#inrd

Indiana Rail Road Passenger Special (1 of 3)

We're on the former Illinois Central line to Indianapolis, which became the heart of the fledgling Indiana Rail Road.

In the first two images we see their fall leaf special atop the Richland Creek Viaduct (or Tulip Trestle), twenty-two miles west of Bloomington, Indiana. The third picture has the train stopped in Solsberry, seven miles up the track. The E-unit began life as 36A for the Milwaukee Road while the CF7 for the Santa Fe.

Indiana Rail Road Passenger Special (3 of 3)

Concluding a three-post series: in the first image, the fall passenger special of the Indiana Rail Road has headed north out of Bloomington and is seen four miles east of town at Mt. Gilead Road.

The final two shots has the train on another high bridge, this one over Shuffle Creek near Lake Lemon—ten miles east of Bloomington.

Once again, this is the former Illinois Central line to Indianapolis, the E-unit is of Milwaukee Road heritage, and the CF7 is that of the Santa Fe Railway (obviously as that beast was an invention of that road).

Shuffle Creek Viaduct

This is a northbound train on Illinois Central’s line to Indianapolis, known as the hi-dry for its high bridges and fills. The line became the Indiana Rail Road in 1986. This location is near Lake Lemon northeast of Bloomington, Indiana.

On the Hi-Dry

This sequence of images depicts a northbound train on the Illinois Central branch to Indianapolis—nick-named the “hi-dry” 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; it’s 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.

Give a Little Chase

Here are some shots along the Illinois Central line to Indianapolis, known as the Hi-Dry. I believe the first shot is between Bloomington, Indiana, and Kirby at S. Endwright Road. The second was made just west of Elwren, right on the Greene County line.

The third photograph captured the train on the well-known Richland Creek Viaduct, while the final image has it crossing over the White River Bridge at Elliston (with Bloomfield in the background).

Triple Crossing

This image was made in Elliston, Indiana. Three railroads once crossed at this one spot—two at grade while one flew directly over the diamond…

Illinois Central’s line to Indianapolis

Monon’s so-called B&B Branch (for Bedford and Bloomfield)

Evansville, Indianapolis & Terre Haute Railroad (Big Four, NYC)

The two roads that intersected physically below, adjacent to the extant depot, are both gone while the former Illinois Central line is still very much alive as the Indiana Rail Road. I depot one sees here is adjacent to the Big Four line.

Fall Special

This is an Indiana Rail Road autumn special to allow folks to ride the train and take in the sights. I believe it departed from Indianapolis, traveled south to this spot on the former Illinois Central line.

This spot, of course, is the famous Tulip Trestle (or Solsberry Viaduct, or Richland Creek Trestle) in southern Indiana. We see a former ATSF CF7 on the southern end of the train, and an ex-MILW E-unit on the other end. After these images were taken, the push-pull set up allowed the train to reverse direction for the return trip.