Imlay City Northern (ICN)
Posted: Sun Apr 11, 2021 4:50 pm
Imlay City Northern (ICN) started service in 1984 on the ex-GTW Cass City Sub from Imlay City Junction (Milepost 33.1) to Pigeon (Berne Road, Milepost 92. for 60 miles. In 1989 the line from Imlay City Junction to Oxford Gravel Pit (Milepost 16.0) with the line ending at the old junction with Michigan Central (Milepost 14.0) was reopened adding 19 miles. Interchanges are with CN (GTW) at Pigeon, HESR (SGV, CSX/Chessie) at Clifford and HESR (CSX/Chessie) at Pigeon.
Engine Roster History:
Owner: Imlay City Northern
Model: EMD GP7 Built As: DTS 41 (GP7)
Serial Number: 12459
Order No: 5062
Frame Number: 5062-1 Built: 1/1951
Notes: Acquired from GTW 1984
Other locos with this serial: ICN 6041(GP7) DTS 41(GP7)
Owner: Imlay City Northern
Model: EMD GP7 Built As: DTS 44 (GP7)
Serial Number: 15526
Order No: 5109
Frame Number: 5109-2 Built: 11/1951
Notes: Acquired from GTW 1984
Other locos with this serial: ICN 6044(GP7) DTS 44(GP7)
They acquired a pair of Chessie GP9’s in 1989:
Owner: Imlay City Northern
Model: EMD GP9 Built As: BO 6581 (GP9)
Serial Number: 24365
Order No: 5568
Frame Number: 5568-10 Built: 1/1958
Notes: Acquired from Chessie 1989
Other locos with this serial: ICN 6581(GP9) BO 6581(GP9)
Owner: Imlay City Northern
Model: EMD GP9 Built As: BO 6594 (GP9)
Serial Number: 24378
Order No: 5568
Frame Number: 5568-23 Built: 2/1958
Notes: Acquired from Chessie 1989
Other locos with this serial: ICN 6594(GP9) BO 6594(GP9)
The engine house is in Imlay City.
Customer History:
• Initially serviced a hand full of elevators that all shipped around 75-100 cars annually. Most stopped shipping by rail during the 90's.
• Pigeon Coop (later renamed Cooperative Elevator) in Pigeon expanded to ship 1,500-2,000 cars annually in 1984. Initially most cars were handled by Chessie/CSX (with ICN doing the in-plant switching). When the CSX sold the Sebewaing line to HESR ICN got the traffic back, but most was interchanged to CSX in Clifford. When HESR/SGV acquired the Port Huron line most of the traffic shifted back to the Pigeon interchange. ICN continues to handle the in-plant switching.
• Initially serviced a handful of small fertilizer dealers
• Vlassic Pickles in Imlay City which shipped about 250 cars annually. Around 2006 CN built a spur direct from their mainline (including a bridge over ICN) and all business dried-up for ICN.
• Shipments of limestone from Wallace (about 3 miles west of Pigeon) started in the late 1980's (after HESR took over the Sebewaing Sub from CSX). They are unloaded at Oxford Pits where a transload was established. Carloads started at about 2,250 a year but have grown to 3,375 annually.
• There were a handful of non-ag shippers that were small volume customers such as Cass City Wire that received 2-3 cars a month.
Current Customer List:
• Koenig now operates the gravel pit in Oxford. They receive 2,250-3,375 cars per year (60-90 cars per week of limestone when busy and about half to a third of that when slow).
• Cooperative Elevator operates the former J & J Farm Services elevators and Royster-Clark fertilizer dealer in North Branch. From the beginning in 2007 CO has used this location to stage corn for the ethanol plant in Caro. After trying different arrangements (including trucks) the current system is to load a 25-car block per month. Since the sidings are short it takes several days/switches to load all the cars. The block is then interchanged with HESR at Clifford who shuttles it to Caro. CO also receives a dozen or so fertilizer cars annually.
• Star of the West operates a bulk bean plant south of Cass City (Rawson Road) that opened in 1984. It was expanded in 1997 and usually ships 2-4 covered hoppers a week. In 1997 they also added a small fertilizer plant that gets about a dozen cars a year.
• Millennium Steering in Cass City took over the Cass City Wire plant around 2000 and has steadily received 1-2 cars every week or two of plastic pellets since.
• Very recently Star of the West took over the former Wrubel/Merchant Grain elevator in Cass City and is using it as a bagged bean plant. They ship 1-3 boxcars a week.
• Cooperative Elevator operates a small fertilizer dealer in Gagetown that receives about a dozen cars annually
• Cooperative Pigeon operates a 1,500-2,000 car per year elevator in Pigeon. Most years many of the cars are interchanged in Pigeon with HESR (although ICN handles in-plant loading). However, in 2020, CN experimented shipping 110 car blocks south to the ports in Louisiana. Since the interchange in Imlay City between CN/ICN can only handle about 25 cars ICN has to use the CN mainline/passing siding to exchange these grain blocks.
• Cooperative Elevator main dry fertilizer plant is in Pigeon north of the elevator receiving 40-50 carloads annually. They also receive about a dozen or so liquid fertilizer tank cars too.
• Cooperative Elevator also operates a bean plant north of the main elevator. They ship primarily bagged beans in box cars usually averaging 4-6 cars per week.
Operations consists of the crew going on duty M-F at 7am and running wherever needed. When limestone is busy usually there are three round trips between Oxford Pits and Pigeon. Weekend service is common when aggregates are busy or if a large unit grain train needs loading.
