as the late afternoon light plays on the building behind it.

Chicago Transit Authority Green Line train…

February 20, 2020 – A Chicago Transit Authority Green Line train heads toward the loop in downtown Chicago, Illinois as the late afternoon light plays on the building behind it.

February 20, 2020 - A slightly different viewpoint of a Chicago Transit Authority Pink Line arriving at the State/Lake Street "L" station as it makes its way around the downtown loop in Chicago, Illinois.

Chicago Transit Authority Pink Line arriving at…

February 20, 2020 – A slightly different viewpoint of a Chicago Transit Authority Pink Line arriving at the State/Lake Street “L” station as it makes its way around the downtown loop in Chicago, Illinois.

February 20, 2020 - The motorman on the 712 to Midway navigates his train set through the canyons of downtown Chicago, Illinois as it makes its way around the loop on another day of moving people.

The motorman on the 712 to Midway…

February 20, 2020 – The motorman on the 712 to Midway navigates his train set through the canyons of downtown Chicago, Illinois as it makes its way around the loop on another day of moving people.

February 20, 2020 - The head car on a Pink Line set "Floating Museum" #5052, makes its way through the downtown loop on the "L" in downtown Chicago, Illinois. According to the Floating Museum Website: The Floating Museum partnered with the Chicago Transit Authority and Chicago Park District to transform the Green Line into a moving cultural destination, activating several parks along the south and west ends of the line between July 2019 - September 2019. Cultural Transit Assembly serves both to celebrate the cultural work being done in these neighborhoods as well as to strengthen the ties between these spaces. This project is also an opportunity for Floating Museum to continue to foster collaborations between local, municipal, and community based organizations with larger city institutions. Floating Museum developed site-specific exhibitions that highlighted local histories with complimentary public programs including live musical performances, panel discussions, neighborhood walking tours, film screenings, and more. Cultural Transit Assembly happened up and down the CTA Green Line and included Founders which is a mobile monument and collaboration between Floating Museum, Chris Pappan and Monica Rickert-Bolter. For more information visit: https://floatingmuseum.org/Transit

he head car on a Pink Line set “Floating Museum”…

February 20, 2020 – The head car on a Pink Line set “Floating Museum” #5052, makes its way through the downtown loop on the “L” in downtown Chicago, Illinois.
According to the Floating Museum Website: The Floating Museum partnered with the Chicago Transit Authority and Chicago Park District to transform the Green Line into a moving cultural destination, activating several parks along the south and west ends of the line between July 2019 – September 2019.
Cultural Transit Assembly serves both to celebrate the cultural work being done in these neighborhoods as well as to strengthen the ties between these spaces. This project is also an opportunity for Floating Museum to continue to foster collaborations between local, municipal, and community based organizations with larger city institutions.
Floating Museum developed site-specific exhibitions that highlighted local histories with complimentary public programs including live musical performances, panel discussions, neighborhood walking tours, film screenings, and more.
Cultural Transit Assembly happened up and down the CTA Green Line and included Founders which is a mobile monument and collaboration between Floating Museum, Chris Pappan and Monica Rickert-Bolter.
For more information visit: https://floatingmuseum.org/Transit

February 20, 2020 - A northbound Metra train crosses the 21st Street Lift Bridge over the old Pennsylvania RR Drawbridge 463, as it heads north to Union Station in downtown Chicago at dusk. This lift bridge is one of only a few still in operation in Chicago, Illinois. According to Patrick McBriarty, a former business person and consultant who over a decade ago discovered a new focus and fascination for Chicago bridges. The bridge was Designed by engineers J.A.L. Wadell and John Harrington. It is the second vertical-lift bridge ever built crossing the Chicago River, and only one still standing. It's near Chinatown over the South Branch of the river and was completed in 1915 for the Pennsylvania Railroad. The bridge is now owned by Amtrak and carries Metra and Norfolk Southern train traffic in and out of Chicago.

A northbound Metra train crosses…

February 20, 2020 – A northbound Metra train crosses the 21st Street Lift Bridge over the old Pennsylvania RR Drawbridge 463, as it heads north to Union Station in downtown Chicago at dusk. This lift bridge is one of only a few still in operation in Chicago, Illinois.

According to Patrick McBriarty, a former business person and consultant who over a decade ago discovered a new focus and fascinati… See More

February 19, 2020 - An outbound and inbound Metra train pass each other at the Jefferson Park Metra Station during the evening rush hour to and from downtown Chicago, Illinois as the golden light of the day begins to fade from the sky.

An outbound and inbound Metra train…

February 19, 2020 – An outbound and inbound Metra train pass each other at the Jefferson Park Metra Station during the evening rush hour to and from downtown Chicago, Illinois as the golden light of the day begins to fade from the sky.

