Southern Pacific and Cotton Belt locomotives on The Racetrack

"The Racetrack" is the BNSF/BN/CB&Q 3-track mainline between Aurora and Chicago. It is famous among railfans because it handles over 100 passenger and 50 freght trains each day. And since I live just a few blocks from the Main Street Station, it is of special interest to me.

I knew the UP had trackage rights on The Racetrack because it bought the Southern Pacific, which had trackage rights on the route. I copied the following from the BRC over Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal notes because Zaky not only explained where the SP trains terminated, he answered my question as to where the SP entered CB&Q territory.

Zaky Joseph posted
We turn back the clock to August of 1989. Here is Southern Pacific train LBCH-T (Long Beach, California to Chicago/Bedford Park , Illinois - trailers) . It has just exited trackage rights from the BN racetrack at 26th st., and is heading south on the BRC Kenton line, passing over the Chicago Sanitation Canal bridge. The train is about to cross the Santa Fe at Nerska and the IC (ex GM&O) at Lemoyne. Power for this train is a Denver Rio Grande and Western gp 40, a leased Santa Fe b 23-7, and a Saint Louis and Southwestern (Cotton Belt) b40-8.
Dennis DeBruler Thanks for explaining the bigger picture of why a SP train would be southbound on BRC tracks. Where did SP trains enter CB&Q territory to exercise their trackage rights into Chicago?
Zaky Joseph Dennis DeBruler from Kansas City, they SP would enter the Kansas City Terminal Railway after crossing the Kansas River, then head north, cross the Missouri River, where it would get onto Q rails: all the way to Galesberg, then the Mendota Sub to Aurora, then the Chicago Sub to the BRC connection at 26th st.

The motivation for these notes is another posting by Zaky.

Zaky Joseph posted four photos with the comment: "Southern Pacific activity around Chicago. Trains symbols, locations and dates provided."

1
SP train EUCH-Q (Eugine, Oregon to Chicago/BRC Clearing Yard) passes over the Desplaines River eastbound on the BN racetrack through Riverside, Illinois. December, 1990. A SP sd45 #7511, and two SP sd40-2Ts are in charge, all facing east.
Dennis DeBruler It looks like you had to do some hiking in the wilderness to get that shot. Thanks for pointing out the tunnel locos. I would have missed that the fan grills are down by the walkway rather than in a flare near the roof.https://www.google.com/.../@41.8259116,-87.../data=!3m1!1e3
Zaky Joseph Dennis DeBruler yup, I had my hiking boots on. Back then, I would stop by the Riverside Police Department and let them know I'd be back there, in case the crews complained about it. As long as I didn't cross tracks and stayed far enough away from the right of way, they didn't mind.

2
SP train EUCH-Q heads south on the BRC crossing over the Chicago Sanitation Canal bridge approaching Nerska and Lemoyne. Chicago, Illinois. December, 1990. Rio Grande sd45 #5331 plus a SP sd40-2T and a SP sd40-2 are in charge.Dennis DeBruler So DRGW had bought SP by the end of 1990.

3
SP train CHRO-M (Chicago/BRC Clearing to Roper Yard -Salt Lake City, Utah) heads north on the BRC with a SP sd40-2 "kodachome" leading, a Morrison Knudsen sd40-2 (ex BN), a SP sd40-2 and a SP gp60; passing through Lemoyne and Nerska, going to the BN racetrack. August 1988.

4
SP train CHLB-T (Chicago/Bedford Park, Illinois to Long Beach, California -Trailers) heads west on the BN racetrack with two SP speed lettered gp 60s and a SP sd40-2 at the Lavergne Interlocking. Berwyn, Illinois. August, 1990.

Dennis DeBruler commented on Zaky's post
Of course the searchlights have now been replaced by tricolor heads. This view is looking West at the interlocking from the LaVergne Station platform. (As a true railfan, I don't like trains skunking the rails :-)) Actually, I got plenty of commuter train shots. During the 17 minutes I was there, 5 of them passed me. Most didn't stop.

