A post relating to history
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Steam railroading with George Camp—Part 1
by George W. Camp George W. Camp (1905-1998) was a member of the Southern Michigan Railroad Society in the mid-1980s, and submitted three articles for publication in the SMRS newsetter, The Cross Tracks, based on his experience of working […]
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SMRS Fall Color Tours (1986)—addendum
In follow-up to the post SMRS Fall Color Tours (1986), I located two more photographs from the 1986 Tours: And even more interesting, a photo from the original 1985 Color Tours showed up! In this year, most dates were rained out, […]
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First run for the SMRS
The last Conrail train over the Clinton Branch operated from Clinton to Lenawee Junction in March 1982. After this, the disused line quickly became overgrown with weeds and brush. The Southern Michigan Railroad Society had been formed in 1982 to try […]
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SMRS gets some A5s
In the mid 1980s, the Norfolk and Western Railway was in the process of retiring its track motor cars (speeders) from service. The cars were being replaced by hi-rail trucks, and the retired cars were sent to the N&W yard […]
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SMRS Fall Color Tours (1986)
The Southern Michigan Railroad started scheduled services over the north part of its line between Tecumseh and Clinton in the summer of 1985. Following the end of the summer season in that year, the Society planned to use the more […]
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Photo day—at Tecumseh Junction
A photo from the archives for today. The author’s Fairmont M19-F-2 motor car, built for the Norfolk & Western Railway and delivered to Crewe, Virginia in 1950, passes the depot at Tecumseh Junction on 26 May 1986, running on […]
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Photo day—motor cars at Clinton
In 1984 and 1985, the Norfolk Southern Railway was retiring their remaining motor cars from service. Retired cars were taken to the NS yard at Bellevue, OH, from where they were sold off in batches. There was much anticipation as […]
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A new trailer car for the SMRS
In the summer of 1988, the Southern Michigan Railroad Society was experiencing its highest-ever ridership levels. The motor car train in service was often full, and there was a need for more equipment—fast. We had several former-N&W “gang” motor cars […]
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Promoting the SMRS—early efforts
The Southern Michigan Railroad Society was formed in 1982, with the purpose of acquiring Conrail’s Clinton Secondary Track from Lenawee Junction to Clinton, Michigan for use as a museum railroad. The track would come later; initially the SMRS needed to […]
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Lettering the IHRC 365
I started working for the Indiana Hi-Rail Corporation on October 1, 1989. I was hired to manage the agency office at Defiance, Ohio, but due to a delay in the transfer of the line from Norfolk Southern to IHRC, I […]