Throwback Thursday - Long Gone

LONG GONE - SECTION HOUSES 

Keith McCauley

 Sometimes when looking at old photos or slides I notice details that seemed commonplace at the time, but are now long gone from the current railway scene. Note the small section house in the upper left hand corner of the photo, one of thousands that at one time lined the right of way. No doubt it would have housed track maintenance materials; spikes, joint bars, bolts/nuts and tools, etc. Note that there are no Speeder tracks leading up to the track. What became of it? No doubt the structure would have decayed over time. Pretty sure that it no longer stands. Guessing that at some point CN sent out a crew to empty out the contents and dismantle the building. Today much track maintenance is performed by Hi Rail crews who carry most of their wares on board; in some cases, performed by companies contracted by the railway. No doubt, as well, rail joint maintenance has been reduced by widespread continuous welded rail (CWR) installation. What of the motive power shown? CN 4119 was built 9/1957. Renumbered CN 4375 (to clear number space for GP9RM’s), the venerable unit was remanufactured as GP9 Slug CN 212, and reportedly still active. CN 4534 was built 1/1957 and subsequently remanufactured as GP9RM CN 7047 in 1992; also still active.