New business: Prospects a few. There are a few small elevators/feed mills in Gagetown and Owendale and a small fertilizer dealer in Owendale. Vlassic is still in Imlay City and has expanded but they haven't shipped by rail in over 10 years. CN disconnected their spur to the plant while ICN's was still in place. Due to the cost of CN reconnecting the spur if Vlassic ever decided to resume rail service they might go with ICN. Vlassic can ship 300-400 carloads annually.
Engine Roster History:
Owner: Imlay City Northern
Model: EMD GP7 Built As: DTS 41 (GP7)
Serial Number: 12459
Order No: 5062
Frame Number: 5062-1 Built: 1/1951
Notes: Acquired from GTW 1984
Other locos with this serial: ICN 6041(GP7) DTS 41(GP7)
Owner: Imlay City Northern
Model: EMD GP7 Built As: DTS 44 (GP7)
Serial Number: 15526
Order No: 5109
Frame Number: 5109-2 Built: 11/1951
Notes: Acquired from GTW 1984
Other locos with this serial: ICN 6044(GP7) DTS 44(GP7)
They acquired a pair of Chessie GP9’s in 1989:
Owner: Imlay City Northern
Model: EMD GP9 Built As: BO 6581 (GP9)
Serial Number: 24365
Order No: 5568
Frame Number: 5568-10 Built: 1/1958
Notes: Acquired from Chessie 1989
Other locos with this serial: ICN 6581(GP9) BO 6581(GP9)
Owner: Imlay City Northern
Model: EMD GP9 Built As: BO 6594 (GP9)
Serial Number: 24378
Order No: 5568
Frame Number: 5568-23 Built: 2/1958
Notes: Acquired from Chessie 1989
Other locos with this serial: ICN 6594(GP9) BO 6594(GP9)
The engine house is in Imlay City.
Customer History:
• Initially serviced a hand full of elevators that all shipped around 75-100 cars annually. Most stopped shipping by rail during the 90's.
• Pigeon Coop (later renamed Cooperative Elevator) in Pigeon expanded to ship 1,500-2,000 cars annually in 1984. Initially most cars were handled by Chessie/CSX (with ICN doing the in-plant switching). When the CSX sold the Sebewaing line to HESR ICN got the traffic back, but most was interchanged to CSX in Clifford. When HESR/SGV acquired the Port Huron line most of the traffic shifted back to the Pigeon interchange. ICN continues to handle the in-plant switching.
• Initially serviced a handful of small fertilizer dealers
• Vlassic Pickles in Imlay City which shipped about 250 cars annually. Around 2006 CN built a spur direct from their mainline (including a bridge over ICN) and all business dried-up for ICN.
• Shipments of limestone from Wallace (about 3 miles west of Pigeon) started in the late 1980's (after HESR took over the Sebewaing Sub from CSX). They are unloaded at Oxford Pits where a transload was established. Carloads started at about 2,250 a year but have grown to 3,375 annually.
• There were a handful of non-ag shippers that were small volume customers such as Cass City Wire that received 2-3 cars a month.
Current Customer List:
• Koenig now operates the gravel pit in Oxford. They receive 2,250-3,375 cars per year (60-90 cars per week of limestone when busy and about half to a third of that when slow).
• Cooperative Elevator operates the former J & J Farm Services elevators and Royster-Clark fertilizer dealer in North Branch. From the beginning in 2007 CO has used this location to stage corn for the ethanol plant in Caro. After trying different arrangements (including trucks) the current system is to load a 25-car block per month. Since the sidings are short it takes several days/switches to load all the cars. The block is then interchanged with HESR at Clifford who shuttles it to Caro. CO also receives a dozen or so fertilizer cars annually.
• Star of the West operates a bulk bean plant south of Cass City (Rawson Road) that opened in 1984. It was expanded in 1997 and usually ships 2-4 covered hoppers a week. In 1997 they also added a small fertilizer plant that gets about a dozen cars a year.
• Millennium Steering in Cass City took over the Cass City Wire plant around 2000 and has steadily received 1-2 cars every week or two of plastic pellets since.
• Very recently Star of the West took over the former Wrubel/Merchant Grain elevator in Cass City and is using it as a bagged bean plant. They ship 1-3 boxcars a week.
• Cooperative Elevator operates a small fertilizer dealer in Gagetown that receives about a dozen cars annually
• Cooperative Pigeon operates a 1,500-2,000 car per year elevator in Pigeon. Most years many of the cars are interchanged in Pigeon with HESR (although ICN handles in-plant loading). However, in 2020, CN experimented shipping 110 car blocks south to the ports in Louisiana. Since the interchange in Imlay City between CN/ICN can only handle about 25 cars ICN has to use the CN mainline/passing siding to exchange these grain blocks.
• Cooperative Elevator main dry fertilizer plant is in Pigeon north of the elevator receiving 40-50 carloads annually. They also receive about a dozen or so liquid fertilizer tank cars too.
• Cooperative Elevator also operates a bean plant north of the main elevator. They ship primarily bagged beans in box cars usually averaging 4-6 cars per week.
Operations consists of the crew going on duty M-F at 7am and running wherever needed. When limestone is busy usually there are three round trips between Oxford Pits and Pigeon. Weekend service is common when aggregates are busy or if a large unit grain train needs loading.
New business: Prospects a few. There are a few small elevators/feed mills in Gagetown and Owendale and a small fertilizer dealer in Owendale. Vlassic is still in Imlay City and has expanded but they haven't shipped by rail in over 10 years. CN disconnected their spur to the plant while ICN's was still in place. Due to the cost of CN reconnecting the spur if Vlassic ever decided to resume rail service they might go with ICN. Vlassic can ship 300-400 carloads annually.