I left for church early today so I could check out if Iowa Interstate train PESI was getting close to departure. I missed SIPE's arrive with three Norfolk Southern geeps, but found IAIS power with the PESI crew aboard running through the TZPR's East Peoria Yard.
They planned to pulled those three NS geeps across W. Washington Street then shove them along the Nickel Plate and leave them on the Creve Coeur Team Track. But they were instructed to wait for a TP&W local enroute back to East Peoria.
I got gas up in Creve Coeur and came back to find the TP&W train running on the Tazewell & Peoria Railroad's Nickel Plate Division, and two IAIS and three NS geeps waiting at W. Washington Street. I parked with just a few minutes to spare before TPW 3440, HESR 3485 and TPW 5010 rolled by with 33 grain empties from ADM South Yard.
Moments after the TP&W local cleared, Iowa Interstate PESI's crew with IAIS 711 and 703 and three Norfolk Southern geeps (5317-5077-5174) moved across the street, waited for the signal then took the Nickel Plate to the other end of the yard, and ultimately the team track.You ask, "what's with those Norfolk Southern geeps on an Iowa Interstate train?"
Well, Norfolk Southern abandoned its own route into Des Moines in 1992 in favor of a haulage agreement with Burlington Northern between St. Louis/Hannibal and Des Moines. A decade or so ago, BNSF made service to Des Moines much less of a priority. So for some traffic, NS has employed the Iowa Interstate as haulage agent between Des Moines and Peoria. This includes locomotives assigned to work NS customers and interchanges in the Iowa capital.
By early afternoon, PESI (Peoria IL to Silvis IL) is shown rolling by the old San Koty Station area a few miles out of Peoria. IAIS 711 and IAIS 703 have 59 cars. I hard the crew say "55 empties" so I figure four loads were scattered throughout the train. The NS coil steel load is the obvious one.
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
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
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
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