Train no. CC-3

NG503068

Train no. CC-3

Steam Freight Train

This concluding picture, taken shortly after the preceding one in the same location, illustrates the light train loadings which are all too frequent on the traffic-starved Indiana Division. The freight, handled briskly by L-2 no. 2839, is CC-3, the advertised manifest between Cincinnati and Chicago (via the IC out of Kankakee). It consists here of a disappointing 49 cars, about half of them loaded, and, sad to say, these represent an average-or-better payload on the west end of the run. This train, however, is only one of many out of Indianapolis, and the sum total of traffic moved, both through and originating, is quite considerable. It should be, because the terminal which assembled and delivered CC-3 includes two major yards separated into nine components with a combined total of 89 tracks. It also includes numerous supplementary yards of various sizes and functions. To switch all these yards, and also the many industries scattered around the terminal, a weekday average of fifty yard jobs is required. The fascination of a large terminal, however, lies not in statistics. It is rooted in an awareness of unceasing activity, evidenced by sights and sounds elementary to railroading - the diverse movements at interlockings, the intricate patterns of yard tracks, the metallic crunch-and-ping of drawbars, the staccato rhythm of wheels on crossings, and a host of others. Associations such as these were the inspiration for whatever authenticity may be found in this work.

Jeremy Taylor

Jeremy Taylor

2-1/4x3-1/4 neg

Fall, 1954

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464

L-2c

#2839

Alco-Schen

Speedway, Indianapolis, IN

See NG503068a