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A new series about the history of Tecumseh’s railroads
Today marks the publishing of the first part of Edward Hodges’ history of the railroad of Tecumseh. The first part is a history of the Palmyra & Jacksonburgh Railroad, the north/south line which later became the New York […]
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Conrail in Lenawee County—countdown to abandonment
Throughout 1981, the possibility that Conrail would abandon its trackage in Lenawee County was a topic for the local media. The articles were published throughout that year, and provide a look back at the thinking and ideas being mulled at […]
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The last winter of the Clinton Branch—40 years later
by Jeffrey Dobek Photos—the author, except as noted A filing with the Interstate Commerce Commission on November 16, 1981 signaled the coming end of Conrail freight service on the Clinton Branch between Lenawee Junction and Clinton, Michigan: Although press reports […]
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Lumbering out of Lenawee
Photos by Edward Hodges Grey skies portend the future of Conrail’s Clinton Branch at Lenawee Junction, Michigan on December 15, 1981. Ed Hodges was on-hand to capture the northbound departure of this short freight train. A carload of lumber for […]
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Photo day—Bidwell Street Crossing
It Is Saturday, June 6, 1987, and a southbound Southern Michigan Railroad passenger service is just crossing Bidwell Street in the city of Tecumseh, Michigan. The train is led by the SMR’s 35-ton Plymouth locomotive #57 (lettered for the long-gone […]
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Photo day—Palmyra caboose hop
On 27 June 1982, Edward Hodges caught a Conrail train returning from Lenawee Junction, Michigan to Toledo, Ohio passing the site of the former station at Palmyra, Mich. In March of 1982, Conrail had abandoned service on the Clinton Branch […]
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Photo day—Good Friday at Clinton
On Good Friday, 17 April 1981, Edward Hodges photographed Conrail’s Clinton Local switching at the Budd Company siding in Clinton, Michigan. The Local’s “regular” locomotive GP-8 #5457 manoeuvres a Penn Central boxcar on the plant siding, while the rest of […]
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Conrail twilight in the snow
In late 1981, Conrail operations on the Clinton Secondary Track (Toledo–Clinton via Lenawee Junction) were coming to an end. Trains were called on an as-needed basis, running on average about once a week. There was no schedule, and trains were […]
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Riding the CSR-1 with Dale, Walt and the rest of the guys
by Edward Hodges Photos by the author CSR stood for the Clinton Switch Run—the Conrail designation for the local freight that ran from Toledo, Ohio to Clinton, Michigan on the remaining portion of the NYC branch that used to run […]
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Splitting the switch at Riga
Following Conrail’s embargo of the Clinton Secondary Track between Lenawee Junction and Clinton, Mich. in early 1982, Conrail continued to operate a local from time to time from Toledo to Lenawee Junction to interchange with the Lenawee County Railroad. The […]