my Conrail layout: Muskegon 1978

[Ben Higdon]

Made some progress today on a batch of extended height pulpwood gondolas today. My first one I did a year or so ago is in the foreground, with the batch of five behind. These are Tyco gons with the original trucks (couple boxes removed), with Kadee boxes and couplers added.

The prototypes for these cars were in captive service in New York state, shuttling to and from Lake Erie. I haven't heard of them being in service in other locations. I'll be using them for hauling pulpwood logs from Northern Michigan off of the Michigan Northern. The loads are picked up in Grand Rapids by JAMU and interchanged to the C&O in Muskegon for delivery to the SD Warren paper mill. Empties take the reverse routing to Grand Rapids on MUJA. Thanks to Proto48Patrick for most of the raw materials!

[Ben Higdon]

A few pics from Wednesday, 12/20/78:



Its around 3pm and YMMU1 is nearing the end of the workday, having been on duty since 0500. Here the 9073 is switching the south end of Muskegon Yard at 6th St, switching out the cars off of WMMU1 and the Detroit & Milwaukee interchange and putting together the evening's MUJA to Jackson. MUJA is built in two blocks, the first of which is set out at the former NYC Franklin St Yd in Grand Rapids. This block will include the empty pulpwood gondola shown here, which will be interchanged to the Michigan Northern to be sent back up north.



Poor quality picture (the lighting doesn't help), but this one shows three of the four way cars normally based in Muskegon. Left to right are the PC 19153 which is used by YMMU1 throughout the day, 24039 which is used by WMMU1, and transfer caboose 18136, used by YMMU1 for backup moves on the Muskegon Heights Extension. The fourth caboose is used by the road train. The 24039 and 18136 are on the former Fisher Coal Company siding. I'm not sure if I still have a waybill in my stack for a coal or gravel load for this customer. At any rate I haven't delivered a car there since moving to this house in 2011.



Aerial view of the 12th St dock on Muskegon Lake. Left to right are the road train power, 7698 which has been on WMMU1, a cut of empty sand cars, a cut of boxcars being loaded or waiting to be loaded with wood pulp, a pair of tank cars for the C&O (bound for Hooker in Montague), resident Jordan spreader and stored caboose, and a string of stored 40' boxcars. The single track that is crossing all the dock tracks is the C&O South Horn. Where it ends in the upper right of the picture is where I'm planning on making a small addition to accommodate the depot (terminal for an Amtrak route to Chicago). (9073 can be seen at 6th St at the top of the picture)



9073 has returned to the dock, worked the warehouse track and is tied down next to the office, reporting clear of the main track at Clay St at 420pm. It'll be quiet at the dock for a bit until the crew for MUJA0 comes on duty at 5. Meanwhile DMIL train 652 has departed Henry St Yd, come up the Muskegon Heights Extension to 6th St and entered the Muskegon Secondary, turned east and operating over trackage rights to home rails at Walker.



MUJA0 received permission from Clay to Shaw from the operator at Shaw at 521pm. The 29 cars are in two tracks at Muskegon Yard. Here the power is coupled onto the first cut at 6th St. The operator at Shaw notes the train is pulling at 619 on the train movement sheet, and clears Shaw at 624pm. JAMU0 will make its setout at Franklin St Yd (the empty gon and five loads of wood pulp destined for Kalamazoo), and will pick up GM auto parts for Lansing, which will be set out at Rives Jct before arriving at Jackson Yd and returning as JAMU0.

[ns8401]

In the overhead picture I was wondering a few things:

-Where is the gon in between the covered hoppers and boxcars headed, if anywhere?
-What are the track between the building and the tank cars, and the tank cars and trailers used for?
-Are there gaps in the track for the C&O?

Great job on the layout and the operations btw.

[Ben Higdon]

In the overhead picture I was wondering a few things:

-Where is the gon in between the covered hoppers and boxcars headed, if anywhere?
-What are the track between the building and the tank cars, and the tank cars and trailers used for?
-Are there gaps in the track for the C&O?

Great job on the layout and the operations btw.

Thanks!

The gon has been sitting there for several days. It'll go to the scrap yard immediately south of the dock the next time they require an empty. I identified the scrap yard on an old Sanborn map but it didn't give a name. I know Muskegon Rag & Metal was down there somewhere, but I think it may have been closer to the Mart Dock. For now its been a Padnos location.

