Railroad Towns Archives - Page 2 of 5 - The Trackside Photographer

Posted on January 13, 2022January 20, 2022 by admin

Railroad Heritage: Herndon, Virginia

Former Washington & Old Dominion Railroad Depot

If you were to visit the town of Herndon, Virginia today, you would think of it as any other town. It has a town center, houses, stores, and main streets. What very few people know is that this suburb of Washington D.C. has a deep-rooted history.

Who is Herndon named after? It is named after William Lewis Herndon, the commander of the S.S. Central America, a ship that sank in 1857 in a hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean while in route from Panama to New York City. It is said that Commander Herndon saved his crew as he went down and perished with the ship.

It is named for a sea captain, but there is no navigable waterway in the town. How is it named for a sea captain? William Herndon and his wife were born in Virginia. He was born in Fredericksburg, and she was born in Culpeper.

Posted on May 28, 2020November 19, 2020 by admin

Bones That Rattle

The sound could fool you into believing you’re hearing the ebb and flow of the lake’s waves breaking on shore, if not for the almost-alien whirring vibration. The thud-thunk, thud-thunk, the whispering whoooooosh, and the pulsating squeal of compressed metal on metal.

As a first time visitor to this city of towers and glass, one cannot help but be awed by the commotion above sidewalks and between infamous skyscrapers. These steel lines are the bones and the L is the soul of this city. Without it, this windy mecca would not exist as it appears today.

Nowhere in the world, does the melting pot of America appear more obvious than on the benches of the waiting platforms. One glance presents you with society in all of its glory. Class cannot exist here, as bodies press together in the hustle of our fast-paced lives.

Posted on January 23, 2020January 30, 2020 by admin

Depot Road

On a cold and rainy afternoon in late December, 2019, I stood on the railroad tracks in the small village of Fishers Hill, in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. I was surrounded by weeds, and distances were lost in mist. Behind me, the tracks crossed over Tumbling Run, and before me stood a derelict, two-story, gable-roofed frame building. One one side, the tracks; on the other side, Depot Road.

Posted on December 5, 2019December 12, 2019 by admin

The Railroad in Markópoulo
Attika, Greece

Markópoulo (Greek: Μαρκόπουλο Μεσογαίας) is a market and farming town in Attica, east of Athens. For many years, it was a bustling market center that retained its small-town look, although it was only an hour or so drive from Athens. But recently, developers built houses and condominium apartments, some out in the olive fields. As usual, I am mystified; who are the potential customers? Today, Athens Elefthérios Venizélos International Airport is only a few kilometers away and the area is slowly becoming more commercial.

Posted on October 10, 2019October 17, 2019 by admin

Railroad Town:
McComb, Mississippi

Driving south through Mississippi on Interstate 55. It’s a cool, rainy morning, the kind of spring day you sometimes get in the South before the summer heat and humidity settles in. I pass the signs for Crystal Springs, Hazelhurst, Wesson, Brookhaven, Bogue Chitto, Summit—towns that lie to the east along the tracks. The tracks, and the Interstate, lead me to McComb. In town, I stop for a morning cup of coffee, and make my way to the former Illinois Central depot.

Posted on September 26, 2019October 3, 2019 by admin

The Diamond

As railfans, we all have that one place we love to go. Whether it’s to shoot trains or to just escape from the day-to-day hustle and bustle of the world, we all have a place that helps us or soothes us in some form or fashion. For me, that place is the diamond in my hometown of Meridian Mississippi. The diamond isn’t just a place for me to shoot trains, but it was always a place for me to go when I needed to clear my head and just relax. It’s my sanctuary, if you will.