Illinois railroad depots, ect....

As everyone knows I railfan and sometimes visit depots as well as look for abandoned lines in the central and western Illinois areas. I take pictures and try to provide a small history with them if i know some about them. Most of the depots I have visited are in decent shape and a few of them have been turned into museums such as the one in Chillicothe. I'll get to that one in a bit. I seen listed two I want to check out both a little bit of a drive from Canton but I like to drive so I don't care. Down in Brown County there is suppose to be a railroad depot that may be a museum in Mount Sterling and there is suppose to be one in Timewell which may be in Brown or Adams County which not really sure. I think both are on Route 24 that goes to Quincy. Both were on the Wabash Railroad I think. It ran to up to Carthage and Keokuk and went to Meredosia. It sounds like one ran up from Quincy. I'm not sure and need to find more information about this and the line itself which is now long gone. It was Wabash then N&W Railroad. Like I said and if I'm wrong I need to do more research. Timewell was established around 1858 by the Wabash Railroad as Mound Station. It was incorporated as a village in 1901 and the name was changed as well as the Post office name in 1903. I am going to post pictures of depots I have visited which is quite a few. Some depots I want to visit is the Monticello depot which is a museum which holds events. If anyone has any suggestions I'm all ears. I think Lincoln, Illinois has one and i know Springfield has an Amtrak station as does Lincoln. I'm not sure but Delavan I heard does. Anyway here is some pictures I have taken......

Here is a current Amtrak Station which was also a former CB&Q depot. There is a CB&Q caboose near by. This is in Princeton, Illinois which is like 60 miles or so from the Quad Cities and now sits off the Iowa Interstate Railroad and I think BNSF. Don't hold me to that. I don't know the area very good or at all. Haha.

Next we have the former Fulton County Narrow Gauge in Lewistown, Illinois. This Railroad was a brief one that ran for twenty five years until CB&Q took over and turned it into a standard Gaugue Railway. This Railroad ran from 1880-1905 then CB&Q from 1905 until most of the line but a section from Lewiston to Fairview was abandon in the 1934 or 1935 time frame. The Lewistown to Fairview one served coal mines and was abandoned by Burlington Northern in 1977.
Fairview had a depot but I think it was torn out in the 1970's or 1980's

Next is the CB&Q depot in Lewistown, Illinois. I don't know the dates but passenger service for the line ended in 1960 or 1961. Afterwards CB&Q hauled just freight. They merged with Burlington Northern in 1970. BN would become BNSF in 1995. I don't know what the depot is used for now but the line is still active used by BNSF to haul coal to Duck CReek Power Plant near Dunfermline a few times a week. I do remember in the 1990's people would set up stands to sell stuff on the Spoon River Drive and Dad did one year in 1994. Two kids from Washington and I explored and climbed on the old Loading dock and a Green BN locomotive with a long haul of empty hoppers came by. I waved at the engineer while standing on top of the loading dock. I didn't know what it was really for at the time. One year someone had a model train display i watched inside the depot on the Spoon River Drive.

The next depot is for an old Interurban Railroad that ran to Farmington to Lewistown, Illinois as well as had a branch to Fairview. It was a brief one for almost twenty years. It ran from about 1912 and stopped service in 1928 due to the automobile plus CB&Q had passenger trains. This is the only depot left of it in Bryant, Illinois.

The following depot sits in Browning, Illinois and was a depot on the former CB&Q main line that

went to Beardstown. The hill at Bader made it very difficult for trains to navigate on so they built

another Main line to the west from Vermont down to Beardstown. The town of Bader sprang up

because of the Railroad. It ceased service in the 1960's and this depot is the only thing still standing I think. The ROW and bed can still be seen in places today but tracks are gone.

The next line with a depot is in Virginia , Illinois which is east of Beardstown by fifteen miles in Cass County. The depot was for the former B&O Railroad that ran to Beardstown. The bed can still be seen and the depot is a resturant. I could have swore there was a caboose there at one time back in the 1990's as Dad took us through that area a few times.

For our next one is an old C&IM depot in Forest City, Illinois. It sits off the current tracks for the Illinois & MIdland Railroad.

Coming up is the old depot sitting along with an old SF Caboose in Bushnell, Illinois which is off the current BNSF line. I think it used to be CB&Q before the 1970 merger with BN.

Here is the old Canton, Illinois TP&W depot sitting off Second Avenue. No idea when they stopped using it for railroad passengers but probably 1960's or 1970's. It was also another

building at one time and bigger I think.

Another Canton, Illinois depot was the old CB&Q (later BN after 1970). It was around for many many decades. The last passenger service was 1960 or 1961 but BN used it for freight purposes

after 1970. This line later ceased service from Yates City to just south of Canton. The tracks were removed in 2017. The closure of the mines & IH plant doomed that portion of the line in the 1980's. Down at Dunfermline the line is used to haul coal to the power plant. At the depot they have an old Whitcomb Switcher built in the 1930's and worked at Buckheart Mine owned by United Electric Coal Company.

This one coming up is the old Rock Island Depot in Chillicothe. I'm also including the old Rock Island turn table in Peoria where their yard used to be. The Rock Island went bankrupt in 1980

and the yard was taken out in the early to mid 1980's. No idea when the depot stopped passenger service but probably in the 1960's or 1970's. This line was very old being built in the 1800's and has a long history. Also included as points of interests is the Old Rock Island Office in Peoria and

an Old Rock Island steam engiene which is at the Wheels of Time Museum in Peoria. Admission to that museum is like seven dollars and looks like a cool place to visit. If I get extra money will make a special trip to it one of these days. Chillicothe depot has a SF Caboose there for anyone wondering.

Here is the old Rock Island depot in Peoria, Illinois. It stopped service in the 1960's or 1970's.

Here is the depot in Pekin, Illinois that was the old Chicago & Illinois Midland Railroad which is

now Illinois & Midland Railroad (IMRR). I have no idea the history on this. Shown is the depot with a CN local sitting next to it then an IMRR train passing by the property in other pictures.

Once again the Rock Island Railroad comes up with Abby Station up in Rock Island Illinois in

2017.

In Victoria, Illinois in Knox County sits an old depot for the G&GE Railroad which lasted like 60 up until 1960. It was incorporated around `1894 and ceased service in 1960 tearing out tracks and selling or scrapping equipment soon after. The line served area coal mines and farmers.

The next one is an abandoned line like so many that was torn out ages ago. The Illinois Terminal Railroad which ran from Peoria through Mackinaw and down south. The remains is a depot at Mackinaw, Illinois. In the 1970's I think 1977 there was a train derailment over the Mackinaw River I think and cars went into the river. This helped move along plans for abandonment and it was abandoned. Also the line wasn't doing well profit wise i think.