Bonus

Jon Roma posted

This item appeared in the Railroad Gazette on March 10, 1887. It's interesting to see that the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy's main line between Chicago and Aurora, IL was already busy enough to justify the addition of a third track at such an early date. Today, this line is, of course, BNSF's Chicago Subdivision, and is known as "the racetrack".

In contrast, the same news item mentions that the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul line was at the time only double-tracked for the first 15 miles (roughly Morton Grove), and was largely single track thereafter.

(UP+BNSF)/(SIMS+SSW) Bridge and Costello L&D on Kaskaskia River near Modoc, IL

SIMS = St. Louis Iron Mountain & Southern Railway, then Missouri Pacific, then Southern Pacific, then UP
SSW = St. Louis Southwestern Railway ("Cotton Belt"), then Southern Pacific, then UP

Evidently BNSF has trackage rights on this route because the SPV MAP shows both UP and BNSF using this route.

(I'm combining a bridge and lock&dam into one post because I've written so many posts that evidently Google's Blogspot can't handle that many because the author's keyword search has broken for me.)

Bridge: (Bridge Hunter, Satellite)
Lock and Dam: (Satellite)
The predecessor swing bridge was built in 1903 and replaced in 1975 when a derailment destroyed the swing bridge.
The Kaskaskia Lock and Dam has been renamed the Jerry F. Costello Lock and Dam.

I thought I never heard of the Kaskaskia River before. But I did because that is the river that goes over the dam, under the UP/C&EI trestle bridge and under the Aban/Big Four Bridge in Shelbyville. I traced it north to the Kaskaskia Ditch, which goes further north to drain Champaign. So the Kaskaskia River drains a good part of central Illinois.

Steven J. Brown posted
Cotton Belt 819 crossing the Kaskaskia River near Modoc, Illinois - June 13, 1990.
Ed Cooper Cotton Belt L1 #819 was built in February 1943 at the Pine Bluff Shops. It was in service until mid 1953 and then retired. It was presented to the City of Pine Bluff in 1955. On December 1, 1983 it was pulled from a Pine Bluff park for restoration. It steamed again in April 1986. It made the trip to the St. Louis area in 1990. And numerous trips around Arkansas and to Texas. It was retired a second time after a 1993 excursion to Texas. It currently is on display at the Arkansas Railroad Museum in Pine Bluff.
Tommy Thompson So sad UP won’t let her run any more, I’d like to make the UP CEO an offer he couldn’t refuse.
My grandad fired that engine.
Ed Cooper The tender was full of diesel fuel, instead of Bunker C fuel oil.
Richard Mead They said there was water in the oil.

USACE

KRPD

This is the only lock and dam on the river, and it creates a 30 mile long 9-foot navigation channel. I see they also channelized the river from near Baldwin upstream to near Fayettville.

BusinessViewMagazine, p6

(2020 Update: the information about Kaskaskia River Port District #1 has been moved to its own notes.)

A typical tow is four barges, which is equivalent to 60 jumbo hoppers (100 tons or 3,500 bu.) or 232 trucks. The CO2 emissions of barge transport is less than a tenth of the equivalent truck traffic. [KRPD-facts]  And in this day of a tight truck-driver market, considerably fewer people are needed to move the equivalent tonnage.

USACE, St. Louis District posted

Heads up to river users and recreational boaters. The Jerry F. Costello Lock and Dam in Modoc, Ill., will be closed to lockages from Friday, July 11 at 6 a.m. through Sunday, July 13 at 6 p.m. for maintenance on the culvert valve hydraulic cylinders. This work is part of preparation for a larger maintenance effort planned for August.

The upstream and downstream boat ramps will remain open during this time. While contractors will have equipment in the upstream parking lot, limited parking and river access will still be available. The lower boat ramp will also remain open as long as river conditions allow.

All navigation interest should be alert for, and abide by, any special instructions that may be issued by the Lockmaster.

