Out in the country in Eastern Ohio, in the hills and there it is, the coal mine I have been looking for.
Norfolk Southern Railroad has a rail head out here in country of Ohio. It comes from the Ohio River and ends here to pick up the coal from two coal mines (one clings to the hill side on right).




Ex-Conrail SD-40-2, NS#3331 waits for the hoppers to fill up. This is the front end of the long line of cars. I got there in time to see the last two cars filled.








NS #3377, still in its Conrail paint is attached to the end of the long train. As I stood to take its photo, I heard it rev up and slowly push cars "forward" under the loader.










Then the operator in the cab (look to the right of the sign) loads the coal into the car. There is a chute that fits right down over the car.










The last photo shows the mine sitting on that steep Ohio hillside.

Barnesville, a small town in the hills of eastern Ohio.
On my way to visit my parents, I stopped a took some photos of the old B&O station. Once upon a time this line came from Wheeling and went on to Cambridge, Zanesville, Newark and Columbus.
When I was in high school, the band came to play in the pumpkin festival and I remember walking up the street to look at the station. At that time, the tracks were still there, there was a siding and I suppose a train came through once in a while. Sometime between then and the 1990's the tracks came up. The station is a registered National Historic Structure (1985).
What is ironic is that just a few short miles away NS has a spur to two mines that are active.

Here is another view of the station. In the background you can see the tunnel used to pass the trains under downtown Barnesville. Today it is a nice graveled walkway.
Someday I'd like to return and walk the path for awhile. But not today, it is too cold!





Here is a closeup of the tunnel and the warning device just before it. If you are riding on top of a car, it warned you that you'd better duck! Quick get down!
I wonder if that also let the engineer know if a car was too tall for the tunnel? I don't know how he would know. Was there some kind of signal?
Well, I was out of time so it was time to leave. I is good to know that this part of Ohio's past has been preserved.

The sign tells all. An afternoon photo trip to Parkersburg to visit what is left of the B&O.
The day before the temperature was 80 and the skies clear, today it is 40 and cloudy! What a change!
This photograph was taken from Belpre, Ohio as I waited to cross the RT. 50 bridge to Parkersburg. (Click on the photos for larger views.)


These two views are taken where the station once stood. When I was just a little boy, I stood here with my parents waiting for the B&O to come from Clarksburg bringing my grandmother for a visit. I was so excited to see the huge train come. I guess that is where I became enthralled with railroads.
The first shot looks back towards the Ohio River and the second toward Clarksburg. My oh my, how time has changed things.


I remember the engine rolling in, the steam swirling around me, the bell ringing, the baggage cart rolling up. Of course, when you can go anywhere, anytime by car, why take a train? Even with the cost of gasoline, I could drive for less to Texas, than take Amtrak-and get there sooner. It isn't hard to figure out why passenger trains no longer come to Parkersburg. Economics.




Here is a view of the high yard. Many industrial sidings were along where. In another post I will illustrate some of these sidings.
Today, the line is severed just a short distance east and trains no longer come from Clarksburg; well they do, but by a round-about-way. There still are several cars sitting in the yard as illustrated by the next photograph.



Here is another view of the high yard. The track in the foreground is the connection between the low yard down by the river, and the high yard.







Here is the yard engine coming from the low yard, I guess it is the end of the day for this crew (it was around 5pm). In fact they did drive up to the high yard and dismount their engine just a few minutes later.






Here are some views of the massive bridge across the Ohio River. This bridge was finished in 1871 and was for a time the world's longest bridge. Railroads obviously built things to last, but did they know it would last for 126 years?



















Here is a mixed freight rolling into the low yard in the late afternoon. It stopped and with the help of some ground crew, began switching moves. I was running out of time and couldn't get a good angle for anymore photographs of the moves. Video would have been better anyway.


Some comments about the photographs. I took a lot of photos this week. One day the sun was too bright and today there wasn't enough. Cloudy days a best for outdoor shots, but not a heavy overcast-the day is just too grey!

Russell, Kentucky!







It's spring break and so off to Russell to take in the sights, railroad sights of course.
Photo #1 is at the station at Russell. The display of the C&O caboose is very nice. Be sure to take the time to look at the bricks in the sidewalk.




Photos #2 shows Russell Tower. The tower is now owned by the city and a sign announces that it being converted to a museum.
Behind me is the former station.







Photo #3 shows the remote control unit switching a freight in the yard. Engine number 1021 is an ex-B&O SWMT slug and is followed by GP39, number 4283. At first I didn't notice the box in the operator's hand (standing on the front of the slug). After waving to him, I started to wave to the "operator" in the cab and noticed that there wasn't anyone there! That's when I figured it out. This is the first remote controlled unit I have seen. I have read of them and also the controversy about their use. Now, it seems they are used (I saw another one later in the day).

Photos #4 show the next entry on the hit parade. A unit train hauling LPG tank cars. Not a job I would want to do, but this guy is hauling them! Hauling the cars are numbers 6488, a GP 40-2, followed by RDMT, number 2254.





Here they go, slowly into the yard.







The last photos from Russell is of GP 38-2, 2507 and SWMT 1040 passing by and finally a shot of Russell Tower.
My day in Russell went well. Met a couple of track workers. One had started on the C&O in 1969! Wow! Almost forty years! I find that common in reading and talking with workers on the railroad. Many work 40-50 years on the railroad. Again, check out those bricks by the caboose.