Lansing's Old Town railroad spur to be reactivated

[PAT.C]

JT IS JUST AS OBNOXIOUS IN PERSON AS HE IS HERE.

WELCOME TO THE BOARD MP73POINT4.

AND IF I OFFENDED JT---SO WHAT !!!!!!!!!!!!

HE'LL GET EVEN AT JOE'S GIZZARD CITY.

[GrandTrunkFan]

Almost as interesting to me as the wig wag, are these signals on Washington, just up the tracks from the machinery place:
http://www.rxrsignals.net/Michigan/Lansing/Washington/

Whats the story about these? Ive never seen any like them either. Lansing has/had unique crossing signals in the past eh?

[J T]

JT IS JUST AS OBNOXIOUS IN PERSON AS HE IS HERE.

WELCOME TO THE BOARD MP73POINT4.

AND IF I OFFENDED JT---SO WHAT !!!!!!!!!!!!

HE'LL GET EVEN AT JOE'S GIZZARD CITY.

You keep it down there, Mr, or else I'll throw some gizzards at you!

Almost as interesting to me as the wig wag, are these signals on Washington, just up the tracks from the machinery place:
http://www.rxrsignals.net/Michigan/Lansing/Washington/

Whats the story about these? Ive never seen any like them either. Lansing has/had unique crossing signals in the past eh?

Aren't there some old crossing signals like these in Watervliet (or maybe it's Coloma I'm thinking of)?

[A No.1]

Kalamazoo Has some signals like that also. On Kilgore I think.

[Ben Higdon]

I don't believe there are any crossing signals that primitive looking in the Kalamazoo area. Nice find!

As I recall the CK&S crossing of Patterson St in Kalamazoo has some rustic looking cantilevers, but not that rustic.

[Larry G]

In this thread about the reactivation of the spur the topic concerning the industrial sidings along Pennsylvania Ave and the connection to the NYC through the Board of Water and Light property has come up here are two scans to 1917 track maps that show information discussed in this thread.



GTW ROW MAP circa 1917 near MP 222
This map circa 1917 shows the Lansing connecting railroad industrial area just north of Potter Park at Pennsylvania Ave in Lansing. The connection was made in 1921 to GTW according to map. This was a connection between the PM and GTW for many years and was switched into the 1960's until land use removed the industries needing service.
Also to the west you will notice the MC-NYC-Conrail connection and diamond with GTW.


GTW ROW Map circa 1917 near MP221
In the section you see the MC-NYC-Conral crossing west to the GTW Depot Area in Lansing.
Also showing is the REO MOTOR WORKS the LS&MS crossing running north into Lansing. Today the LS&MS tracks are removed north the CN-exGTW ROW.
Several sidings served a freight house north of the depot in Lansing and GTW kept a switcher on stand by here into the 1960's before the Snow Road Yard opened.

[J T]

Wow, there sure were a lot of spurs off the connector between Hazel St. and the junction with the GT!

[Tim]

Larry,
This Lansing Connecting RR has been a bit of a mystery to me for a number of years. Meints in his Michigan Railroads & RR Companies gives an incorporation date of 1/24/1914 for a .75 mile GT to PM line but says the charter was allowed to lapse. This line was used by the GT and PM to interchange traffic until the interchange track was built at Trowbridge sometime in the early to mid 50s. This map with its connection constructed date of 10/1921 will give me a very good starting point in establishing when this line was built and by whom. I know the GTW was still switching the Board of Water & Light as late as 3/88 and I think it lasted until around 92 or 93. This line didn't connect, as far as I know, with the MC as it ran a half block east of them until it reached the PM at the Michigan Refrigerator Warehouse. Why do you think this is a ca 1917 map if it has the 10/21 notation on it?

[Larry G]

Larry,
Why do you think this is a ca 1917 map if it has the 10/21 notation on it?

Tim,
I have a copy of the complete map for this section and it is dated June 30, 1917
Station 11404+80 to Station 11616+00 Scale I inch 400 ft.
Office of the Chief Engineer Montreal, Canada
It is also stamped Mar 9, 1953 Land&Tax Depts GTW
Detroit, MI

I assume the orignal map was drawn in 1917 and additions were added as they came up, such as the connection.