For more information, contact the Kaskaskia River Project Office at (618) 284-7160 or email KaskyL&D@usace.army.mil.

Kaskaskia River Project

Aug 20, 2025:

USACE, St. Louis District posted

The St. Louis District will host a Public Meeting and Industry Day at the Jerry F. Costello Lock and Dam, (4800 Lock and Dam Road, Modoc, Ill. 62261) on Friday, August 22, from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.

This open forum will provide industry partners and the public with important updates, including:

• Current lock closure status and tainter gate rehabilitation projects

• Planned maintenance dredging and backlog maintenance work

• Adjustments to lock operational hours

In addition, attendees will have the rare opportunity to tour ongoing construction activities at the Project.

For more details, please contact the Kaskaskia River Project Office at (618) 284-7160 or KaskyL&D@usace.army.mil

Kaskaskia River Project

Feb 4, 2026: St. Louis District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers posted three photos with the comment: "Special thanks to the staff and lock operators at the Jerry F. Costello Lock and Dam (on the Kaskaskia River) for showing us the ongoing construction at the Dam and a few lockages as well!"

[Too bad they didn't include some photos of the construction.]

1

2

3, cropped

UP/Cotton Belt over White River in Claredon, AR

(Bridge Hunter, no Historic Bridges, Satellite)

Steven J. Brown posted
Cotton Belt 819 crossing the White River at Clarendon, Arkansas - June 12, 1990. Heading to the 1990 NRHS Convention in St. Louis.

The Cotton Belt was the nickname for the St. Louis Southwestern Railway (SSW).

1905 Thebes Bridge over Mississippi River

(Bridge Hunter, including some construction pictures, 2011 flood pictures, and concrete arch approach spans; Historic Bridges; John A. Weeks III, Google Photos: 1, 2, 3)

C Hanchey Flickr, License: Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) 

Thebes Bridge

Historic 1905 railroad bridge over the Mississippi River at Thebes, Illinois.

 

The Thebes Bridge carries the Union Pacific Railroad over the Mississippi River between Thebes, Alexander County, Illinois and Scott County, Missouri.

 

The bridges was initially owned by five railroads - the Chicago and Eastern Illinois Railroad, Illinois Central Railroad, Missouri Pacific Railway, St. Louis, Iron Mountain and Southern Railway, and St. Louis Southwestern Railway

C Hanchey Flickr, License: Attribution-NonCommercial (CC BY-NC) 

Thebes Bridge

Reinforced concrete viaduct approach spans on the east side of the Mississippi River.

Dave Honan
The St. Louis & Southwestern ("Cotton Belt," now UP) crossed the Mississippi River at Thebes, IL with this unique cantilever structure. The bridge, opened in 1905, has five main spans comprising a length of 2,750', along with 490' of concrete arch approaches on the west bank and 325' on the east bank. (March 23, 2002)

Dave Honan
A view of one of the east approach piers from ground level. (March 23, 2002)

1 of 8 photos posted by Grant Twiss Outdoor Photography
These photos are from a few weeks ago, before the cold weather, when we had a muggy, rainy evening in Thebes. Rock Springs Hollow was showing off, and the railroad bridge over the Mississippi was shrouded in fog. It was a very cool evening to be out and about in Southern IL!

Lisa Ruble posted five photos with the comment:

THE THEBES BRIDGE

Dedicated in May 1905

Ground was broken for the bridge on July 8, 1902, and the first train passed over It April 18, 1905. The cost of its construction was approximately, $3,000,000. (113,065,813 in 2026 dollars).

Mississippi River

1
1807

2
1905

3
East Concrete Approach 1907

4
1905

5
West Portal 1907

Neal McDaniel posted
Mississippi bridge at Thebes, IL. 1948
Christopher Gobert It is spectacular. Opened I believe in 1905. Joint project with perhaps 6 railroads. Still in use.

Jose Vicente Sendin posted
No. 844 crossing the Mississippi river near Cape Girardeau, Mo., taken by Danny Moore, March 28, 2012.

