Santa Train TP&W &KJRY 1965-2016












In 2008  Keokuk Junction Railway brought back the Santa train where they take a Santa to each location to entertain the children with the locomotives, the caboose and the Santa.  The railfans get a treat with the old FP9A  #1750 & #1752 units and the  F9B  #1761  so it's an old A-B-A line up plus a red caboose.  I stated going to the Santa events in 2009  but stayed in Canton for the most part until 2016 when I decide to chase them in each location which are Mapleton, Glasford, Breeds, Canton, Cuba and Smithfield, Illinois.  They start early leaving Kolbe and stopping at Mapleton around eight   in the morning or so.  Their last stop is Smithfield and by then around five or six o'clock it's dark or getting there.  It's all good fun for everyone.  I recommend it for any railfan that wants to chase KJRY.  A-B-A is a rare sight for other people so it will be worth if people decide too.  I imagine they'll do it again in early December of 2017 so there is something we all can look forward too. interesting note about the old A-B-A units is they were built by General Motors   in 1954 and 1955.   The #1750 was built in 1954 and the other two units in 1955. 
They were owned by Canadian National until 1978 when they were all sold to Via Canada Railway. In 1995 Algoma Central Railway bought them all.  Pioneer Rail Corp bought them all in or around 2003.  The F units were put on the line to run as Peoria & Western around 2007 or 2008. The named was changed to the current name of Keokuk Junction Railway around 2011.

 I chased the train to every location except one due to an issue with my trach and to clean up after an incident in Glasford where i was talking to a railfan I respect and see on the Peoria railroad facebook group and various other ones.  It was the first time meeting so between anxiety issues and the trach issues I could have just crawled under a rock and died of embarrassment at the time.
It was gross I coughed half of the trach out of my throat with phlem coming out ( GROSS!) and I look down and see my hand full of blood then seen blood running down my chest and all over my shirt.  I put the trach back in and reattach the trach collar that holds it in place. Welp  I sure know how to make a dramatic first impression. :D  Oh well I'm over the embarrassment.  I met a few other railfans and some guy had a drone to take pictures from the air.  I watched him and his drone and asked a few qustions about it.  We introduced our selves and he was another railfan from the Peoria groups.  The other guys have no idea who they were.  My anxiety was also an issue so when i did talk to people it was brief and i got quiet due to fear of asking anything due to anxiety yet i had questions.  Again oh well.  Enough about this stuff.  I'll say this itwas a memorable day I 
won't soon forget. Ha!  I went home after Glasford to clean up then re caught the train at Canton then ended up following them after checking up on my Husband and chased them to Cuba and even Smithfield.  Smithfield just filmed it and left  by that point was too tired.  It was fun I can't say that enough.
Apparently in the 1960's TP&W also ran a Santa Train but i don't know how many years.  I know they did in 1965.  My father Bill May was the Santa Clause climbing down off the  TP&W Alco # 800 (C424).  I found the newspaper  clipping after Dad died so I have no idea how he got that gig.  I bet it was fun.  Back then they had the Santa in the Cab of the locomotive.  The picture was taken in Canton,Illinois in 1965.  The TP&W #800 was an Alco (C424).  It is currently operating out in New Jersey with the Morristown & Erie Railway which is another shortline I think.  There are talks of scrapping it but some people are trying to raise enough moneyy to save it and maybe her sister  #19 which was #801 at TP&W.  People want it saved and put up in the Illinois Railway Museum in Union, Illinois to preserve it.  I really hope they do I'd want to make a trip up there to see it.  Up before this paragraph I posted a few of the 2016 Santa Train youtube videos I filmed.

 The next batch of pictures I'll post below are from the Santa Train event in Canton , Illinois of December 2015.  I didn't stay too long i took a bunch of pictures, filmed them pulling up and went home afterwards so it wasn't an eventful as the 2016 my trach actually behaved itself.  Joking a side i'll post the pictures. 









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My next KJRY Santa Train pictures are from Dec 2010. 







I might add a few videos of the Santa Train event from previous years below.

Comments

  1. David P. JordanApril 23, 2017 at 7:18 PM

    Nice collection! Didn't I see you at Rawalts after the Glasford "incident?"

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Traingirl36April 23, 2017 at 7:22 PM

      Yeah I pulled up and parked a little bit behind you seeing them from the highway. Ihope the Glasford incident didnt creep you out. .. Creeps me out.sometimes :D.

      Then I seen you at 2nd Avenue in front of #150 then again outside of Canton and I think I made the comment trying to be funny about keep running into you or something. Then see you in Cuba. If you were at Smithfield I didn't stick around long so didn't pay attention to people. I got too tired and went home after filming it roll in but my camera didn't pick it up well being night time.

      Delete
    2. David P. JordanApril 26, 2017 at 6:04 PM

      Have you tried night video with the new camera?

      Delete
    3. Traingirl36April 26, 2017 at 9:57 PM

      Yeah didn't run out too good.

      Delete

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