Redbird in Bloomington

After the previous post, I wanted to track down an example of a GM&O SD40, which sported the nickname of "Redbird."

This one was found in Bloomington, Illinois, the town where a few of us would visit every so often in a hunt for GM&O F-units. This particular unit was built for the road in 1966.

Fifty Years Ago... A Haven for F-Units

In the mid- to late-1970s, Bloomington, Illinois was well-known as a haven for the remaining GM&O F-units.

With this during the Illinois Central Gulf years, one of them, 806A, got the orange and white treatment and renumbered to 1615. All of these units are EMD F3As built for the railroad in 1946 or 1947.

On the Chicago & Alton

I believe this is a northbound Amtrak Inter-American; the line is the Chicago & Alton/GM&O/ICG. It’s always nice to see color-position lights, this particular design endemic to the B&O and Alton.

The location is just south of Bloomington, Illinois, photographed from the I-55/I-74 overpass with Fox Creek Road in the distance.

Night into Dawn—Bloomington, Illinois

Bloomington was a haven for EMD F-units back in the mid- to late-1970s. I ventured over there from Indiana several times to shoot the "covered wagons" of the Gulf Mobile & Ohio, sometimes in the dark. The GM&O was part of the Illinois Central Gulf by that time, but engines weren't painted quickly after the merger took place in 1972, which was fabulous for railroad enthusiasts. [I believe two of the F3s did make it into the orange and white scheme of the ICG.]

We begin this little sequence of images with a view of number 810B: it's an F3 built in 1947. This unit would be upgraded to pull commuters for citizens of Boston, as MBTA 1111. [In the end, a few of these charismatic F-units went to Boston, a few others to Metro North, but I believe others were scrapped within a couple of years from the time of these photos being made.]

Despite the lure of the Fs, I was also attracted to this wonderful SD40, a so-called Redbird. This one was built in September of 1966. Lastly, number 811b is an EMD F7 built in 1949.

Haven for F-Units

In the mid- to late-1970s, Bloomington, Illinois was well-known as a haven for the remaining GM&O F-units. And with this being part of the ICG years, one of them, number 1615, got the orange and white treatment (formerly 806A). These units are all F3As built for the railroad in 1946 or 1947.

On the Chicago & Alton

I believe this is a northbound Amtrak Inter-American; the line is the Chicago & Alton/GM&O/ICG. And I’m not positive, but I think this is south of Bloomington, Illinois, photographed from the I-55/I-74 overpass with Fox Creek Road in the distance. It’s always nice to see color-position lights.