| STEAM POWER |
| Detroit & Milwaukee Engine No.10 standing at Muir station. No.10 had a wheel arrangement of a 4-4-0. This was called the American type and was built in greater numbers than any other wheel arrangement used in the United States. Some 25,000 locomotives of this design were placed in service from about 1831 through 1905. The 4-4-0 was ideally suited for conditions on early American railroads where the roadbed was light and uneven, the rails light, the curves sharp, and the grades steep. These early locomotives on the D.&M. had mechanical brakes on the tender that were set by the fireman. In emergencies the engineer would also reverse the engine and apply sand to the rails. All the D.&M locomotives had their bell mounted on the pilot as seen here in this photograph. Rule No.3 |
| in 1858 states: Enginemen will not start their train until signalled by the Conductors, nor until the bell is rung. Bells will be rung 200 yards from every road crossing. Trains must be run as near to time as possible, under no circumstances leaving a Station earlier than Card time. At the end of 1872 the D. & M. had 34 locomotives on their roster. During this year they consumed 23,191 cords of wood and 448 tons of coal. In the winter season, the farmers east of St. Johns would cut and stack wood along the track to be bought and used by the D. & M. Railway. Photograph from Gordon Lydeksen collection. |
| In the view on the left is No.2246 and train standing at the St. Johns depot. This locomotive was built by Rhode Island Locomotive Co. in 1882 and was assigned to Chicago & Grand Trunk as No.62. In 1898 the engine number was changed to 1075. In 1910 the number was again changed to Grand Trunk Western No.2246. Engine 2246 was a class H-2, 4-4-0, with 18 by 24 in. cylinders. Locomotives at this date are now equipt with air brakes. The 4-4-0's of this date are more powerful than the D. & M. 4-4-0's of 1856. Note the bus waiting to take passengers to the Steel Hotel in downtown St. Johns. Photograph from a postcard. |
| It is now 1947 in St. Johns and the fellow sitting on the roof of the St. Johns Stock Yards is taking in the show of a freight train eastbound for Durand from Muskegon. We can't make out the engine number but the outline makes it look like one of G.T.W.'s 3700's. There were three different classes of this engine. They were a 2-8-2 type and all were built by Alco. The traction effort of these engines were from 51,637 to 54,724 pounds, depending on the class of the engine. Boiler pressures were from 175 pounds to 200 pounds. The early tenders held 7200 gallons and 14 tons of coal. Later tenders held 12,000 gallons of water and 16 tons of coal. This west view was taken from the Whittemore street overpass. The track on the left is the spur to Elmer Emmons Cider Mill. In the upper left is the freight |
| house built after the 1920 tornado. This burn June 14, 1972. The St. Johns Stock Yard occupies the site of the D. & M.'s enginehouse and repair shop back in 1865. In the lower right hand corner is the roof of the section house with some ties lying next to it. Photograph from Bement Library. |
| Alden H. Haight took this dramatic photograph of train No.56 storming out of St. Johns. On the point is Grand Trunk Western 5628, a class K-4-a pacific type locomotive with a wheel arrangement of 4-6-2. Grand Trunk had five locomotives in this class. Number 5628 had 40,750 pounds of traction at 200 pounds of boiler pressure. Total weight of engine and tender in working order was 488,300 pounds. Tender capacity was 10,000 gallons of water and 18 tons of coal. This locomotive was scrapped in 1960. Train No.56, from time table No.210, was carded out of Muskegon at 12:45 pm and left St. Johns at 3:03 pm with arrival in Detroit at 5:55 pm. The last steam run from Muskegon, through St. Johns to Detroit was December 2, 1958. Locomotive 6408, a class U-4-b, 4-8-4, was on the point. |
| In this view from Whittemore street overpass we can see Elmer Emmons Cider Mill, in the upper left, which is under demolition. My brother-law, Glenn Whitford, remembers around 1958 removing lumber from this cider mill for construction of pig pens on his farm. In the lower right hand corner of this photograph is the site of the track maintenance facility. Note the supply of rail and switch parts. |
| West view of the deep cut and the Whittemore street overpass. This post card was post marked March 18, 1913. In this time period the railroad is the Detroit, Grand Haven and Milwaukee Railway Co. This overpass was built in May,1911 to replace the original wooden structure damage by fire. |
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| Early Accidents |
| Railroading on the Detroit & Milwaukee was very dangerous work. Speed wasn't high, 15mph for freights, but there were no airbrakes. The way a train was stopped in emergencies was, the engineer would whistle for down brakes. When the brakemen in the caboose heard this whistle, they would run along the tops of the cars and set the hand brakes on each car. On the locomotive the fireman would set the hand brake on the tender and the engineer would reverse the engine. This took a lot of time. Coupling was done with link and pin and frogs on cross overs and turnouts were not blocked with wood so a brakeman could catch his foot in them and be caught fast. The following are a few accidents I took from The Clinton Republican that happened in St. Johns. May 27, 1864 BRAKEMAN -- On Friday morning last a young man named Chas. McMillin, a brakeman on the D. & M. Railroad was instantly killed at this station while in the act of coupling freight cars, laden with staves. Several staves projected beyond the frame work of the cars having been placed for the purpose of binding loads. The head of the unfortunate victim was caught between these protruding ends and crushed causing instant death. His remains were taken to Detroit, where his parents reside. November 18, 1864 A SMASH UP -- The mixed train on the D. & M. Railroad due here at 1:20 am arrived at the station yesterday morning with its engine in a disabled condition and laid over upon the track for repairs. The mixed 4:45 am train from the East arrived here on time, and being under some headway, ran into the train upon the track, wellnigh wrecking one or two freight cars, breaking open boxes of freight, loosening axles from their fastenings, injuring the engine of the westward - bound train, and covering the ground with debris of the wreck. One passenger only was slightly injured. No blame, we understand, attaches to any employees of the road. The loss to the company will probably be $10,000. May 19, 1865 FATAL ACCIDENT -- A train of cars left this place for the west on Sunday morning last and proceeded to Ionia, where a brakeman named John Kelly was caught by the foot in a switch while coupling cars, and so mangled by the wheels of the moving train that he died a few hours afterwards. In the report to the Commissioner of Railroads dated December 31, 1872, there were five accidents to brakemen on the D. & M. Railroad for that year. Most of these resulted in amputation of limbs. |
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