Among my many and varied interests, there is none more long-standing than my fascination with railroads, particularly when they are steam-powered. I suppose that many younger persons may find this puzzling — but to those of us who are sufficiently (to use a particularly but typically objectionable example of that obnoxious term, “political correctness”) “chronologically gifted” to remember when trains were pulled by monstrous black coal-smoke-puffing and steam-spouting locomotives that almost seemed to be living, breathing beings, such a fascination may seem more understandable.
At any rate, this page contains links to some gorgeous black-and-white (naturally — after all, some of them come from before the turn of the twentieth century) photographs of scenes from railroading in Illinois given to me by a late friend who knew of my interest in trains. I hope that you'll enjoy them.
NOTE: Since many of the photos are rather large, this page displays the images as links rather than in-line to reduce the time that the page takes to load. For a page that displays the pictures in-line, click here.
An IC yard after a snowstorm
An amphibious train, anyone?
Chicago's Union Station during wartime, when trains were "the only way to go."
Here is an Illinois Central roundhouse during the "Age of Steam."
A Chicago and Northwestern passenger train (remember those?) entering Chicago.
A locomotive with a "diamond stack," used to trap sparks.
A legendary train named after a legendary man.
The car used to transport the body of Abraham Lincoln back to Illinois for burial.
Illinois Central 2-4-0 locomotive No. 1401.
Several photos of early Pullman cars.
Travelling in comfort in a mid-20th-Century observation car.
