These films are great. I recognize so many sites. Thank you so much. I was born in 1944 and most of this footage was taken when I was in grade school. What great years they were !! If I may I would like to share some of my memories from that time. When I was in the Cub Scouts our troop took an excursion from Union Station to Xenia Ohio. The old passenger cars were so dirty and probably hadn't been used in years. But I loved it, dirt and all. We grew up in the Linden area near Linden Park. When we went to visit my grandma we traveled west across Hudson St. You had to cross what my grandpa referred to as the Big Four tracks that crossed Hudson near a big factory, which was Columbus Auto Parts (CAP) I believe. These tracks were VERY busy with trains heading north and south, usually carrying car after car of coal. They were always pulled by locos usually 2 or 3 at the head and sometimes a "slave" loco further back in the train. When we had to stop for the train (s) I would get out of the car and make my way to the tracks and be treated to the steam, foul smelling smoke and the noise of the huge locos. God what an experience it was. I can still smell that wonderful smoke. My last memory was at the Union Station (long since torn down). Dad would take my brother and me there after he shopped at the Market House on 4th and Rich streets, I think. Dad had worked for the railroad when he was in his 20's as a yard hand. We would go down to track level and watch the old steam and smoke belching locos pass through. I could almost touch them as they passed !! These are memories I will take to my grave.
Yes, I wish I could have grown up during this time. Your generation had it pretty damn good and I'm envious lol Then again I have an old soul. Thanks for sharing this comment with us all. Fascinating.
@@SpinningbacKFisT Thank you S.B. Yes I agree, we did have it "damn good". I've told my wife of 57 years that the last truly happy day of my life was in grade school, St. Augustine. By "happy" I mean Christmas morning happy, a feeling that only kids can have. Again, thank you.
Thanks a million for the footage showing freight and passenger trains rolling through parts of the Columbus area in color home movie footage that makes it look like yesterday as opposed to years ago. I'm scratching my head, however, as to why a big city like Columbus is the largest in the country without passenger train service. I realize that there are those who argue that there is no interest in a proposed rail line between Cleveland, Columbus, and Cincinnati from the state legislature to the average person. I will say that if people have enough interest in such a venture, and if the Ohio economy was better than it is now, then, maybe, the interest will show up. Of course, only time will tell. But I do miss what was once considered a golden age of American travel. It's just a memory.
25:55 - a short clip at Circleville. K1 #102 is switching Container Corporation’s strawboard mill. Behind the locomotive, a bunch of guys are building (or tearing down) a straw rick. What a hoot.
There are alot of historical moments in this video, The NYC Explorer, Jawn Henry, etc... Also those two boys had a great father to let them witness so many great moments in Columbus area railroading. Thanks for the video.
I can’t believe you have footage of the Jawn Henry and to top it off, in color, way to go. I have the o scale Jawn Henry from 3rd Rail Sunset Models. Just so sorry these like the Chesapeake and Ohio steam turbine M-1’s had to be destroyed. Excellent video. Thank you for sharing.
I watch this video over and over, and each time I watch, I catch something new. I think I saw the old penitentiary in the video at one point this time. Thanks for posting!
The single track excursion train beginning at 18:00 is on the line to Logan. The 8007 powered an excursion that went beyond Logan and up the branch to Buchtel and Murray City in the early '50s.
The footage of the General brings back memories. I remember going down into Cleveland Union Terminal to see it. Then the next day watched it steam past. Must have been within a few days of when this footage was shot.
These films are amazing...Columbus was all railroad tracks in those days, with five railroads in town crisscrossing from Grandview to Port Columbus...the former C A & C from Hudson to Union Station came through my hometown of Westerville, which made for excellent treatment trainwatching for a kid...this shows how ubiquitous the system was in this time frame... .
the footage at 18 minutes of the cab ride along the corn fields is the old Hocking Valley line along the Hocking River. I recognize much of the right of way and scenery. Probably one of the fan trips the C&O did down to Nelsonville and New Straitsville.
