Forty something years ago several railroad photography buffs, including Michael Palmieri and Mike Walsdorf, took a number of photographs of trains and tracks along the ICG Shoreline Track between Covington and Slidell. Their images can be found over at http://rrpicturearchives.net/ Here are a few of them.
Downtown Covington Track Curve - 1979
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Description: This is the 5.75 degree curve that took the ICG Shore Line District off of East Gibson Street and north towards the former GM&O depot on North New Hampshire Street. When the East Louisiana Railroad built this line into Covington in 1888, its original depot was on the outside of this curve, where the trees are on the left of the track. The curved track was the main line, but it also formed the east leg of a wye. The track on East Gibson continued left and formed the south leg of the wye. The south and west legs connected about a block away, just past Vermont Street. Date of photograph: 9/4/1979- by Michael Palmieri.
Future location of the Covington Trailhead - 1981
Description: The northward Shore Line District local is crossing North New Hampshire Street in Covington just south of the former depot. The train's cargo included a loaded KCS box car for Marsolan Feed, three loaded beer cars, six empty pulpwood cars, and two empty gondolas for the scrap yard. The photo was taken March 23, 1981, by Michael Palmieri.
The northern end of what would become the Covington Trailhead - 1981
Description: The northward Shore Line District Local is about to pass the former GM&O depot, which was being remodeled as a restaurant. The track in the foreground was originally the west leg of the East Louisiana Railroad wye. By this time, it was just a siding that served Marsolan Feed & Seed, a regular customer of the railroad. Photo was taken on March 23, 1981 by Michael Palmieri.
Covington Train Depot 1978
Description: This depot was built by the New Orleans-Great Northern in about 1921, and it was subsequently owned by the Gulf Mobile & Northern, Gulf Mobile & Ohio, and Illinois Central Gulf, although its use as a open agency ended before the 1972 merger of the IC and GM&O. The Illinois Central used the depot from the time it was constructed until it abandoned operation between Covington and Hammond in 1933. The building's brick construction reflected Covington's status as a Parish seat and the largest community along the Shore Line Branch, as the other depots along the line were wood.
In 1930 the GM&N introduced the New Orleans-Covington
St. Tammany Special, a new Brill gasoline-electric motor train featuring a parlor-observation car; but this didn't last long. The Great Depression, increasing automobile ownership, and better roads all took their toll on railroad passenger service here, as well as most other branch lines. In 1939 the motorcar service was replaced by buses operated by GM&N subsidiary Gulf Transport. The building is located on North New Hampshire Street, between East Lockwood and East Kirkland; and has been used for various commercial purposes since the early 1980's. This photo was taken on March 20, 1978, by Michael Palmieri.
Switching Cars Behind Covington Train Depot - 1978
Description: Locomotives are seen switching the northward Shore Line Branch local in front of the unused Covington depot. A few years later, the depot was renovated as a restaurant; but the railroad here was abandoned in 1991. The house track is still in place on the left, while siding on the right served the Alexius Brothers Hardware Store and Lumber Yard. The photo was taken on March 20, 1978, by Michael Palmieri.
West 27th Street End of the Line 1983
Description: This locomotive led the twice-weekly Shore Line District local train along West 27th Street in Covington, near the end of its 65-mile trip from Bogalusa. It was also near the end of the line for this branch. The track was abandoned in 1991. This train had six cars, including a flatcar with building material for Poole Lumber Co., and insulated box car with beer for Champagne Beverage Co., and three empty pulpwood cars, as well as a caboose. The photo was taken October 13, 1983, by Michael Palmieri.
P & W Salvage Trainloads
Description: Left side - The southward ICG Shore Line District local is shown parked on the main line in the P&W Industries scrap yard, just north of the former Covington depot. After the train arrived in Covington and did all of its switching, it would usually tie-up here, ready to depart for Bogalusa the next morning. By the time the crew parked their train, a railroad station wagon would be waiting to bring them back to Bogalusa; and the following morning, they would return to Covington and take the train back to Bogalusa. The local's locomotive had to use the wye at the end of the line to run around its train; so if the local arrived with its engine running long-hood forward, it would depart this way too. The left panel was taken on April 9, 1981. On the right side of the photo the train is shown after passing the Covington depot heading due north and making a 90 degree turn to the west right in the middle of the P&W Industries scrap yard. This photo was taken on April 16, 1979. Both photos were taken by Michael Palmieri.
Little Creek off I-12 in 1979
Description: The northward local on the ICG's Shore Line District crosses Little Creek at Bridge NA58.01 between Mandeville and Abita Springs. The train is shown as it is about to pass under the Interstate-12 overpass. The photo was taken May 3, 1979, three years after the completion of the interstate highway through St. Tammany Parish, and 15 years before the inauguration of Tammany Trace recreational bicycle trail that utilizes the old railroad right of way. Photo by Michael Palmieri.
Bridge Over Bayou Lacombe 1986
Description: In this photograph by Mike Walsdorf a train heads eastward onto the bridge over Bayou Lacombe. The bridge consisted of a 151-foot plate girder swing span built by the American Bridge Co. in 1907 -- when the branch was being constructed -- with a ballasted-deck approach trestle on each end. The bridge was controlled from a little shed on the east bank of the bayou and was normally left open for marine traffic. Whenever a train ran, someone from the track department would close it so the train could cross. The photo was taken in 1986.
Mandeville Train Trailhead - 1980
This photo shows the tracks at the Mandeville train depot area in February of 1980. Assorted Illinois Central Gulf cars in maintenance-of-way service were parked along the Shore Line Branch while the line was being rehabilitated. The empty area in the foreground was once the location of the Gulf Mobile & Ohio station. The tower was used to store cement which was unloaded from covered hoppers and then reloaded into trucks for delivery to a nearby concrete plant. Photo by Michael Palmieri.
Beer Distribution
Illinois Central Locomotive GP10 8146 and two empty Southern Railway insulated box cars from a local beer distributor were tied up just north of the former Gulf Mobile & Ohio depot in Covington, Louisiana. The train was all made up, and the next morning a station wagon would bring a crew down from Bogalusa to take the train back there. Photo taken on September 26, 1985 by Michael Palmieri.
Loading Pulpwood at Lacombe
Description: Lacombe, Louisiana, was on the ICG's Shore Line District. Triangle Timber loaded pulpwood on a siding right next to the main line, and the railroad had two other customers here. Imco Services regularly received material for drilling fluids in box cars and covered hoppers, and the Bali Hai Marine shipyard occasionally got steel. Photo was taken on September 30, 1979, by Michael Palmieri.
Cane Bayou Bridge
Description: On a somewhat foggy morning, the southward ICG Shore Line District local heads east across the Cane Bayou bridge. The train has just left Mandeville and its next stop will be Lacombe, where it will pick up two more loaded pulpwood cars. The photo was taken on September 12, 1980, by Michael Palmieri.
Little Bayou Castine
Description: The southward Shore Line Branch local heads into the morning sun at Little Bayou Castine in Mandeville. Bridge was a 256-foot ballasted deck trestle built in 1916. This was the last photo Michael Palmieri ever took of a train on the branch. "In fact, it was the last time I ever saw a train on the branch," he said over at http://rrpicturearchives.net/. "We had sold our home in Mandeville, and the next day we moved back to New Orleans. Photo was taken September 27, 1985.
