C&O Parsons Yard 1962
Twenty-one snapshots that were taken in 1962 around the east end of the Chesapeake & Ohio's Parsons Yard in Columbus are featured in this piece. They are the photos a modeler might take to provide inspiration for detailing his pike or perhaps the photographer was documenting new infrastructure work. The prints while not necessarily taken on the same day were all printed in September 1962.
There are two mainlines exiting the east end of Parsons Yard, both show up in the photos. The C&O Northern built in 1927 exits the yard at CH Cabin for the 63 mile run south to Gregg. The original Hocking Valley line exits toward the east where it crosses the N&W at SK Tower (Valley Crossing) and heads to the southeastern Ohio coal fields. Groveport Road with its high fill and bridge over the C&O appears in the background of several of the photos as a helpful landmark to orientate many of the photos.
Parsons Yard is made up of three side-by-side yards. The center yard is the original Parsons Yard and to this day is referred to as Parsons. On the south side of Parsons is New Yard which is not the newest yard. The newest yard is the Mason Yard on the north side of Parsons Yard.
The two track C&O Northern fans out to multiple tracks leading to the three yards. In addition there was a track called the “passenger main” that skirted around all this switch work to directly connect to the two track Main line that run between the Parsons and Mason Yards providing a clear path through the entire Parsons Yard facility.
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The east end of Parsons Yard looking north.
Map from the Chesapeake & Ohio Historical Magazine, August 2008; C&O's Parsons Yard, Columbus, Ohio by Dick Argo, Cliff Clements and Phil Shuster; Page 17; Published by the C&O Historical Society.
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Photo 1 –The camera is looking south down the Chesapeake & Ohio Northern mainline toward the Northern sub-division and Russell, KY. The operator at CH Cabin has train orders ready for pickup by the next southbound. The fence on the right protects Williams Road which passes under the tracks. There is a track crossover visible in the distance. The track section crew with their motor car poking out of the section house completes the picture.
The semaphore signal was used as a train order signal that would be set to yellow when a crew had a train order to pick up.
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Photo 2 – Another view of CH Cabin, signal equipment cabinet, what looks like an outhouse, the section house and a small building constructed of ties.
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Photo 3 –A close up of a second equipment cabinet with a propane tank in the background. There is also the throw mechanism for a spring switch. The camera is looking north with Parsons Yard barely discernable in the distance.
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Photo 4 –A close up of the propane tank with its “NO SMOKING” sign. The gas is used for switch heaters to keep switches from freezing up when snow and ice accumulate. In the distanced the light towers for Parsons Yard are sticking up.
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Photo 5 – Shows a hand throw switch. In the far distance is a diesel servicing facility (more on that later). In the far distance on the left is the Mosel yard office with a smaller second story room on top for the eastend yard master.
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Photo 6 –A spring switch with signal lights. The photographer has moved back to show this crossover switch connecting this track to the one on the right. The switch in the previous photo is barely distinguishable in the distance.
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Photo 7 – The photographer has moved to his right to show a third type of switch throw, this one is remotely controlled. The plant growth in the upper right is on the fill leading to the Groveport Road Bridge over the C&O. CH Cabin is behind the camera.
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Photo 8 – The diesel servicing facility seen in the background of the three preceding photos. The tall structure is a sand tower.
No. 6172 the locomotive in the middle has an experimental zebra strip paint scheme used in 1962. Only a few locomotives sported the black and white stripes.
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Photo 9 – The next three photos show signals on the track that runs next to the Groveport Road fill.
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Photo 10 – Same signal, different view.
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Photo 11 – Outbound signal leading to CH Cabin.
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Photo 12 – The Groveport Road overpass. The camera is looking west toward Parsons Yard.
This was originally the location of the Scioto Valley Traction overpass built in 1904. All that remains of the SVT bridge is the stone work supporting the replacement highway bridge.
Before Groveport Road was relocated onto the SVT right-of-way it crossed the C&O west of this location. A C&O flagman helped the driver to cross the 33 tracks at the west end of the yard. One person who remembers being driven across the tracks by his father said they bounced over all 33 tracks.
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Photo 13 – The same bridge from the other side. The camera is looking east toward Valley Crossing.
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Photo 14 – A dwarf signal on the west side of the bridge. The camera is looking east.
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Photo 15 – A single light signal.
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Photo 16 – SK tower, Valley Crossing. The double track is the N&W, the single track the C&O. At one time the C&O was also double track. When these railroads were built the N&W was the Scioto Valley Railway and the C&O the Hocking Valley Railway hence “Valley Crossing “.
The tower was located on the southeast corner of the crossing. At one time there was a depot on the southwest corner. The photographer is standing on Williams Road looking southeast.
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Photo 17 – The C&O’s stock pens for loading and unloading live stock.The stock pens were located west of CH Cabin with truck access from Williams Road. The pens were relocated from the Mound Street Yard in 1936.
The structure sat in the middle of a wye. There is a string of MOW camp cars sitting on the tail of the wye. The camera is looking south toward Williams Road.
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Photo 18 – In this view the camera is looking southeast. The fill for Groveport Road is in the background and the diesel servicing facility is shown in the upper left of the photo. Tracks in the background are headed toward CH Cabin.
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Photo 19 – The Groveport Road fill and bridge over the C&O is visible in the background. The entrance to the truck loading ramp is facing the camera in the center.
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Photo 20 – This is the railroad side of the stock pen with two ramps for loading railroad cars. On the left in the background is a light tower for the yard.
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Photo 21 – One last look at the C&O stock pen at Parsons Yard. The photos were taken 53 years ago thanks to an unknown photographer.