Hi Ron, Bob Bullermann & list -
Wanted to point out that the major "washout" on the LaCrosse Division in the
spring of 1965 was between East Winona, WI (GB&W crossing) and Winona
Junction, WI (C&NW crossing) so any move @ North LaCrosse to the "Q" would
have been impractical as the line was severed 29 miles to the north. I spent
the majority of the summer of '65 as the "relief operator" at the newly
established and temporary "tower" @ East Winona covering vacations of the
regularly assigned operators (4). Prior to the flood, this had been double
track ABS territory and after the flood, the Q single track CTCed it between
E. Winona & Winona Jct. (Mayo Clinic stop); in addition, E. Winona also
handled the CTC at Trevino-Mears where the "Q" single tracked over the Eau
Claire (?) River. I was told by the operators @ "E. Wye" while "breaking-in"
that the "Northerns" re-joined the "Q" at Winona Junction where they had
arrived via the C&NW. I don't recall the exact details of the move at the
"Junction" but I believe there was a "south leg of the wye" connection
between the C&NW and the Q which necessitated the reversing of the power
(running around their train) which resulted in the train running backwards to
the Twin Cities and visa-versa on the eastward trains; this would explain the
"back-to-back" lash-up of the E units. I was never an "eyewitness" to this
move, as by the time I arrived (late May '65) the new single track CTC was in
use. An Aurora Division engineer I worked with years later by the name of
"Don" McLaughlin, confirmed that he did "fire" the Northerns to Winona
Junction via the North Western (part way?) and did state that it was an all
day trip (16 hr law still in effect) but that it did pay well. The cause of
the massive wash-out was due to the fact that the land to the north of the Q
ROW was federal land and the "Feds" would not allow culverts under the
tracks to drain into Federal lands. The River showed the government where it
could go and after rebuilding, culverts were permitted. As I recall, there
were 4 or 5 passenger trains a day, each way by East Winona; Morning Zephyr,
North Coast Limited, Empire Builder, Afternoon Zephyr and the "milk run", the
Blackhawk and not a damned one slowed down for the GB&W crossing, 20 feet
from my "tower"! Every morning, the section foreman and his gang were out
there with their pitch forks, lining bars and jacks, "aligning" the diamond
according to the hand signs given by the well-trained eye of the foreman, who
was 50 yards up the track. Every morning the GB&W would
double/triple/quadruple its one and only eastbound train, #2, out of their
yard in Winona, MN, across the Q's Mississippi River bridge (Winona Bridge
Co.) and keep me guessing as to whether or not they needed the signal to
complete their double and yet clear the passenger trains without delay.
Throw in the Q's Winona switcher, a daily work train dumping rip-rap and the
GB&W work trains, there was lots of action out in po-dunk. After the
vacation relief work was completed, I spent the last week of the summer down
at the Aurora freight house reloading boxcars that were derailed at the
Fairview Avenue interlocking (Snuffy train). Quite a summer for me. By the
late fall, the machines at East Winona "Tower" (I forgot to mention that it
was a wooden shed perched on the ground) were moved to the old passenger
depot at North LaCrosse.
Bob Campbell
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