The empty track to the left of the tank cars isn't normally used for anything. Sometimes the yard power will be parked there. The other empty siding, and the one with the tank cars, are usually just used for C&O interchange.

Yes there are gaps in the C&O track, I didn't spring for another code 83 diamond and take the time to do a very high quality job in general on that bit of track.

The layout of the trackage/docks/warehouse is all straight out of 1930ish Sanborn maps. The only significant liberties I've taken in the traffic on the branch are the wood pulp and the sand traffic (I had to have some kind of decent traffic base to justify Conrail retaining this branch!). The wood pulp is based on Scandanavian wood pulp that was brought by ship to South Haven and then by rail to the mills in Kalamazoo. Its delivered by ship to the warehouse at the dock. For the sand traffic, I located a small sand pit a half mile or so off the main line near Sullivan on a USGS topographic map, and have a spur out to it. The Hooker Chemical interchange to C&O is based on an early 90s train consist sheet for GRIN that showed a couple tank cars from Montague that had been received from CSX in Grand Rapids. Conrail gets a longer haul on my layout

[GrandTrunkFan]

Glad to see your working on this layout again! Keep the updates coming!

[rustbeltrailroad]

LOVE IT! keep us posted with pictures! love the plan and the labeling of everything... GREAT!

[Ben Higdon]

Time has been passing slowly on the Muskegon Secondary! My spare time has been extremely limited the past two years. And please excuse the poor photo quality, the lighting is abysmal and is one of many back burner projects!

YMMU1 with the 9073 has had the run of the Muskegon Secondary from Western Ave down to Shaw since 539AM, after northbound Detroit & Milwaukee train 651 cleared 6th St. Shortly before noon on Thursday 12/21/78, YMMU1 is shoving cars for the evenings outbound MUJA into track 1 of Muskegon Yard. I just took a couple shots from opposite angles.

9073 shoves northward. Track to the left is the Muskegon Heights Extension, leading to the C&O Manahan Belt Spur and Detroit & Milwaukee (former GTW) Henry St Yd.



Same scene, opposite angle. From the loco going northward, the cut of cars includes four empties later bound for the 11th St dock for wood pulp loading, then the cars for the night's outbound train: five wood pulp loads from the dock (which will be set out at Franklin St Yd in Grand Rapids, then via GRELB early the next morning be set out at Mosel Yd in Kalamazoo and then to the Georgia Pacific paper mill), an empty plastic pellet covered hopper from Brunswick, an empty boxcar from a lumber load to Brunswick, a boxcar of office furniture from Shaw Walker, and an empty coke hopper from the Campbell Wyant & Cannon Foundry that was received back empty from DMIL earlier that day.

On the main track, behind this cut of cars, is a covered hopper for Borg Warner and three gons for Dresser Crane that YMMU will shortly be taking down the Muskegon Heights Extension and the Manahan Spur. In the foreground is an empty boxcar that will be spotted at Brunswick, and in the yard are a pair of coke hoppers for DMIL for the CWC foundry.

[Ben Higdon]

Best part of the day for me is switching the dock. The dock warehouse will require two switches a day from YMMU on some days after a ship has made a delivery of wood pulp. This is the afternoon switch...



Over the years I've accumulate a motley assortment of Conrail boxcars for this traffic, many I've painted and decaled myself. Athearn PS single and double door boxcars are my go-to. Here are some of the cars at the dock on this day:


The NYC boxcar was one I got at a hobby shop in Grand Haven in the late 80s and at some point it was overly weathered. I updated it to Conrail lettering based on prototype photos








After taking the loads to the yard and making them the final addition to the evening's outbound consist, YMMU has tied up next to the office at the dock.

Shortly after 5pm, the crew for MUJA1 has come on duty and are moving the power across Western Ave to head down to the wye at 6th St, at the south end of the yard, to get on their train




Here the power is passing in front of the Brunswick factory. The flat and boxcar are at Steel Fabricators

[GrandTrunkFan]

Nice to see your back at it again Ben!

[Ben Higdon]

Starting off with a clean slate! It's the wee hours of Friday December 22nd 1978, and the operator at Shaw in Muskegon has started a new train movement sheet. After an hour of twiddling thumbs, JAMU1 checks in at Fuller, and permission is given on the Muskegon Secondary from Walker to Western Ave.