Railroading and railfanning had such a totally different way and feel to it. For a kid, it was one of those places of adventure and excitement. What I really miss as a railfan, was the anticipation as you waited. Whether in the car at a crossing or on your bicycle in the grass or dirt path.Today, waiting is a nussaince. Cars not stopping or rounding gates. Even the average railfan. Everyone has a scanner. Gone seems the days where noticing the signals going from red to yellow or green, put jazz in your heart. A real big change is the identity of each railroad. It was displayed proudly on equipment and seeing something foriegn on a certain rail line was rather cool to see. Now, railroad identity is a sad joke. Vandelism is now a sort of pathetic art. So abstract thats it truly ugly. Im glad to have my railroading memories even if today brings distain. But Its film like this that warms my soul
The transition from steam to diesel in the Columbus area on film. All major railroads in Columbus are shown (B&O, NYC, PRR, C&O, N&W). Royalty free music courtesy bensound.com. Locations: 0:00 - Not sure. Perhaps Grandview. 0:36 - I'm pretty sure this is the trestle at Orient. 1:19 - Riding a fantrip on the NYC East Columbus branch. Your guess is as good as mine as to where the tree tunnel is, but the big elevator is Truro where the train we're riding appears to be backing onto the T&OC/NYC Western Branch, where we will head north. 2:43 - C&O South Columbus depot partially obscured by the PRR boxcar. 2:57 - Scioto River crossing and Scioto Tower/LM Cabin. 3:21 - PRR Yard A. 4:12 - Our train must have gotten on the N&W passenger lead to union station because now we are on the N&W near (and within) Joyce Ave. yard. 4:31 - Given the topography I think this is N&W's Watkins Yard along with a lookover the fan trip we were riding. 5:05 - Now on the C&O headed north/west. Perhaps the signal is the distance signal to Frankfort Street tower. 5:26 - GN Tower. 6:24 - New York Central Xplorer at Miami Crossing. 8:02 - Probably Joyce Ave. 9:50 - Views from the photographer's office in the Leveque Tower. 10:31 - Not sure where this NYC passenger train is. Probably somewhere west of Miami Crossing. 10:40 - Not sure. 11:35 - More views from Leveque Tower. 11:47 - Olentangy tower. 12:51 - Back at the Leveque Tower looking at the vicinity of Scioto Tower. The overpasses are over Broad Street, and the T&OC depot is at the extreme lower left. 14:16 - Unloading the circus train at Grandview Yard (PRR). 15:57 - Now over to the New York Central's Grandview tower. 16:06 - Oops! Not Columbus (this quick shot looks like Lima). 16:22 - Not Columbus either. I think this is Russell and vicinity. 17:29 - Scioto tower. 17:50 - This I think is from Olentangy in the tower. 17:55 - Olentangy. 18:12 - This cabride isn't Columbus either. I would really like to know where the double track diamond was protected by just a tilting target, and where the rest of these shots are on this fantrip. Edit: Apparently, this is Lancaster (see comment below). 21:05 - Back at Olentangy. 24:10 - Leveque Tower perch. 24:48 - An excerpt from another fan trip visiting a B&O yard I believe is Newark. 25:40 - Olentangy (where else?) 25:56 - Joyce Ave. (not sure where the lineside shot is with the 2300) 28:50 - Leveque Tower. 29:32 - Olentangy. 30:24 - B&O passenger train at GN tower, where they will enter New York Central trackage into Columbus Union Station. 31:16 - I *think* this is Grandview. 33:16 - Along the N&W and Route 23 near Piketon. 34:50 - Marion very early in Erie-Lackawanna. 38:59 - Probably Parsons Yard in Columbus. 39:22 - Back at Grandview. 38:46 - I think this is Kinnear Rd. in Columbus, followed by The General. 42:33 - Marion. 43:35 - No clue. Might be the Midland Railway that ran coal from C&O/N&W interchange at Obetz to Commercial Point? (Edit: Confirmed as Midland Railway - see comment above) 45:42 - Back at Joyce Ave. 49:57 - Commemoration of the 110th anniversary of the first railroad in Columbus
@ 1:45 it looks like the old Landmark building/silos, south of I-70 and west of Hamilton Rd. My dad worked at the C&O yard at Corr Rd. & Parsons Ave. in the mid 1960s.
You are correct about the trestle. Thats orient in the distance. All that's left of that old mill now is the smokestack. I rode a train across that trestle lol. I also climbed that grainery seen a 4:27 in Bexley. Great stuff!
You know, That looks like R. H 'Racehorse' Smith president of N&W there at 50.27. He was a tall guy. They said yes sir No sir to him ! Great video especially with the 'Jawn Henry' in it ! wow ! Nope I bet it was Alfred Perlman NYC, RH Smith was gone from N&W by 1960.
I see the Ohio Railway Museum at 49:29 I actually volunteer there :) Marble Cliff Quarries 0-4-0ST Saddletank steam locomotive #1 helped pull Norfolk & Western Railway E2a steam locomotive #578 onto the property.
43:30 Columbus and Southern Ohio Electric Railway Fireless Cooker 0-4-0F steam locomotive #3 (now on display at Dennison, Ohio) and 25 Ton GE steeplecab electric locomotive #2 (now at the Ohio Railway Museum in Worthington)
I grew up on the north side of Columbus and spent a lot of my summer days fooling around on the Pennsylvania and New York Central tracks that ran along Indianola Ave. I recognize many of the locations in the video and it brings back a lot of memories. The one really noticeable thing that is different in the video than today is the complete lack of graffiti on the rolling stock. Times have certainly changed.
I took a trip with my Family from union Station to Cleveland Ohio in 1958 around Christmas time. Some things I recall,union Station was fairly big,and voices echoed alot. Everything seemed old,and wooden. The train cars we were on must of have been atleast 30 years old and in poor condition. I remember walking between train cars,with a canvas covering to protect from the cold weather. The ride to Cleveland was long,about 6 hours because we stopped in several small towns for passengers . After this trip we always took a Greyhound..cheaper and faster
16:05 intrigued me, because your caption says Lima, but it doesn't look right to me. Doing some looking online, I think it is more likely that this is the B&O-N&W crossing at Chillicothe, OH.
It’s amazing that the quality of the film 🎥 is better here in the 1960’s than it is today with all this digital shit ! This is when Columbus Ohio was a good place to live. Before it became a drug haven due to lack of natural stimulation and the trains back then were one of the positives ! Trains are boring today. Railfanning has died out considerably. So many lost interest once cabooses and 2nd generation power came to an end. No one likes stack trains and the same 2 boring quiet wide cabs pulling a train on run 3. It’s just boring! 2022 sucks!!!
Those diesels are the original Fairbanks Morse Train Master demonstrators TM-1 and TM-2. They were sold to Wabash. There were 4 demonstrators in total. The other two, TM-3 and TM-4 were sold to Southern Pacific after their demonstration tours were over.
15:53 Hard to find any footage, especially in color of these old pre-war crossings. Very nice footage, especially the stuff involving the streamliner sets like the Xplorer!