Overview | |
---|---|
Reporting mark | LE |
Locale | Midwestern to Gulf Coast, United States |
Dates of operation | 1947–1963 |
Technical | |
Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
The Louisiana Eastern Railroad (LE) was a proposed railroad that was to serve as an alternate line bypassing the congested rail lines in New Orleans, Louisiana. The railroad was envisioned by Paulsen Spence in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and while most US railroads had or began to replace their steam locomotives with diesel locomotives, the LE was to operate exclusively with steam locomotives which Spence had collected over time. He died in 1961, and the railroad had never fully materialized.
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Transcription
The development and spread of railroads across the United States brought a wave of changes to American life. During the railroad boom, thousands of jobs were created, new towns were born, trade increased, transportation was faster, and the overall landscape of the nation transformed. But, perhaps the most interesting change of all is the least known: the establishment of standard time. Today, we know if it is 6:28 a.m. in Los Angeles, it is 9:28 a.m. in New York, 2:28 p.m. in London, 5:28 p.m. in Moscow, and 10:28 p.m in Tokyo. No matter where you are, the minute and second are the exact same. But, before the railroads, there was no need for a national or global clock, and each town kept its own local time. So when it was 12 noon in Chicago, it was 12:07 p.m. in Indianapolis, 11:50 a.m. in St. Louis, and 11:27 a.m. in Omaha. This worked just fine when the only modes of travel were horses or steamboats, but it became incredibly problematic when railroads came along. How can you keep a train schedule when each town has its own time? And how do you prevent collisions or accidents on the tracks if train conductors are using different clocks? It doesn't really make sense to leave a station at 12:14 p.m., travel for 22 minutes, and arrive at 12:31 p.m. In order to eliminate that confusion, the railroads of the United States and Canada instituted standard time zones on November 18, 1883 at noon. It allowed the railroad companies to operate more effectively and reduce deadly accidents. The American public, however, was not so quick to embrace this new change, as many cities continued to use their own local time. Resistance was so strong that, in some towns, clocks would show both the local time and the railway time. Imagine this conversation: "Pardon me, sir. Do you have the time?" "Why yes, which do you need? It's 12:13 local time and 12:16 railway time." Ultimately, the logic of keeping a standard time prevailed, and the United States government made time zones a matter of law with the Standard Time Act of March 19, 1918. Since then, there have been numerous changes to the time zones, but the concept of standard time has remained. But, the United States was actually not the first to develop standard time. The first company to implement the use of standard time was the Great Western Railway in 1840 in Britain, and by 1847, most British railways were using Greenwich Mean Time, or G.M.T. The British government made it official on August 2, 1880 with the Statutes, or Definition of Time, Act. But, while Britain may have been the first to establish standard time, it is Asia and the islands of the South Pacific that enjoyed the first hour of each new day. The International Date Line passes through the Pacific Ocean on the opposite side of the Earth from the Prime Meridian in Greenwich where, thanks to trains, standard time was first used. Trains have evolved over the years and remain a prominent form of transportation and trade throughout the world. And, from the New York City subways to the freight trains traveling across the Great Plains, to the trolleys in San Francisco, they all know exactly what time it is. And, thanks to them, we do too!
History
Paulsen Spence, an entrepreneur who had patented steam valves, started a gravel industry in 1947, with a rail spur leading to an area which he had named "Sharon Junction" where the spur connected to the Illinois Central Railroad's main line. This spur, known as the Comite Southern, was operated using retired steam locomotives and served as the basis for the Louisiana Eastern.
In 1950, Spence purchased another industrial spur, known as the Gulf & Eastern Railroad, which also served a gravel plant and connected to the Illinois Central at Shiloh, Louisiana. This line had been formed in 1946 and already operated a retired steam locomotive.
These two lines were combined under the title of the Louisiana Eastern Railroad and soon upgraded with heavier rails and reconfigured switches. Throughout the 1950s, Spence continued to collect steam locomotives retired from mainline railroads switching to diesel power. Over thirty steam locomotives of various designs were acquired, transporting gravel to the Illinois Central and offering occasional excursion trains for railfans who admired the railroad's use of steam engines until the 1960s.
The railroad's demise
Paulsen Spence died in 1961, and thus his vision of a through freight line operated with steam locomotives had never been realized. Upon his death, there had been very little interest by others in maintaining the railroad and its engines. The remaining equipment was largely scrapped over the course of 1962-63, the final steam locomotive to operate on the road was no. 11, former Abilene & Southern 2-8-2 No. 20, which last ran in June, 1963, and scrapped shortly thereafter.[1]
Preserved equipment
Of the collection of over thirty steam locomotives, only four survive today. These engines are:
- Number 1, 4-4-0, built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1919 as Red River and Gulf number 104. Was sold to the Stone Mountain Scenic Railroad where it was given the name "General II" and operated until 1986. The locomotive was donated to the Southeastern Railway Museum in 2007, where it is now displayed.
- Number 2, 4-4-0, built by Baldwin in 1923 as San Antonio and Aransas Pass Railway number 60. Became the second number 1 after no. 1's sale before being sold to Stone Mountain as well. The engine was named the "Texas II" and operated until 1984. The locomotive was donated to the Gulf and Ohio Railways in 2012, where it is awaiting restoration for use on that railroad's Three Rivers Rambler tourist operation.
- Number 4, 4-6-2, built by Baldwin in 1928 as Gulf Mobile & Northern number 425. Owned by the Reading Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad where it operates on special occasions.
- Number 98, 4-4-0, built by ALCO in 1909 as a Mississippi Central locomotive of the same number. Owned by the Wilmington and Western Railroad where it operates on select weekends.
References
- [1]
- Louis R. Saillard. "Paulsen Spence and the Louisiana Eastern Railroad". Railfan & Railroad, August 2009
External links
- Hawkins Rails site with pictures and information about the LA Eastern and other shortlines.
- Southeastern Railway Museum LE #1's current home.
- Friends of SA&AP #60(later LE#2)
- Reading and Northern LE #4's current home.
- Wilmington and Western Railroad LE #98's current home.