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Just wondering if anyone models this road.

I started modeling the GM&O because it became part of the Illinois Central through a merger...hence the Illinois Central Gulf. MTH and Williams (not Bachmann) offered some items a few years ago, but not much since. I realize the Forum membership is "heavy" into eastern roads, but thought maybe some of the Midwestern members might be GM&O modelers.

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Wow!  Looking at J Daddy's bone yard photos the GM&O really had some strange ducks for road power. I grew up in the St. Louis suburbs until my very early teens and GM&O operated out of Union Station a lot. My earliest memory of the GM&O paint scheme was from the top deck of the Admiral excursion boat on the Mississippi when GM&O ran their equipment on the high line next to the river. At five years old I didn't know the different roads but knew I liked their paint scheme (and still do). Thanks for sharing J Daddy as it brought back some great memories!

 

Butch 

Funny to think of the GM&O as a "Midwestern" road, though it was certainly that,

in part, thanks to the GM&O's purchase of the Alton after WWII. I worked for them in the home office in Mobile, which is on the Gulf Coast, so I think of it as a "Southern" road, which it was certainly, also.

 

Anyway, yes, I model (in OS3R, of course) the GM&O, mostly in steam (I scratch bashed a GM&N/GM&O Heavy Decapod), but I have my share of RS-1's (which I painted and decaled), RS3's, DL-109's (MTH), F3's (MTH), Williams Alco FA1/FB1 ABA set (I frame-mounted the pilots, painted, decaled, weathered and upgraded with Command Control in both FA's - that was a job!), rolling stock (some bought that way, some decorated by me), both passenger and freight. My next passenger project is a Mobile & Ohio (primary predecessor to the GM&O) heavyweight passenger train with a USRA 4-6-2.

 

I have a GM&O 2-8-0, 0-6-0, 2-8-2, 4-6-2 (3), 2-10-0...so, yeah, I do model it, both "South End"/Rebel Route and "North End"/Alton Route, as railfans call them (it breaks at St Louis).

 

It's right up there with the New York Central.

 

Nice to hear of your interest in the road; I started out with the GM&O sorting Interline Waybills (those from other, or "foreign", roads, as the RR term goes) not too long before the merger which formed the ICG. I was with the ICG for 15 years in the Home Office

in Mobile (there was also one in Chicago after the merger).

 

 

 

Originally Posted by up148:

Wow!  Looking at J Daddy's bone yard photos the GM&O really had some strange ducks for road power. I grew up in the St. Louis suburbs until my very early teens and GM&O operated out of Union Station a lot. My earliest memory of the GM&O paint scheme was from the top deck of the Admiral excursion boat on the Mississippi when GM&O ran their equipment on the high line next to the river. At five years old I didn't know the different roads but knew I liked their paint scheme (and still do). Thanks for sharing J Daddy as it brought back some great memories!

 

Butch 

Butch found this picture taken from the U.S. Admiral... to bad it was in such poor quality....

 

 

 

GM&O%20High%20Line342

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I've been to Jackson, Tennessee, a number of times; GM&O had a big presence there at one time, with a depot and big shop, round house and rail yard. I couldn't find much left that could be traced to the line, though. Always liked the colors - very sharp.

 

IN addition to what's been mentioned, Atlas O also did some nice-looking GM&O F units a few years ago (think that's what c.sam has pictured), and Lionel did an RS-3 back in the late 90s (I think) a JCPenney special issue, and has done EV caboose and some cars. Williams also did E units and matching aluminum passenger cars a number of years ago (had that set at one time). Weaver has also done at least some RS units, and likely a number of cars. But all in all, not a whole lot of GM&O has been made over the years.

Great photo J Daddy!  Tell me a kid who loved trains even as a pup wouldn't go out of his mind watching that happen. One of the best parts of the Admiral ride was waiting for trains to either cross the Eads bridge or the high line and if you were lucky enough to be on the ground when they passed overhead there was nothing like it.

 

My dad (deceased) took slides back in the mid 50's and somewhere I have a color slide or two of a train on the high line. Got to find that.  

 

Butch

If Lionel were to come out with a passenger train in this road name, I would sure buy it. This is a very colorful passenger train which I very much like.

 

I recently completed a customization of another very colorful passenger train that I have yet to share with the Forum.

 

 

What I remember about GM&O was an old Model Railroader article on a gas electric and trailer they ran south out of Chicago.  Somebody rode that and did an article on it.  If you are familiar with the common Walther's kit for the C&NW gas electric, in O scale and in HO, where a similar kit in HO was offered by Walther's for the GM&O gas

electric.  Too bad, but I don't think Walther's did an O scale version of the GM&O's

gas electric, but with good photos or the HO kit in hand, the C&NW kit should be an

easy kitbash.

I have a couple of GM&O consists for the same reason of the road being merged into the Illinois Central Gulf.  Since I generally stuck to Lionel products (only the dearth of Lionel "The Rock" products could lure me to MTH) and have not acquired anything for almost four years, I have only a couple of 8772 GP-20 locomotives, 9187 and 19721 cabooses, and 52162 boxcar; the rest of the consists is comprised of interchange or short line rolling stock connecting to the GM&O.  Never picked up the 18554 RS-3.

Ingalls 4S built by Ingalls shipbuilding in Pascagoula, MS. They had planned 3 models of locos but this one was the only one ever built. It spent its entire career on GM&O and was traded to EMD. Unfortunately it was scrapped, it would have been great had it been preserved.

 

The exhaust stack was a 55 gallon drum!

 

 

Originally Posted by Balshis:
Originally Posted by Brother_Love:

This was the weirdest loco they had and the ONLY one ever produced, kinda cute ain't it??

No, but it's interesting.  What can you tell us about it?

 

 

Originally Posted by Passenger Train Collector:

If Lionel were to come out with a passenger train in this road name, I would sure buy it. This is a very colorful passenger train which I very much like.

 

I recently completed a customization of another very colorful passenger train that I have yet to share with the Forum.

 

 

Waiting !!

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