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Monon Railroad - The Hoosier Line The railroad line associated with McDoel Switchyard was owned by a series of companies including, initially, the New Albany and Salem Railroad. The original company was organized in 1847. Construction of the initial track north from New Albany followed a dirt road, and incorporated some of the road’s layout and grades. As a result, the railroad line was built for low speed operation. Over time the line was acquired by other companies, eventually becoming the Monon Railroad and later the CSX Railroad. The railroad line operated almost entirely in Indiana, linking major communities such as New Albany, Bloomington, Lafayette, Indianapolis, and Chicago, as well as smaller communities and six Indiana universities/colleges. The name “Monon” derived from a stream near Bradford Indiana. Potawatomi Indians named the stream “Monong” which means “to carry or swift running.”
McDoel Yard, date unknown. (Courtesy Tom Rankin.)
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The rail line transported students to Indiana University in Bloomington, Wabash College in Crawfordsville, DePauw University in Greencastle and Purdue University in Lafayette. Colors for the locomotives and passenger trains were Red & White on Grey for Indiana University, and Gold on Black for Purdue University. (Some accounts attribute the color scheme to Wabash College and DePauw University, respectively.) Those colors were used until the Monon merged with the L & N Railroad.
McDoel Switchyard
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The Switchyard Park area was once known as “McDoel Yards,” and was one of the largest facilities on the railroad line. Trains working locally out of McDoel traveled to Bedford, French Lick, Orleans, Gosport, Ellettsville and to Wallace Junction. At its peak, McDoel yards could hold 700 rail cars. Cars in the yard were sorted and placed in long haul freight trains and were delivered to Lafayette, Chicago, Indianapolis, Michigan City or Louisville and other destinations. Indiana limestone, mined from surrounding areas, often filled the rail cars and were shipped nationwide. The 105-foot diameter McDoel roundhouse had 17 bays, and a central turntable. It was tunneled with drains. Today the concrete pad that remains has several collapsed drains that may follow the pattern of those found in the 1913 and 1927 Sanborn maps. The roundhouse was surrounded by mechanics shops and a lumberyard, which no longer exist. The neighborhood surrounding the McDoel Switchyard included a mix of residential and commercial business,. For many years, the railroad was a major employer in the neighborhood, until the mid-1940’s when the automobile brought about greater mobility.
The McDoel Switchyard Today With the exception of an intact building at the north end of the park, only traces remain of the former switchyard. Remnants of track, utility poles, roads, bridges and building foundations hint at the site’s past industrial activity. A retaining wall along the east side of the park indicates that the site was once filled prior to the construction of the railroad track and switchyard. The former industrial activity has negatively impacted both the environmental and ecological health of the site.
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McDoel Yard, date unknown. (Courtesy Ron Marquardt.)
Switchyard office, circa 1917. (Courtesy John Stigall.) Sources: Monon Railroad Historical-Technical Society http://www.monon.org Bygone Places http://www.monon.monon.org/ Wanatah Historical Society http://www.wanatah.org/railroad.php Rick’s Monon Railroad Site http://mononrr.com/ 1913 Sanborn Map. (Courtesy of
).