NS/NYC/LSMS Burns Harbor Railyard

(Satellite)

Street View, Jun 2023

 Mark Anthony DeLeon, Apr 2018

railroad_journal posted

NS Burns Harbor Yard

NS Burns Harbor Yard is located on the north side of the Norfolk Southern Chicago Line, between CP 485 and CP 487.  The yard is surrounded by US Steel Midwest Plant finishing facility, Port of Indiana-Burns Harbor, and Cleveland-Cliffs integrated steel mill.

The industrial development here began in conjunction with the opening of the Welland Canal in Ontario, Canada, that connects Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, allowing ships to bypass Niagara Falls. It is part of the St. Lawrence Seaway, a deep waterway from the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes.

The New York Central mainline was moved 1,000’ south to accommodate the industrial construction. A temporary yard was built in 1959 to support the immense construction activity. After 20 months of construction, the NYC Burns Harbor Yard initially served plants of Midwest and Bethlehem steel companies. The new yard’s capacity was 680 freight cars with seven classification tracks and two outbound and receiving tracks. As the Bethlehem Steel plant expanded, so did the yard.  Today, Burns Harbor Yard is operated by Norfolk Southern.

Evan Jones: The numbering actually goes:

1-2 (no 3)

4-13 (no 14)

15-22 (no 23)

Then track 24 is the RIP