You are right about it not connecting to the MC..It appears the PM shot down from the North and connected to it about a half a block east of the MC above Main Stree. This is a huge map and I could not fit only a portion in my scanner...The is a blueprint sized map and my scanner can only do a little of it at a time.

The Trowbridge area is really interesting too. It shows proposed conection with run around track and sidings running south from the GTW to connect with the C&O that were obviously added after 1917 since PM is now C&O. I doubt they were ever put in. It also shows the spur coming off the PM that went into Michigan State College by the football stadium. Also all the easements for utilities are marked and named.

[PAT.C]

HEY LARRY G, YOU SHOULD BRING THAT BIG MAP TO A LOCATION IN THE LANSING AREA AND ALL THE LANSING FANS SHOULD HAVE A LANSING RRFAN HISTORY MEET.
THERE ARE A LOT OF PLACES WHERE WE COULD PLAN A LUNCH/ DINNER MEET.
I KNOW THERE MUST BE A FEW OF US BASED ON THE POSTS IN THIS THREAD AND THE JAIL THREAD.

WHAT DO YOU GUYS THINK ABOUT THAT ???

PS/ JT WOULD PROBABLY SHOW UP AND HE IS ACTUALLY TOLERABLE IN PERSON.

[J T]

Great idea, Pat. I'd love to be able to discuss this stuff in person. I have tons of questions, and it sounds like Larry might be able to answer a few.

[Larry G]

Would be glad to share the map and what limited knowledge I have with you.

Most of it is from just living in the area for years of my youth. The map is limited from Farm Lane to Washington Ave on the GTW ROW. It does not have much on the MC or LS&MS. My two scans pretty much cover that. I can scan the Trowbridge area if anyone is interested in that area.

Need to set up a time when the weather for driving is certain so perhaps in the spring.

[J T]

Would be glad to share the map and what limited knowledge I have with you.

Most of it is from just living in the area for years of my youth. The map is limited from Farm Lane to Washington Ave on the GTW ROW. It does not have much on the MC or LS&MS. My two scans pretty much cover that. I can scan the Trowbridge area if anyone is interested in that area.

Need to set up a time when the weather for driving is certain so perhaps in the spring.

Larry, do you like fried gizzards?

[Larry G]

[.

Larry, do you like fried gizzards?


Never had any......

[Larry G]

Circa 1898

NYCS(MC) MI Lansing-05
05/1971 - Lansing, MI - North Lansing Depot Thanks cagceg1!!!!

Two photos at the same location over 70 some years. Does anyone have a date the North Lansing depot was razed?

[intocable83]

Is that little brown addition shown on the very right in the last picture of the old North Lansing Depot the same structure that is still standing in that location? Thought I remember seeing a building that size there last time I was in the area, just different color.

[Ben Higdon]

Is that little brown addition shown on the very right in the last picture of the old North Lansing Depot the same structure that is still standing in that location? Thought I remember seeing a building that size there last time I was in the area, just different color.

Sure looks like it:

[mikekmac]

Here are some pic I took at Reid last summer... Same fr8, different position.


http://picasaweb.google.com/postmartini ... directlink

Nice photos. Interestingly, in the aerial photography at Google Maps, CNUR 511 is clearly sitting on the plant spur just outside the fence, whereas you found it on the main almost in the woods. I wonder what they move(d) it with.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Reid+Machinery,+lansing+MI&aq=&sll=42.722257,-84.427474&sspn=0.149063,0.41851&ie=UTF8&hq=Reid+Machinery,&hnear=Lansing,+Ingham,+Michigan&ll=42.702932,-84.570627&spn=0.001165,0.00327&t=h&z=19

[Tim]

Doesn't take much to move a rail car on level track. I remember them moving box cars inside Fisher Body in Lansing by pushing it with half a dozen guys. Reid most likely used a finger truck or a highway truck to do the job.

[JDavis21835]

Doesn't take much to move a rail car on level track. I remember them moving box cars inside Fisher Body in Lansing by pushing it with half a dozen guys. Reid most likely used a finger truck or a highway truck to do the job.

Funny, when I worked at Fisher Body in Lansing, I used a loader to push gondolas. Usually 10 at a time though.



The real trouble was at the end when there was no cover left over the rails, and we would get rain followed by a cold snap. Things didnt drain so well, and the cars would freeze in place.