Transcontinental Railroad - 150 Years!

A ceremony conducted 150 years ago today - May 10, 1869 - marked the completion of a transcontinental railroad across the United States of America. A continuous route was not yet in place, but would be in a few years. 

- David P. Jordan

Comments

  1. UnknownMay 11, 2019 at 6:24 PM

    Hello David! Here in North Carolina, they celebrated the 150 year event with a $1 ride on the Piedmont route between Raleigh and Charlotte and all stops between on both Friday and Saturday. My wife and I took advantage of it on Friday doing a day trip to Charlotte. We boarded at the new union station in downtown Raleigh. Here is the link to the advertisement link: https://www.ncbytrain.org/deals/Pages/transcontinental-anniversary.aspx

    Here are some interesting facts I found out about. The state of NC owns the trains on the Piedmont route but it is operated by Amtrak. The state also owns the rail line on this route and also the line that extends down to the coast. The cars are not typical Amtrak cars but are old refurbished Pullman cars. Each car is named after a unique state resource or animal (gray squirrel, fraser fir, currituck sound, etc) along with the story of each posted in the car. There is no actual cafe car but they have vending machines. But they do offer free coffee, hot tea, and bottled water at a stand alone beverage center. There is also a train host on board that helps with answering questions, handing out tourist info, and can offer other guidance as needed. I found overall the cars are a little bit cleaner and nicer compared to other Amtrak cars. It was a great trip.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. David P. JordanMay 11, 2019 at 7:34 PM

      Sounds like fun! Glad to see North Carolina celebrating the nation's railroad history. Riding the Piedmont is on my bucket list.

      Delete
    2. mikefiedler1@gmail.comMay 12, 2019 at 4:40 AM

      Come on down David, would love to have you. We'll go ride trains and get some pictures of planes out at RDU.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Bartlett Grain Co. LP to Build Elevator on UP Peoria Sub!

Image
Bartlett Grain Co. LP's Bureau County facility will be similar to its Canadian Pacific Kansas City-served South Jacksonville, Illinois facility, shown May 2, 2020.  Bartlett Grain Co. LP is planning to build a $50 million grain loading facility in Bureau County, Illinois. Media reports here and here  tells us Bartlett Grain will build on 155 acres east of Rt. 40 and north of Interstate 80 between County Roads 1700 and 1745 East. The complex, complete with a rail loop capable of loading up to 120 cars, will employ 25 to 30.  Rail service will be provided by the Union Pacific on its Peoria Subdivision, which runs from Nelson south to Barr. Grain will be shipped to Mexico.  - David P. Jordan
Read more

Black Band Distillery Expands to ex-Cat Tire!

Image
Black Band Distillery, presently operating at 1000 SW Adams Street, is planning to expand to the vacant property at 2400 SW Washington Street. That is according to WCBU News .  Although the article omits it, this property has a long history with the local distilling industry. National Cooperage & Woodenware Co. constructed a plant there in 1900, though a predecessor apparently had begun barrel making operations there c. 1885. This firm survived Prohibition (1920-1933) because the barrels could also be used for packing corn syrup, condensed milk, cider, vinegar, liquid chemicals, flavoring extracts, etc. Hiram Walker & Sons, which purchased one-third to one-half of its production, gained control of National Cooperage in 1946. A new four-story expansion began in the fall of 1964 only to be destroyed by a tornado on September 14, 1965. Operations resumed at the start of 1966 and the entire plant was replaced in 1967-1968.  Changing economics led to closure in 1972. Caterpillar Tra
Read more

PIA - A History: Chicago & Southern Airlines Crash Oct. 21, 1971

Image
The only fatal Peoria-area plane crash involving a scheduled air carrier occurred October 21, 1971 when Chicago & Southern Airlines Flight #804 went down while attempting to land in poor weather conditions. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) accident report can be viewed here , but I'll summarize the crash, what led up to it and the aftermath.  ILL-FATED FLIGHT #804 Chicago & Southern Airlines began flying between Peoria and Chicago's Meigs Field on July 7, 1969. Beech 18S and DHC-6 "Twin Otter" aircraft were used for its flights, the former type at Peoria. In 1970, C&S introduced an aircraft known as the ATECO Westwind II. It was a Beech 18S with heavy modifications including a seven-foot fuselage extension, two turboprop engines and a tri-cycle landing gear. An ATECO Westwind II operated ill-fated C&S Flight #804. It departed Meigs Field at 11:20 a. m. October 21, 1971 for Peoria and Springfield with 14 passengers. Airline pres
Read more