Do You Have Some Favorite Train Photos?

Not the greatest pictures, but they do mean a lot to me.  I believe these were taken in March 2012, not sure.  FWRHS had just completed major work on the 765 and were taking it out on a break-in run to Van Wert, OH.  They were using the former PRR Ft. Wayne line.  The train consisted of the 765 & tender, work car and a GP40 with dynamic brakes engaged to provide a "load".  The train was only traveling about 20mph and made frequent stops for inspections and to check bearing temperatures. 

Stream was long gone on the PRR by the time I was born so I never had a chance to see a main-line steam locomotive in action.  Here, I was able to capture a working steam locomotive passing through my hometown of Convoy, OH on its way to Van Wert.

I have had several opportunities to see the 765 in action since these photos were taken, but nothing matches the heart pounding excitement of seeing a working steam locomotive for the first time.

Tom

Two of my favorites. 

IRM circa 1980.  1630 after parking a Members Weekend freight train.  I was student firing and we were waiting for the main to clear to return light to do some switching.  I particularly like this photo because there is little to nothing to give away the era:

And not all have to be of trains.  This is one of those "lucky shots."

Rusty

These are a couple favorites of mine of a locomotive I work on, Detroit and Lima Northern/Detroit Toledo and Ironton #7.  They were taken 92 years apart.  The first one was shortly after it emerged from the Fordson shops following Henry Ford's purchase of the DT&I.  #7 was the first locomotive to go through his standardization rebuild.  This photo was taken during some publicity trips over the line to show off his improvements in November, 1921.  This was actually the print of a news photo that was published in several papers across the country.  When I purchased it, the original editors paint marks were still present.  I managed to find the article on newspapers.com some time later.

Upon selling the DT&I in the late 1920's, Henry Ford kept #7 and several other locomotives for his new museum in Dearborn.  It was back dated to more or less its original appearance and placed on static display.  #7 was dragged out of the museum in the late 1980's to be evaluated for an operational restoration.  At the time it was found to be a bigger project than they could handle or needed to put the effort into and it sat in the shop.  In 2007, work finally began in the roundhouse that was built in 2000.  This photo was taken in 2013, the evening of my last day of high school, while the locomotive was out for its third round of test running after its restoration.  To this day it's one of the best photos I've ever taken with my cell phone camera, and it's almost spooky how the rods are in the same position and the smoke is blowing in the same direction as the 1921 photo.

Great photo, Jake.

No. 7 is just such a gosh-darn good looking engine. I sure wish they would have relocated the compressor closer to the cab. 

I have a IC Green Diamond for sale on the forum.  This is the Green Diamond leaving the IC station in Kankakee Ill in the spring of 1946.

smd4 posted:

Great photo, Jake.

No. 7 is just such a gosh-darn good looking engine. I sure wish they would have relocated the compressor closer to the cab. 

Thanks, it’s certainly the beauty queen of our roster.

When on display, it was moved back towards the cab.  Our staff made the decision to move it further out as in the 1921 photo because our other 4-4-0 has its compressor very close to the cab and it’s a pain to work on because of the lack of room on the cab side.

No train in sight, but certainly train-related...something I had never seen previous to this road trip along Rt. 11 on the way northward to Cortland, NY...

FrankM

Moonson posted:

No train in sight, but certainly train-related...something I had never seen previous to this road trip along Rt. 11 on the way northward to Cortland, NY...

FrankM

Frank, what is it, maybe railroad ties?

I have a nice shot of a huge pile of new ties from here about a year ago that was well over 100' in length - it was amazing! If I locate the photo I'll post it too.

Here is our 'local' short line - The Blue Ridge Southern that hauls paper pulp back and forth. The head of operations gave me this swell logo awhile back so I put it on one of Doug's O Scale Haulers.

Here is an interesting shot from the old Montour Railroad.  Re-installing rails to a Marcellous Shale Gas collection site, Westland, PA.

Used continuous rail.   Lots of railroad ties, my bike, Treky, lower right. 

I believe this was September, 1980, when Chessie Safety Express #614 did a round trip between Cumberland,MD. and Rockwood,PA. I was touring the local volunteer fire station during the layover, and when I inquired about the whereabouts of their newest and biggest engine; I was informed "it's down at the creek pumping water to that steam engine". Following their direction, I made my way to a spot where I could combine both of my favorite subjects in one photo.

At that time, I had no idea that a few years in the future, I would plunge into 35mm photography, become a "fair" RR photographer, and a fire apparatus photographer of note.

Kodak 126 print by Warren W. Jenkins

At Jim Thorp - in Lehigh Gorge

This one taken of the North Conway scenic right of way.  Formally B&M trackage, near the Attitash resort in Northern NH.  During the summer months it sees about six trains a day.

Taken 21 July 2005 in Cheyenne Wyoming. 

Here are some I took back in the 1970"s.

My wife and I were hiking in the White Mountains area of New Hampshire when we came upon some tracks.  Shortly afterward a Conway Scenic Railroad train passed.  Quite exciting.

Arnold D. Cribari posted:

Moonson posted:

No train in sight, but certainly train-related...something I had never seen previous to this road trip along Rt. 11 on the way northward to Cortland, NY...

FrankM

Frank, what is it, maybe railroad ties?

That's what I concluded they were, given the smell of them and their placement, so close to the tracks themselves, let along being on RR property. Perhaps they were getting ready to replace ties.

Aix en Provence, France

For me for just 1 all time favorite I took, is this back in Oct 2014 in Hudson Ohio.