Daniel Larabee posted
UP 4014 crossing the Thebes Bridge — 8/28/21

HAARGIS photo from Bridge Hunter
[Note all of the falsework needed to build the regular trusses.]

HAARGIS photo from Bridge Hunter
[A cantilevered span avoids having to build falsework in the middle of the Mississippi River. Not only do they save the expense of building falsework, they keep the shipping lane open during construction.]

Bridges Now and Then posted
Construction on the Thebes Bridge, near Thebes, Illinois, March, 1905. (Modjeski and Masters)
Pete Schierloh: I was involved in the repair of a rather interesting expansion joint in that bridge a few years ago. Quite the structure.
James Torgeson: Still a busy crossing for Union Pacific!
Nick Brezanai shared

Comments on Nick's share
[Eureka]

Illinois Central Railroad Scrapbook posted two photos with the comment:

A couple days I posted a mystery photo of an IC auto racks/auto parts train rounding a curve on March 21, 1970, and asked where it was taken. Several folks correctly replied "Thebes, IL". Unfortunately there is no prize for giving the correct answer.
The train in question was a test train for General Motors. Auto parts and fully assembled cars from GM plants in Michigan were shipped by PC, Grand Trunk, and C&O and delivered to IC's Markham Yard in Homewood, IL.
At Markham Yard the cars were assembled into a single train and dispatched south over the IC to East St. Louis. The train was handed over to the Cotton Belt and then to the SP for final delivery to GM plants and dealerships on the West Coast.
An unknown IC company photographer caught the train as it charged around the curve leading to the Mississippi River bridge at Thebes, IL. The photographer also caught a going away shot of the train, included here.
BTW, many fans are familiar with the MoPac's and Cotton Belt's "Joint Line" operations across the Thebes bridge, and that in recent years MoPac owned 60% of the bridge, and Cotton Belt owned 40%.
The Thebes Bridge was built by the Southern Illinois & Missouri Bridge Company. When the company was formed, the SI&MBCo. was owned equally by the Cotton Belt, Chicago & Eastern Illinois Railway, the MIssouri Pacific Railway, the St. Louis & Iron Mountain Southern Railway, and the Illinois Central.
IC reached Thebes via a branchline from Carbondale, IL. Traffic never reached expectations and by the early 1930s (the exact date is unknown to me) the southernmost part of the branch had been abandoned. IC sold its interest in the SI&MBCo. to Missouri Pacific, which also took over the St.LIM&S Railway, and thus became majority owner of the Thebes bridge. Eventually the C&EI abandoned its line into Thebes and sold its interest in the bridge to the Cotton Belt. Of course, today Union Pacific owns both the MoPac and Cotton Belt.

1

2

Russell Barber posted
1960 C & EI diesel # 225 at an unknown bridge.

Steve Rodgers commented on the above posting
Thebes bridge today looking toward Thebes Illinois

Steve Rodgers commented on the above posting
North side of the bridge looking southeast at IIllinois from Missouri

Steve Rodgers commented on the above posting
 Dan Tracy took this great photo of some MPs on the the bridge (see below for Dan's posting)

Abandonedimages by Michael Wright posted
Union Pacific train going across the old bridge ( built in 1905 ) at Thebes ,Illinois.
Damon C. Poole That's the Missouri Pacific Railroad they're on, it was originally owned by Chicago & Eastern Illinois, Cotton Belt, & Illinois Central, in conjunction with the MP. MP merged with C&EI in 1967, then UP in 1982, UP then merged with SP which owned Cotton Belt in 1996.

