This sequence of images depicts a northbound train on the Illinois Central branch to Indianapolisānick-named the āhi-dryā for its high bridges and fills. It was completed in 1906 and so is a rather modern railroad, relatively speaking. The line became the heart of the Indiana Rail Road in 1986.
The train has departed Bloomington, Indiana, and can be seen in three spots, the first being at Mt. Gilead Road, east of town by four miles or so. The second shot was taken from the State Road 45 overpass, which has since been replaced with an at-grade crossing. And the final shot has the train emerging from the Unionville Tunnel, north portal, which is not a particularly long bore.
The lead locomotive is an EMD GP40 that was built for the Illinois Central in January of 1966; itās still wearing the older, all-black paint scheme rather than the distinctive orange and white that was adopted by the railroad in 1967. The second engine is a GP35 from the Gulf, Mobile & Ohio, which had merged with the Illinois Central in 1972 to form the Illinois Central Gulf.
Three images by Richard Koenig; taken February 21st 1977.