During the 2006 season, WMSR was kept clean and neat all year. Here she is, in October, bell and whistle polished, along with the rods (which are the down position) clean paint and neat graphite on her smokebox.

She never ever looked this good again. As a matter of fact, the last five or six years of her runs she was very dirty.

This is what, in my mind, is how a scenic locomotive should look. And that, I think, is how you sell tickets!

As usual, click for larger photo.

Ed (sure was hard to pick a favorite!)

Wow, thanks everyone! Lots of great photos and stories. So, here's mine for today. Taken in the Summer of 1964 at Detroit's Fort Street Union Station. I've always enjoyed seeing older couples, especially so now that I am part of one. I think they have a look of expectation on their faces. Is someone coming to meet them? Perhaps the children and grandchildren? Train is B&O's Ambassador, from Baltimore and Washington.

Wow, my favorite train related photos.....that's a tough one.  Here's a few, but not by any means all of my favorites.

Not my photo.  I like the authenticity of it, even if it was a staged photo.  

A station in Italy.  Again not my photo.

My work here.  Taken near Zoo Tower in the late '70s.

My photo taken along the NE Corridor in the late '70s.

Mine again of Zoo Tower.  Late '70s.

Again at Zoo Tower, I shot in the late '70s.

I cannot recall if I took this one.

And last, but not least, these two while on our trip to Padova, Italy in 2011.  We had just gotten off an overnight train from Paris.  The first photo is of the train station in Padova.  The second is of your's truly as we got off the train.

I've taken a lot of photos over the years, but this is one of my favorite steam photos. Fox Lake, Illinois, June 12, 2016. 

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Father's Day in 1997 was particularly awesome for me.  My wife and kids and I traveled from the Midwest to New York City for a special surprise -- one that left Hoboken Terminal for Port Jervis, NY with a return that later day.   We got to experience high-speed steam on the mainline, a little Port Jervis, and in between a brief stop atop the Moodna Viaduct with a grand vista of its own.

As we detrained at the end of the day I took this picture.  Little did we know that a few short years later the scene across the river behind C&O 614 would change so dramatically and tragically.  Amongst the chaos when 911 unfolded I thought back to this photo and wished that against all odds things could go back to the way they were that day.

Mike

Mellow Hudson Mike posted:

Father's Day in 1997 was particularly awesome for me.  My wife and kids and I traveled from the Midwest to New York City for a special surprise -- one that left Hoboken Terminal for Port Jervis, NY with a return that later day.   We got to experience high-speed steam on the mainline, a little Port Jervis, and in between a brief stop atop the Moodna Viaduct with a grand vista of its own.

As we detrained at the end of the day I took this picture.  Little did we know that a few short years later the scene across the river behind C&O 614 would change so dramatically and tragically.  Amongst the chaos when 911 unfolded I thought back to this photo and wished that against all odds things could go back to the way they were that day.

Mike

 

 

That is one very special picture.  Thank you for posting.

Another great day of special pictures and stories! Thank you all for sharing your memories. Since there were photos posted yesterday, here's mine for today.

I call this "The Little Cowboy."  Although, I don't think cowboys wore shorts. This is my son at age 7 walking the platform in Cheyenne, WY. It was summer of 1979 and The San Francisco Zephyr still ran via Cheyenne, and Union Pacific often added an E unit ahead of the Amtrak SDP40F's.   

N&W Pride... the J, Y and A

S1a

Designed, built, and run; for and by the N&W in Roanoke Virginia. My home town.

One of my favorites.

PCRR/Dave

May 1964, the CB&Q (Burlington) celebrated the 100 anniversary of commuter service between Aurora and Chicago. They painted the beautiful 4-8-4 #5632 in gold and had several pieces of rolling stock on display at the Aurora yards, including engine 35, a 4-4-0 lettered for the B&MR RR.  I road the excursion round trip from Chicago with several hundreds of others. 

Can you image what insurance companies, lawyers, and the railroads would say if they allowed us to climb on the roofs of the cars, stand within inches of an operating steam engine, or what parents would do today if they saw there kids climbing all over the trains? On that day, not ONE accident, not one kid fell off a car, no one got hurt or run over by 5632. Amazing what we were able to do in the good old days.

The 3rd photo is me with my grandson at Roaring Camp. I was engineer for the day, driving Shay #1, the Dixiana.

Taken during my Honeymoon:

Yes, my former neighbor Herbie Hurt hanging out of 2100 at Jenkintown.  A friend gave it to me and I treasure it.

Yes, I do have some "favorite train photos", and they are all framed and hanging on the wall of the upstairs layout room.

C&O Allie posted:

Taken during my Honeymoon:

Wait.....Who has time to ride trains on their honeymoon.....LOL ?    I should talk.  We drove down to Disney World for our honeymoon.  Rode the Disney World train and the monorail.....Whoopee !!!!!

Dan Padova posted:

C&O Allie posted:

Taken during my Honeymoon:

Wait.....Who has time to ride trains on their honeymoon.....LOL ?    I should talk.  We drove down to Disney World for our honeymoon.  Rode the Disney World train and the monorail.....Whoopee !!!!!

Whale Watching for her, Trains for me.  

I see the great photos keep on coming, so here's my Number One!  No, not the best, or most dramatic, but THE number 1, the first rail photo I ever took. It was summer, 1956 and I was 12 years old, on my way to visit my grandparents. In Chicago & North Western Station in downtown Chicago we waited for the Peninsula "400" and I took this photo of the just-arrived Kate Shelley "400." I was using a plastic box camera, not a Kodak Brownie Hawkeye, but some off-brand version, maybe a Keystone. 620 film, remember that?