Railroads of Topeka Railroad Narrative #1 by Andy Fletcher

Through the years, Topeka has been served by many railroads. Enjoy my Railroads of Topeka Railroad Narrative about Santa Fe, Missouri Pacific and Rock Island. https://youtu.be/g4DWMbFwrkA?si=keoKzxRx9SGCkJiX

 

Missouri Pacific Locomotives at Kansas City

These Missouri Pacific locomotives move trains at Kansas City.  The GP38-2 leads a manifest train to St. Louis.

See my Missouri Pacific artwork at customtrains.org

 

Missouri Pacific Locomotives Move Trains At St. Louis

These Missouri Pacific locomotives move trains at St. Louis.  The GP35 leads a local train while several of the SD40-2s lead a manifest train to Kansas City.  At the yard office, coffee is on for the crews to warm up this chilly fall morning.

See my Missouri Pacific artwork at customtrains.org

 

A Missouri Pacific Train Heads From Pueblo to St. Louis

This Missouri Pacific train heads to St. Louis with carloads for interchange with the Penn Central.  Today's train has Rio Grande carloads from Pueblo.  

See my Missouri Pacific artwork at http://www.customtrains.org

A New York Central Freight Train Heads From St. Louis to Albany

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This New York Central freight train heads to Albany with carloads interchanged from Missouri Pacific and Gulf Mobile and Ohio at St. Louis. 

See my New York Central artwork at http://www.customtrains.org ‬

Missouri Pacific Locomotives at St. Louis

These Missouri Pacific locomotives prepare to move their trains at St. Louis.  Missouri Pacific was known as the "Route of the Eagles."

See my Missouri Pacific artwork at http://www.customtrains.org/missouri-pacific.html

A New York Central Train Heads to Buffalo From St. Louis

‪This New York Central Train heads to Buffalo with carloads of traffic interchanged from the Missouri Pacific and Gulf Mobile and Ohio at St. Louis. 

See my New York Central artwork at http://www.customtrains.org‬

Missouri Pacific Screaming Eagles Poster by Andy Fletcher

Missouri Pacific connected the Midwest with the Rocky Mountain States and the Gulf Coast.  Missouri Pacific was known as the "Route of the Eagles."

See my Missouri Pacific artwork at http://www.customtrains.org/missouri-pacific.html

A New York Central Freight Train Heads From St. Louis to Buffalo

This New York Central train heads from St. Louis to Buffalo.  It carries carloads interchanged from the Gulf Mobile and Ohio and Missouri Pacific.

See my New York Central artwork at http://www.customtrains.org/new-york-central.html

Chicago and Eastern Illinois Locomotives Poster by Andy Fletcher

Chicago and Eastern Illinois provided a key connection between Chicago, St Louis and Evansville, Indiana. Its important right-of-way became part of Missouri Pacific and Louisville and Nashville.

To see my Chicago and Eastern Illinois artwork, visit my website, customtrains.org

Railroad Celebration of 4th of July Engines: Bicentennial Locomotives #2

Many of our nation's railroads painted locomotives to celebrate our Bicentennial in 1976. My railroad celebration of 4th of July engines continues with locomotives painted for Missouri Pacific, Milwaukee Road, Conrail, Elgin Joliet and Eastern and Western Pacific. Have a Happy Fourth of July

To see my locomotive drawings and posters, visit my website customtrains.org

A Louisville & Nashville Train Heads to Cincinnati From Memphis

This Louisville and Nashville train heads from Memphis to Cincinnati.  Today's train has interchange traffic from Missouri Pacific and Frisco.  Louisville and Nashville is part of today's +CSX 

To see my Louisville and Nashville 11"x17" poster, visit my website customtrains.org and/or my eBay store

A Missouri Pacific Freight Train Heads to Kansas City and Points West

This Missouri Pacific freight train heads from St. Louis to Kansas City and points West.  Today's train carries fast freight from interchange with the Penn Central.  Many cars on today's train are destined for interchange with the Rio Grande at Pueblo.

To see my Missouri Pacific 11"x17" posters, visit my website customtrains.org and/or my eBay store

Happy 157th Birthday to the State of Kansas

Happy 157th Birthday to the State of Kansas.  Railroads helped build Kansas and keep her growing and strong today.

To see my Railroad of Kansas 11"x17" poster, visit my website customtrains.org and/or my eBay store

Missouri Pacific Trains at Kansas City

Kansas City was a hub of activity on the Missouri Pacific.  Today, we see a westbound train ready to depart for Pueblo, Colorado and an eastbound train headed for St. Louis.  An MP15 switch engine works the yard building several outbound trains.

To see my Missouri Pacific 11"x17" poster, visit my website customtrains.org and/or my eBay store

Railroads of Omaha

As a railroad town, Omaha's legacy will always be firmly planted as the home of Union Pacific.   Historically, Omaha and neighboring Council Bluffs, Iowa, have served as a crossroads of railroad traffic as it crosses America.

Railroads such as Union Pacific, Missouri Pacific, Chicago Burlington and Quincy, Rock Island, Chicago and North Western, Chicago Great Western and Milwaukee Road once served these cities.  

Today Omaha and Council Bluffs are served by Union Pacific, BNSF, ASLRRA member railroad Iowa Interstate and Amtrak.

To see my Railroads of Omaha 11"x17" signed poster, visit my website customtrains.org and/or my eBay store

Seeing My First Missouri Pacific Engine in Sacramento, California.

