 |
31. New EMD F7
A and B units lead this train South through the Healy Yard. |
 |
32. South bound
freight out of Healy after 1952. Those tank cars are going south empty
to Whittier where Union Oil and the Military POL docks brought in fuel
for the Military. It was well into the 1970s before loaded tank cars went
south. |
 |
33. Bridge span down on the
Suntrana spur at Healy. The river undercut the pier and it tilted out from
under the bridge deck. |
 |
34.What do we do now boys?
Thats either LC 56 or 57 all alone out on the bridge. A steam crane without
its tender. Hope they had the safety meeting and have some plan of action. |
 |
35. Nice rustic timber bridge
but no idea where. |
 |
36. Water tank at Sutton
or Granite Creek down the hill from Eska and Jonesville Coal mines. That
is King Mountain in the back ground and the Matanuska River would be through
the trees to the right of this scene. For a fact I can tell you the tank
is half full. |
 |
37. Alco RSD1 #1039 on the
roundhouse turntable lead in Anchorage. The Coach shed is in the background
and the old blacksmith shop and powerhouse are to the right. |
 |
38. 4th of July parade on
4th Avenue in Anchorage in the early 50s. |
 |
39. 4th Avenue Anchorage
in February for the Fur Rondy Sled Dog Races in early 50s. |
 |
40. Alco RSD1 #1027. With
the door open you can see the confined shape of the cab on these former
GI locomotives that were built for European close clearances. You could
not stand up in the cab next to the window. Tall men spent most of their
time hanging out of the cab. |
 |
41. I'll let you describe
this locomotive as the most ........ I have ever seen. Fortunately after
the 1050 and 1051 arrived to become the original AuRoRa, someone got the
message. Subsequent class 1070 RF1 Alco conversions were quite ruggedly
hansom, in an Ernest Borgnine sort of way. |
 |
42. RF1 B unit 1053 and
an RF1 A basking next the the engine house in Anchorage. |
 |
43. Oops. About five more
guys and they can forget the big hook. No idea where. |
 |
44. To get that vantage point
the photographer was probably up on a bridge. Notice the fellow riding
between the two dump cars. My guess this is a gravel train near Nenana
and the loco is probably 0-6-0 #318. |
 |
45. Snowy day along Turnagain
Arm in early 50s. The snow slide has been cleared from the tracks by the
old cable blade cat, stored on location for that purpose. The Seward Highway
is just to the right of the view. |
 |
46. Slides are still a problem
at this location on the Arm. Someone out there can give us the mile post
from memory. |
 |
47. Presuming this was taken
from the cupola of the caboose this train would be North Bound to Anchorage
along Turnagain Arm near Kern Creek. The grade work here is probably preparation
for moving the railroad track over toward the bank to relocate the highway
to the inlet side. There is a snow shed, not a tunnel, in the distance. |
 |
48. Nearing the snow shed,
it is obvious that the slide zone was much wider that winter. The unfinished
grade work on the left would be the Seward highway under construction.
The old ice in the arm indicates late March to mid April time frame. |
 |
49. Charlie Ingersol, conductor
on the left, others unknown. |
 |
50. Charlie Ingersol is second
from right, for a complete explanation of this photo go to page 928 of
the Alaska Railroad by Bernadine Prince. |
 |
51. Unknown, depot agent
or dispatcher at work with telephone, telegraph and early radio gear. |
 |
52. 52 through 62 are all
the same wreck worthy of investigation. Here we are looking railroad South
to the siding and Section house at Willow Alaska. The pile of Allied Full
Cushion Trucks are testimony to the seriousness of this derailment. The
train of ex troop car refrigerator and box cars places this after 1948.
Take note of the object laying on the track where the siding diverges from
the main line.
Also take note of the refrigerator car 11744 and the odd
color 8 ft plug door. |
 |
53. Is he puzzled? How
did this steel girder truss section come to rest in the frog of the north
switch at Willow? Clearly the cause of half the train derailing and running
amuck among the swamps. While I have not found any reports or reference
to this derailment in my sources we must postulate there was a broken
load of trusses forward in the train and this one took flight and wedged
into the one place it could really do damage. |
 |
54. Looking North over the
devastation we see the other side of refrigerator car 11744 with a standard
4 ft wide reefer door. No one has explained exactly why they equipped so
many of them this way. One theory, it allowed loading by fork lift at dockside,
while the customer could use the car for cold storage and dispense out
of the smaller 4 ft door.
The upside down flat car (note the stake pockets) nested next to an indescribable
pile which may or may not have been its load. |
 |
55. Not a pretty picture,
but a testament to momentum. |
 |
56. Not a pretty picture,
but a testament to momentum. |
 |
57. Not a pretty picture,
but a testament to momentum. |
 |
58. Not a pretty picture,
but a testament to momentum. |
 |
59. Not a pretty picture,
but a testament to momentum. |
 |
60. Not a pretty picture,
but a testament to momentum. |