Dan Tracy posted
Northbound empty coal train rolls across Thebes bridge at Thebes IL on 11-24-84. More info on the bridge here:
http://www.johnweeks.com/river_mississ…/pagesC/umissC14.html

Ryan Barry posted
Empty coal train crossing Thebes Bridge, Cape Girardeau, Mo, on its way to the Southern Illinois coal field. Note the hunters shooting birds from the bridge. Nov 24, ‘84. Photo: Dan Tracy
Steve Puchbauer long nose forward, thats unusual
Richard Steed Not unusual for the MOP
Kirby Ellis Wow can you imagine today if a hunter was on a bridge with a gun? There would be a meltdown lol

Bill Neill shared

Mike Chervinko posted
Standing tall, and fading into the low morning fog as it spans the Mississippi, the Thebes bridge is worth a look if you are in the area. It is 115 years old and it is magnificent.
Pete Dunkel https://flic.kr/p/MFZUhA
[About 40 trains a day.]

I've gotten to the point where I can recognize the Thebes bridge because of the different heights of the trusses.

Terry Redeker shared

Steven J. Brown posted
Cotton Belt 819 crosses the Mississippi River on the way to the NRHS Convention in St Louis at Thebes, Illinois - June 13, 1990.

Drew Lawrence posted
Name bridge
Eddie Dover: S/B above Thebes RR Bridge.

Roger Red Woelfel commented on Drew's post
Thebes sb.

Katherine Hutto posted two photos with the comment: "Train going across prob gives it away!"

Adam DeSimone: Thebes

Adam DeSimone: Ole barge sinker

1

2

Bridges Now and Then posted
"Construction of the Thebes Bridge superstructure commenced in the Spring of 1904. The main river spans were erected from each side of the river without any falsework in the water which saved time and money, and simultaneously improved safety. The main spans were connected at the center of the structure in March of 1905 as shown in this image." (Modjeski and Masters)

Norm Heersink: Retro fitted by Kiewit in the 1987-1988 time.

Michael Q Quagilano posted

Generations

A grandfather shares the moment with his grandson as the largest steam locomotive ever build crosses the mighty Mississippi.

Out of all the photos I took at this location, this is definitely my favorite. The little boy, who was 6, wanted nothing to do with siting and waiting for #bigboy. Even as the all-powerful steam locomotive started to make its way across the mighty Mississippi on the Thebes Bridge, the youngster still showed little interest, that was until #UP4104 roared with her whistle, and he was quickly captive of her awesomeness.

[People who hold their phone vertically while taking a photo of a train boil my blood. A train is a horizontal (landscape) subject.]
Michael Q Quagilano shared
Daniel Herkes: Don't miss the Thebes Courthouse either.

Mary Rae McPherson posted
Four-axle G.E. power was never popular with the Union Pacific, with most of the locomotives ending up in yellow coming from railroads that were merged into the system.  A former Missouri Pacific locomotive heading up a northbound coming off the Mississippi River bridge into Thebes, Illinois, is a perfect example.
Mary McPherson photo, February 18, 1989.
Patrick Provart: I think it was Jim Boyd who talked about the UP Power Pool in the late 60s with the ICRR. IC Bought 10 loaded up GP-40s and UP was using their "4-axle power" - U25Bs, Alco DL40s, GP20s. Someone at UP had a sense of humor and noticed that the power agreement said "No six-axle locomotives" and slipped a DD35 into Chicago.
Mary Rae McPherson shared

I never noticed before that the approaches to this bridge were non-trivial structures in their own right. The 3D satellite feature doesn't work here, but the shadows show the arches. Scrolling back, there are several photos that show the arches. Mary also caught the cut-stone construction of the piers.

Satellite

Rails Around Southern Illinois posted
“MoPac SD40 #755 and GP38 #926 lead a northbound over the Thebes bridge on the morning of November 19, 1973. The Southern Illinois & Missouri Bridge Company was formed in 1904 to construct and own the bridge, completed in 1905.” 
(Clyde Anderson)
 Our book contains more context on the history of this bridge as well as the rest of southern Illinois. It is 256-pages, hard cover, with well over 600 all-color images from 1950-1995. Due out May 1, you can reserve your autographed copy here: https://michaelckelly.net/?page_id=7467
Michael C Kelly shared

0:48 video @ 0:37

Doug Morrell posted