Joliet Cut-Off Remnants: Part 2
38th & Carolina Street
Northeast of that location is the building at 3840 Georgia Street. The Joliet Cut-Off ran south of it. Today, this building is the Gary Public Schools Grounds Building.
Yet before it became a part of GPS, it was the research division of Kraft. In 1943, Kraft left Gary, and Reynolds Metals Company moved in. Later, Sunbeam Lighting Company joined Reynolds.
Reynolds is the aluminum company associated with aluminum foil, of course. The Gary facility was more associated with plastics and depended on government contracts to manufacture and deliver various products for the military.
By way of New York Central, Michigan Central serviced the business with extensive tracks that sat immediately south of the building at its loading docks and with storage tracks south of the mainline. Today, this area is completely cleared of traces of the right-of-way and infrastructure.
Reynolds of Gary faltered when most of its government contracts fell through. Sunbeam Lighting Company (SLC) went out of business in 1970. Three years later, the Joliet Cut-Off was abandoned.
38th & Georgia Street
Once again, all traces of the crossing on this street are erased. The only remnant remains the memory of the right-of-way impressed into the asphalt. A telegraph pole may be hidden in the woods across the street, but it is not worth pointing out because it blends in with the woods and is very obscure.
Scattered about the property west of the street is railroad ballast embedded into the ground. I looked at the street to see if any rails were hidden. If there are, they are covered well.
The “business” shown above used to have a siding that came off the mainline. It is hard to tell if any remnant of this siding is left.
38th & Tennessee Street
About 1,400 feet northeast of the previous site sits the Tennesse Street crossing. All the property in between is private and inaccessible, and as a result, it is nearly impossible to explore.
Below is the Tennessee Street crossing.
As with many of the others, only the imprint in the ground tells the story of where the tracks crossed. Across the street, inside the woods, sits a few mounds of dirt and sand resembling a railroad embankment. Yet, this is only speculation. It’s been over 40 years since this railroad was here. There could be an embankment remnant, or there could not.
37th & Louisiana
This garbage-strewn street surrounded by junk hides the best evidence of a left-over embankment.
The owners of the land should be ashamed of themselves for the conditions. I don’t care that the embankment is shrouded in foliage. The garbage, junk, and debris scattered everywhere is embarrassing.
Near-Ridge Road
This is not a crossing. Yet, the right-of-way traversed behind a gas station and dry cleaners immediately east of Louisiana Street. I photographed the right-of-way looking northeast towards Ridge Road. The land here is cleared, of course. Yet there is still railroad ballast here.
37th & Mississippi Street/Ridge Road
The Joliet Cut-Off began to cross Ridge Road or 37th Avenue.
The right-of-way came just right of the line of trees and the center of the parking lot shown above.
The next picture is looking in the other direction, to the northeast. The Cut-Off crossed Ridge Road at this corner before the Hobart lighthouse marker.
Tildan Street
Tildan Street did not exist during the time of the Joliet Cut-Off. It was a flat, sandy plain. Here is where we lose the right-of-way to I-65, which is used to cross under.
I missed the boat with this line. During better times, this portion of the Cut-Off was scarcely used…even more so immediately before its abandonment. Traffic was so infrequent that most folks in Glen Park would cross it and never look to see if anything was coming. Because of infrequent activity, there are very few photos of trains. Had I been around, I would have photographed every inch. Alas, I have the benefit of hindsight.