Chesapeake & Ohio GP9 No. 6156 is about to cross the Erie Lackawanna, and Penn Central mainlines with a northbound freight in Marion in the late 1960s/early 1970s. Note that Marion Union Station still had platform sheds on the C&O side when this image was made. The C&O operated weekend-only passenger trains through here until the coming of Amtrak on May 1, 1971. Nos. 46 and 47 operated between Detroit and Ashland, Kentucky, and connected with the Cincinnati-Washington George Washington.
Baltimore & Ohio GP40-2 No. 4325 and C&O 8205 are westbound in Akron in July 1981. C&O U-Boats were not that common. Also notice the mismatched C&O on the 8205.
The wayback machine has landed us in Michigan City, Indiana on March 30, 1969. In the top image here are three Chicago, South Shore & South Bend boxcabs and a Chesapeake & Ohio cow/calf/calf set along with other interesting equipment.
In the bottom image CSS&SB 702 and some other units are sitting in the sun.
This week’s two for Tuesday takes us to Central Union Terminal in Toledo back on Nov. 29, 1968.
A Detroit-bound Chesapeake & Ohio passenger train is making its station stop in Toledo.
At the time time the only C&O varnish scheduled into Toledo was Nos. 46 and 47, which operated between Detroit and Ashland, Kentucky, and were a section of the George Washington.
These trains also stopped in Columbus, Marion and Fostoria, and carried through coaches between Detroit and Washington.
One of the coaches was a food bar coach that operated between Detroit and Ashland serving light meals and beverages.
The presence of a Union Pacific sleeper on the rear of the train is something of a mystery.
Nos. 46 and 47 were not assigned sleeping cars in late 1968.
The car shown is one of the Star series of UP sleepers. These cars were built in 1956 by Pullman Standard as City series sleeper-lounge cars with five double bedrooms and a buffet lounge.
Seven of those cars were converted in 1965 into the Star series with 11 double bedrooms. All seven of these cars were leased to Seaboard Coast Line in late 1970 and eventually ended up on Amtrak’s roster.
It may be that this car would later pass through Toledo on the Lake Shore Limited.
As for this car in 1968, it may have been on the C&O as a special move or a chartered car.
A footnote to this story is that the photographer and two friends were making their first overnight journey together.
They had planned to stay for the night in Toledo but instead would up in London, Ontario.
We’re standing where the Chesapeake & Ohio passenger platform used to be at Marion Union Station. The date is Aug. 12, 1978.
Today is special because the Chessie Steam Special will be in town, albeit briefly.
Reading 4-8-4 No. 2102 with its colorful Chessie livery will be coming up from Columbus en route to Cleveland on a ferry move.
It’s the second season of the Chessie Steam Special and it will be the last.
The T-1 and its train had actually been through Marion earlier this month on these rails. On July 31, 1978, it passed through on a ferry move from Detroit to Columbus.
It pulled a series of trips out of Columbus including to Ashland and Toledo.
Now it’s time to head for Cleveland where it will operate two roundtrip excursions to Willard before moving on to Pittsburgh.
The purpose of the Chessie Steam Special had been to celebrate an anniversary of the Baltimore & Ohio.
That played out over two seasons then steam had an encore in 1980-1981 with the Chessie Safety Express tour.
Today CSX — the “C” in the carrier’s name is for Chessie — is adamantly opposed to hosting steam excursions.
In late July 1987, I met up with the Surdyk family (William, Marty, Robert and John) in Parma Heights on the first step of a Rails to Roanoke trip for the 1987 National Railway Historical Society convention.
It would be a week long adventure. Our first stop was Cass, West Virginia, to ride and photograph the Cass Scenic Railroad.
We then spent the next two days photographing the Chesapeake & Ohio mainline in West Virginia and Virginia while working our way to the Shenandoah line to catch the inbound convention trip from Alexandria, Virginia, to Roanoke.
We met up with it at Delaplane, Virginia, and were able to photograph it at least 12 locations. We rode the Thursday July 30 trip behind Norfolk & Western Class A No. 1218 from Roanoke to Bluefield, West Virginia.
N&W Class J No. 611 would power our return to Roanoke. We did some photography east of Roanoke prior to the equipment display on July 31, which will start the second part of this series.
Article and Photographs by Edward Ribinskas
Amtrak’s Cardinal at Fort Spring, West Virginia, on July 26, 1987.
Big Bend Tunnel in West Virginia , on the C&O on July 27, 1987.
At Alleghany Tunnel in West Virginia on July 27, 1987. The locomotive engineer doing a roll by inspection is wearing a Chief Wahoo hat.
Southern FP7s on the Shenandoah line on July 29, 1987.
Sometimes a photograph shows more than originally thought.
All I wanted was a roster photo of Chesapeake & Ohio SD40 No. 7526, but in 2020, this shows how much we have lost.
We no longer have Chessie System, C&O, the Akron, Canton & Youngstown hopper), the Erie Lackawanna’s McCoy Street yard and yard office behind the locomotive, some or all of the buildings behind the yard, and all but two CSX mainline tracks.
No. 7426, which was built in July 1970 is eastbound in Akron in early 1974. It would later go to work for the Utah Railway.
Trailing is Baltimore & Ohio GP40 No. 4020, which was built in September 1971.
A Kentucky city is seeking to sell a former Chesapeake & Ohio passenger and freight station that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Mt. Sterling said it is seeking sealed bids to buy the depot, which is located on Railroad Street.
The buyer must buy the building and adjacent property, which is less than a third of an acre.
The winner bid will be “conditionally accepted” and the bidder will have six months to submit a proposal for refurbishment of the depot to the city.
Final acceptance will only become effective once the city approves the renovation plan.
More information is available by calling the city at 859-498-8725. Bids are due by Oct. 15.
Mt. Sterling is located on the former C&O Lexington Subdivision, which was abandoned in the mid 1980s.
The station was built in 1910 and active through the 1970s. It was listed on the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places in 1991.
The short line hold company purchased the 33-mile line, which North Judson had owned for 17 years.
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