Roundhouses and Backshops - Part 2

In my last post I discussed the functions of the roundhouse in the role of steam locomotive maintenance.  Where the roundhouse was the location of "light" and daily servicing, the backshop was where the heavy rebuilding of steam engines and rail cars took place.  Some railroads, like the Norfolk & Western and the Pennsylvania actually manufactured their own locomotives and cars from the ground up.

C&NW's 40th Street Shops

Unlike roundhouses, which could be found at almost every railroad yard, the backshops were only found in a limited number of locations.  The usually served a whole railroad, for smaller lines, or a central to a number of operating districts, for larger ones.  The most notable backshop in Chicago was owned by the Chicago & North Western Railroad and was located on the far West side of the city.  Known as "40th Street", as it was 4000 west in the city's street numbering system,  it was bounded by Crawford Ave. (later renamed Pulaski) Chicago Avenue, Lake Street and the Belt Railway.  It was adjacent to the railroad's classification yard at that location.  The Illinois Central also maintained a large shop on the city's south side know as Burnside.

While the roundhouse was a circular or semi-circular building with a turntable located in the center, the backshop buildings were linear.  In the case of the erecting shops, this was necessary to accommodate the heavy traveling cranes that traveled across the length of the building.  These buildings were two to three stories tall to accommodate lifting large components, such as boilers and driving wheels from location to location in the repair or erection process.
 

 An overhead crane rated for 258 tons lifts a locomotive.

The backshops were more than one building.  Each structure in the complex served a specific function: boiler making and repair, paint and varnish, metal machining, carpentry, etc.  They were in essence factories unto themselves, very often supplying the power necessary to accomplish the work.  In some cases the buildings allowed locomotives, components and cars to move in and out of either side of the structure.  Movement between buildings was accomplished via "transfer tables", a linear version of the roundhouse turntable.

Transfer table

The backshops were hives of activity with hundreds of laborers and skilled craftsman working around the clock to keep up with the everyday tasks at hand.  The steam locomotive required constant rebuilding, replacing boiler tubes corroded by steam was a common job.  Wheels were removed and worn "tires" replaced, moving parts inspected and replaced as necessary.  Each locomotive tended to be unique, with no "off the shelf" components available for repairs.  Parts would be cast and then machined.  Locomotives could be periodically upgraded with newer technologies to extend their working lives.  Some entered the shops and came out radically different machines.  The Illinois Central converted a number of their older freight locomotives for use in suburban commuter service.  The C&NW upgraded passenger locomotives with streamlined shrouding to present a modern and sleek appearance.

 40th Street shop forces working on a locomotive conversion.

In the case of freight and passenger cars, their constant use required frequent maintenance and rebuilding.  Cars damaged in wrecks could be rebuilt and returned to service.  The railroads saw this as a sound return on their initial investment.  As with locomotives, rail cars could be modified and improved or rebuilt for a completely different function.  Diesel locomotives and changes in the industry ended the primacy of the backshop in the railroad industry.  In many cases they were not suitable for diesel maintenance, which like automobiles had standardized parts from the manufacturer that could easily be replaced.  The necessity of having a huge workforce to cater to the steam engines disappeared almost overnight.  Thousands of skilled craftsmen lost their jobs as a result.  Those shops that did hang on were more modern and now functioned as a single point of repair for the whole railroad as opposed to segments of it.

Working in a locomotive smoke box.

When railroads began to merge with their competitors many railroads found themselves with more shops than they needed to efficiently maintain their equipment.  In the case of 40th Street it was supplanted by the former Chicago & Great Western shops in Olwein, Iowa when the C&NW merged with that carrier.  Burnside was eventually replaced by new facilities at Markham Yard in South suburban Harvey.  The growing reliance on leased freight equipment places the burden of heavy repairs on the lessor, and outside firms are making inroads into the car and locomotive repair and rebuilding business.  The former IC shops in Paducah, Kentucky are now operated by a locomotive rebuilding firm.

Former Rock Island steel car shops.

Little remains of these expansive facilities that can be found or recognized by the casual observer.  One shop building at 40th Street remain, now re-purposed for other non-railroad uses, although the M19A diesel shop is still used to service commuter locomotives.  One building at Burnside remains and in use by Chicago State University which now occupies the site of the former shops.  Rock Island's steel car shops in Blue Island are now in use by a plumbing firm, but the terra cotta herald still proudly shows its former life.  The exception to the rule in Chicago is Metra's 47th Street Shops, formerly owned by the Rock Island Railroad.  The former "Rocket House" is currently engaged in a rebuilding program to upgrade the commuter railroad's locomotive fleet to become compliant with Federal pollution standards for diesel engines.  The car shops have undertaken upgrades to the fleet of commuter cars to extend their usable lives as a cost effective way to prolong the increasingly costly proposition of replacing them with new equipment.  So, a bit of history continues on the city's south side.

Metra's 47th Street diesel shop.  Dan Marinellie photo.