February 20, 2020 - A Chicago Transit Authority Brown Line and Green Line trains round curves at Tower 12 as they make their way around the downtown Chicago, Illinois "L". The first "L" (elevated) train (then Chicago and South Side Rapid Transit Railroad) was built in 1892, and its inaugural journey took place on June 6, spanning 3.6 miles in 14 minutes.

Chicago Transit Authority Brown Line and…

February 20, 2020 – Chicago Transit Authority Brown Line and Green Line trains round curves at Tower 12 as they make their way around the downtown Chicago, Illinois “L”. The first “L” (elevated) train (then Chicago and South Side Rapid Transit Railroad) was built in 1892, and its inaugural journey took place on June 6, spanning 3.6 miles in 14 minutes.

February 22, 2020 - Metra engine 418 crosses over the CSX Elsdon Subdivision as it heads along the Metra Joliet Sub District at Blue Island, Illinois. I spent a good part of the morning and afternoon here at Blue Harbor today and ever caught a single train on the Elsdon Subdivision, but some days are like that!

Metra engine 418 crosses over…

February 22, 2020 – Metra engine 418 crosses over the CSX Elsdon Subdivision as it heads along the Metra Joliet Sub District at Blue Island, Illinois. I spent a good part of the morning and afternoon here at Blue Island today and ever caught a single train on the Elsdon Subdivision, but some days are like that!

February 20, 2020 - The engineer on Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Loop Train 403 keeps a watchful eye on the track ahead as he navigates his train around a curve as he makes his seemingly never ending loop through the canyons of downtown Chicago, Illinois.

The engineer on Chicago Transit Authority…

February 20, 2020 – The engineer on Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Loop Train 403 keeps a watchful eye on the track ahead as he navigates his train around a curve as he makes his seemingly never ending loop through the canyons of downtown Chicago, Illinois.

February 20, 2020 - Metra 179 pulls train #919 southbound commuter train out of downtown Chicago, Illinois past the Amtrak facility as it approaches the 18th street overpass, as dusk falls over the city, on its way to Joliet, Illinois on the Metra Heritage Corridor.

Metra 179 pulls train #919 southbound…

February 20, 2020 – Metra 179 pulls train #919 southbound commuter train out of downtown Chicago, Illinois past the Amtrak facility as it approaches the 18th street overpass, as dusk falls over the city, on its way to Joliet, Illinois on the Metra Heritage Corridor.

November 12, 2019 - Union Pacific's "Big Boy" 4014 puts out a huge plume of steam in the cold November air as it departs Hope, Arkansas and heads north on Union Pacific's Little Rock Subdivision on its way to Prescott, AR where it tied down for the night. According to Wikipedia: The Union Pacific Big Boy is a type of simple articulated 4-8-8-4 steam locomotive manufactured by the American Locomotive Company between 1941 and 1944 and operated by the Union Pacific Railroad in revenue service until 1959. The 25 Big Boy locomotives were built to haul freight over the Wasatch mountains between Ogden, Utah, and Green River, Wyoming. In the late 1940s, they were reassigned to Cheyenne, Wyoming, where they hauled freight over Sherman Hill to Laramie, Wyoming. They were the only locomotives to use a 4-8-8-4 wheel arrangement: four-wheel leading truck for stability entering curves, two sets of eight driving wheels and a four-wheel trailing truck to support the large firebox. Eight Big Boys survive, most on static display at museums across the country. This one, No. 4014, was re-acquired by Union Pacific and restored to operating condition in 2019, regaining the title as the largest and most powerful operating steam locomotive in the world.

Union Pacific’s “Big Boy” 4014 puts out a huge plume of steam in the cold November air as it departs Hope, AR

November 12, 2019 – Union Pacific’s “Big Boy” 4014 puts out a huge plume of steam in the cold November air as it departs Hope, Arkansas and heads north on Union Pacific’s Little Rock Subdivision on its way to Prescott, AR where it tied down for the night.

According to Wikipedia: The Union Pacific Big Boy is a type of simple articulated 4-8-8-4 steam locomotive manufactured by the American Locomotive Company between 1941 and 1944 and operated by the Union Pacific Railroad in revenue service until 1959.

The 25 Big Boy locomotives were built to haul freight over the Wasatch mountains between Ogden, Utah, and Green River, Wyoming. In the late 1940s, they were reassigned to Cheyenne, Wyoming, where they hauled freight over Sherman Hill to Laramie, Wyoming. They were the only locomotives to use a 4-8-8-4 wheel arrangement: four-wheel leading truck for stability entering curves, two sets of eight driving wheels and a four-wheel trailing truck to support the large firebox.

Eight Big Boys survive, most on static display at museums across the country. This one, No. 4014, was re-acquired by Union Pacific and restored to operating condition in 2019, regaining the title as the largest and most powerful operating steam locomotive in the world.