When I was growing up, my hometown of Davis, California was home rails to Southern Pacific.  Although I credit seeing Southern Pacific's daily trains to much of my appreciation for railroading, I often liked to venture to Sacramento to see the trains of rival Union Pacific.
The early 1980's were a sea of Union Pacific SD40-2s with the occasional C30-7.  SD60's and Dash-8's were just beginning to arrive.
One day, as a double-stack train raced through Del Paso Heights, to my excitement I saw a recently acquired Missouri Pacific SD40-2.  I watched as the blue locomotive headed east under the I-80 overpass and out of sight.  That was the first I saw of Missouri Pacific as a California railroad enthusiast. 

A Tribute To Great Railroaders 2-Russell Tedder-Former Chairman of ASLRRA

 

The other day, I drew Ashley Drew & Northern GP28 Number 1812.  This drawing is a gift for former American Short Line and Regional Railroad Chairman Russell Tedder.

Russell Tedder was kind enough to share with me his life’s history with the Ashley Drew & Northern.

Here is Russell’s story with Ashley Drew & Northern as told to me by Mr. Tedder himself.

 “I had my hand on the throttle ( figuratively) of the AD&N for 20 years. When I arrived in '76 we had one SW1500, three SWs of different models at 1200 HP and one SW900. The 1500 and one 1200 were the consist of the daily local from Crossett to Monticello and return, 41 miles. Soon GP announced expansion that doubled carloads of paper products. After toying with swapping two 1200s for two Alco C420s, better judgment prevailed in the form of two Paducah GP10s. By 1978 tonnage had increased and the two GP10s or one GP10 and SW1500 handled the local. Later I arranged for two GP28s, one for AD&N and one for Fordyce & Princeton, still later about 1986 two more GP28s replaced the 1200s, also two CF7s, It was a Noah's Ark roster, two of each kind.

After the Rock Island went down in 1980 nearly all traffic went to MP at Monticello with trains of 80 to 95 cars each way, on roller coaster grades, handled by a pair of GP28s. At this time the AD&N hauled 70 boxcar loads of paper, plywood and lumber per day, more cars than unloaded in the entire state of Arkansas. The GP28s and CF7s were all wonderful shortline engines. Like the proverbial bunny powered rabbit, they just keep "goin' and goin'." Sadly, by 1996 changing events made the AD&N obsolete in favor of the level Arkansas Louisiana & Mississippi between Crossett and Monroe, LA, which inherited the fleet.”

Thank you, Russell Tedder, for sharing your story with the Ashley Drew & Northern.

The Milwaukee Road and Its Pacific Extension-A Fulfilled Prophecy

I have always had a fascination with the Milwaukee Road and its extension to the Pacific Northwest.  Although this westward extension across Minnesota, South Dakota, Montana, Idaho and Washington never became the robust source of traffic that headquarters had hoped, to me, the extension westward was a fulfilled prophecy of reaching the Pacific.
Many railroads in that day had expansive names of cities and regions of America that they never quite reached.  Very successful railroads such as the St. Louis and San Francisco did not venture past the lower Midwest.  Even the Missouri Pacific and the Chicago Rock Island and Pacific only made it as far as west as Denver.
Thus, I admire the Milwaukee Road for its extension to the Pacific.  In the words of William Clark, "Ocean in view, O the Joy."

Andy Fletcher's 11"x17" Posters That Are Available for Railroad Museums and Railroad Historical Societies

Here are six examples of 11”x17” posters whose printable 300dpi jpeg is available for free to railroad historical societies, museums and non-profit restoration railroad projects. If you have stayed at the St.Louis Union Station DoubleTree Hotel in the past two years you may have seen the 24”x36” version of one of these posters in your room. I am offering to donate the permission to print, my existing 11"x17" posters that can be used by your railroad museum, restoration project, or historical society for the purpose of fund raising and will provide a written permission to print the copyrighted poster of my railroad artwork. For more information about permission to print or other questions please leave a comment on this post. This offer is available only to non-profit railroad organizations. These six posters and nearly 100 others of my existing 11”x17” railroad posters, celebrating railroads of the past, are available at this time.

Here is the text of my video message from today 2/4/16:

Nothing brings me greater joy than seeing the railroad community active in the study and restoration of historic railroads and railroad equipment. Some of my first love of trains came from visiting the Sacramento Railroad Museum with my father and brother. As we walked through the displays, one Saturday a month, my fascination with railroad history took root.

Through restoration projects and railroad museums, I truly see a great expression of the joy of railroading. I see volunteers working side by side to keep equipment in tip top shape. I see projects undertaken so a next generation can learn about the railroads that built our nation.
In an era when we encourage ourselves to exercise and to get out and learn, perhaps there is no better place to do this than walking around in the safe and secure environment of a railroad museum. We learn about the contributions of our forefathers and, from that, take a step forward ourselves.
Sadly, I, like many of us, see that most museums and restoration projects have a great need for funding. They need to protect the equipment they have maintained. They have insurance costs. And the process of restoration of both equipment and museum grounds is expensive.
As a small token of my appreciation for our railroad museums and to all who restore railroad equipment, I would like to donate the permission to print at no cost one of my existing 11"x17" posters that can be used by your railroad museum, restoration project, or historical society for the purpose of fund raising. Thank you for all you do on behalf of railroad history.

Here is the link to my website where you can view most of the available 11”x17” railroad posters: https://sites.google.com/site/andyfletcherartist/home