The Ronald J. Delhaye Collection

We've been loaned the Ronald J. Delhaye collection of traction photographs by his son Jeff. These are photos never seen before, and they cover many subjects including CA&E, North Shore, CSL and CRT, Milwaukee, and even Mexico City. They are all 3x5 snapshots of varying quality; I've scanned them at 300 dpi. I occasionally use the MS Photo Editor autobalance.

Notice: These photographs are copyrighted and may not be reproduced without permission.

North Chicago

(L) Here's CRT 1268 on July 24, 1955; evidently newly arrived at the foundry. Behind it are the 65 and 354.

(R) North Shore 607 and 354. Was the 607 ever part of the collection?

IERM had two ComEd electric cranes; these were both scrapped in 1964 to help pay for the move to Union, along with steeple cab locomotive #5, identical to our #4.

Chicago Aurora & Elgin

Most if not all of these pictures seem to have been taken on the CERA fan trip of July 4, 1956.

(L) Box motor #7, the tool car, on its siding at Wheaton

(R) Box motor #9

(L) The line car, #11, sits in front of the tin barn. It's now at South Elgin.

(R) Car 16 on the deadline at the west end of the orchard.







(L) Car 36 was preserved by Gerry Brookins and is now at IRM. From left to right: 406, 459, 36, 311, 313.

(R) Car 56 at the Batavia terminal.

(L) 209 was built as the parlor car Carolyn and converted to a coach in 1924. It was the last car to be repainted in the "Early American" paint scheme -- notice how they just painted around the road name on the letter board.

(R) Car 300 along the Fox River at Batavia.

(L) Car 310.

(R) 315, now at Rockhill, Pa.








(L) 320, now completely rebuilt at Mt. Pleasant, Ia.

(R) 415 inside the shop building.

At Wheaton: (L) Car 401 and another passing the dispatcher's towers.

(R) Car 425 on the west ladder.

(L) Caboose 1001, acquired second-hand in 1928. Note the third-rail shoe for lights in the car.

(R) GE locomotives 2001 and 2002 on the ready track.

(L) Locomotives 4006 and 2001 at Wheaton.
(R) 4005-4006 pulling a (typically short) freight train at Lakewood. Beyond is the fan trip train, and the bus to St. Charles is front of the station. Hey you, get out of my picture!!!

(L) The crossing watchman's shanty between 8th and 9th in Maywood.

(R) The east side of the main shops building in Wheaton

Views of the fan trip train, using cars 300 and 318.
(L) At State Rd. on the Batavia branch

(R) At the EJ&E overpass east of Batavia Jct., meeting an eastbound express.





(L) At the Batavia terminal

(R) A different extra train at Glen Oak, with steel cars.

Chicago Surface Lines

There are several good CSL photos in the collection. Caption data are taken from Alan Lind's book.

(L) Several pictures of PCCs from near the end of service in the late 50's. This is #4164.

(R) 4174 at the turnaround loop on Clark across from Devon Carbarn.







(L) 7183

(R) 7258. The motorman in this picture is not identified. I'd like to think it could be Ray Zelinsky. Why not?






(L) PCC 7143 beside the storage yard.

(R) Salt car AA-26. What are those devices mounted beneath the cars at each end?






(L) S-308 was originally a wooden L car, Met #2717, rebuilt to steel; by this time it was used in snow plow service.

(R) X-3, much like our X-4.

(L) AA-77 was a salt car, originally #1478, a CUT streetcar like our #1467.

(R) AA-27 was "Matchbox" #1142. Our #1374 looked just like this in its salt car days.






(L) D-4, a 1908 McGuire- Cummins sprinkler converted to a snow plow.

(R) F-30, a 1930 CSL-made snow plow. This looks exactly like our F-305, built at the same time.

Chicago North Shore & Milwaukee

Unfortunately, most of the North Shore photographs are very dark. I may try to correct some of them later. If anyone remembers the days when cameras required film, that was the way it went. Results were often unpredictable....

(L) Car 190 in the fan trip train at North Chicago Junction, July 24, 1955. This was the last day of service on the Shore Line route.

(R) The fan trip train at Highland Park, same day.

(L) MD car 215 at Highwood, July 24, 1955.

(R) 251 at Milwaukee.









(L) 454 at Highwood.

(R) Line car 604 at Highwood.










(L) Line car 606 at Highwood. This car, or what's left of it, is still at Noblesville.

(R) Weed sprayer 1265.

Commonwealth Edison #6
(North Shore #450)

This is ComEd #6, originally CNS&M #450, built by GE in 1907. It was sold by the North Shore to ComEd in 1948 and went to scrap in 1959. It is one of the earlier arch-window types. In their later years on the North Shore, 450 and 451 (identical units) had a big CP-style air compressor mounted under the cab (that's the round thing that looks like an air tank) and an equipment box just to the right of the cab, with a pig tank mounted over it. Location is the Com Ed generating station at Addison and California.

Mexico City

(L) Car 242.

(R) Peter Witt 565.










(L) PCC 2257.

(R) PCC 24??

Milwaukee

Locations for these pictures have been supplied by John Giove of the Milwaukee Transit Archives & Museum, Inc. in West Allis and by Charles Kronenwetter of New Berlin (except for pencilled markings on the back, in bold.) Thanks!!

Car 801 was used for training at the Fond du Lac car station. This car had two poles, trolley-bus style, because the station trackage had somehow lost its ground return, they say. This strikes me as a very complicated solution to a simple problem, but I suppose it must true.





(L) 861 turning from WB Wells Street to SB PROW

(R) 882 as the employee shuttle car, parked in front of the Lakeside Power Plant in St. Francis, WI.

(L) Car 861, Route 10 on p.r.o.w. SB between Wells St. and Wisconsin Av.

(R) Car 954. This must have been the fan trip vehicle. Rt. 10 exiting Wells St. Viaduct EB at about 38th St.






(L) Car 954 again, Rt. 10 WB on W. Wells St. (at about 4th or 5th St.?)

(R) Rt. 10 WB on W. Wells St. at about 7th St.

(L) Car 961; Rt. 10 turning from W. Wells St. to SB p.r.o.w. toward
Milwaukee County Stadium

(R) Car 978; Rt. 10 WB at about 38th St. entering p.r.o.w. on Wells St. Viaduct.  #978 is now owned by the East Troy Electric RR, and currently is stored in Appleton, WI in inoperable condition.

(L) Look, there's the 966! On the back it says:
948,966
27th-National Yd.
2-20-55
(R) 925
Wells St. Viaduct
2-20-55

(Rt. 10 WB exiting Wells Street Viaduct at west end)






I can't positively identify either of these cars, but they're interesting shots anyhow. Learn shorthand in 6 weeks!

(L) Locomotive L-5 was a wooden steeplecab built on a Hicks Co. flatcar. It went to East Troy and was scrapped in the 70s.

(R) L-9 is still in service at East Troy.

St. Louis

(L) 70-Grand line, five blocks south of the water tower; (R) 40-Broadway line, possibly South St. Louis








Both bottom photos taken on the 70-Grand line just north of Sportsman's Park. SLPS caption info from David Wilkins.








Notice: These photographs are copyrighted and may not be reproduced without permission.