September 5, 2019 - The Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range 332 steam locomotive, at Lake Superior Railroad Museum, prepares for a day long photo charter from Duluth, Minnesota to Two Harbors, Minnesota along the North Shore Line, in the early morning rain.

Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range 332 at Duluth, Minnesota

September 5, 2019 – The Duluth, Missabe & Iron Range 332 steam locomotive, at Lake Superior Railroad Museum, prepares for a day long photo charter from Duluth, Minnesota to Two Harbors, Minnesota along the North Shore Line, in the early morning rain.

November 13, 2019 - Union Pacific 4014 Big Boy pulls it's train north out of Union Station at Little Rock, Arkansas on a cold fall afternoon. Union Pacific billed this move as The Great Race Across the Southwest as the train is making a circle around the southwest over a six week or so period hitting Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah and Wyoming. According to Wikipedia: Little Rock Union Station, also known as Mopac Station, is a train station in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States served by Amtrak, the national railroad passenger system. The present Little Rock station opened August 1, 1921, having been constructed by the Missouri Pacific Railroad after a fire destroyed the prior station on April 7, 1920. The structure used existing foundations, some exterior walls and the clock tower of the previous station, which had survived the fire. The station is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as "Mopac Station". Although known as Union Station, this particular structure was used by only a single railroad, Missouri Pacific. Prior structures on this site were served by two additional railroads, Memphis & Little Rock (1874–1893) and St. Louis Southwestern Railroad (known as the 'Cotton Belt'). (ca. 1892–1910). The present (1921) structure was predated by a large wooden structure erected in 1874, and a brick station that opened in 1909 and burned in 1920. The main entrance to Union Station was located on the Markham Street level, and waiting rooms, ticket office and a restaurant were located on this level. The upper two floors housed the railroad's train dispatchers and offices of the freight and passenger departments, American Refrigerator Transit, and the Pullman Company, which staffed the sleeping and dining cars of passenger trains. The basement (track level) held extensive mail and Railway Express Agency facilities, a baggage room, and a small dining car commissary. Passenger access to the tracks was via an open air midway extending from the north side of the building, with stairways and three umbrella sheds extending in each direction at track level. This midway structure was original to the 1908 station, having survived the 1920 fire. Missouri Pacific passenger service to Little Rock ended just after midnight on May 1, 1971. The remaining umbrella sheds and midway were dismantled in October 1973, less than six months before Amtrak began a new passenger route through Little Rock. Amtrak continued to use the original waiting room and ticket office area until July 1992. The waiting area and ticket offices were relocated to a newly renovated area of the station located at track level.

Union Pacific 4014 Big Boy pulls it’s train north out of Union Station at Little Rock, Arkansas

November 13, 2019 – Union Pacific 4014 Big Boy pulls it’s train north out of Union Station at Little Rock, Arkansas on a cold fall afternoon.

Union Pacific billed this move as The Great Race Across the Southwest as the train is making a circle around the southwest over a six week or so period hitting Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Kansas, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah and Wyoming.

According to Wikipedia: Little Rock Union Station, also known as Mopac Station, is a train station in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States served by Amtrak, the national railroad passenger system.

The present Little Rock station opened August 1, 1921, having been constructed by the Missouri Pacific Railroad after a fire destroyed the prior station on April 7, 1920. The structure used existing foundations, some exterior walls and the clock tower of the previous station, which had survived the fire. The station is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as “Mopac Station”.

Although known as Union Station, this particular structure was used by only a single railroad, Missouri Pacific. Prior structures on this site were served by two additional railroads, Memphis & Little Rock (1874–1893) and St. Louis Southwestern Railroad (known as the ‘Cotton Belt’). (ca. 1892–1910). The present (1921) structure was predated by a large wooden structure erected in 1874, and a brick station that opened in 1909 and burned in 1920.

The main entrance to Union Station was located on the Markham Street level, and waiting rooms, ticket office and a restaurant were located on this level. The upper two floors housed the railroad’s train dispatchers and offices of the freight and passenger departments, American Refrigerator Transit, and the Pullman Company, which staffed the sleeping and dining cars of passenger trains. The basement (track level) held extensive mail and Railway Express Agency facilities, a baggage room, and a small dining car commissary. Passenger access to the tracks was via an open air midway extending from the north side of the building, with stairways and three umbrella sheds extending in each direction at track level. This midway structure was original to the 1908 station, having survived the 1920 fire.

Missouri Pacific passenger service to Little Rock ended just after midnight on May 1, 1971. The remaining umbrella sheds and midway were dismantled in October 1973, less than six months before Amtrak began a new passenger route through Little Rock. Amtrak continued to use the original waiting room and ticket office area until July 1992. The waiting area and ticket offices were relocated to a newly renovated area of the station located at track level.