Re: Michigan Rail Guide 1934
The old timers here may remember my story about my getting this wonderful guide and almost losing it to my dog. Back in the 1950s, my brother were lucky enough to ride along with my dad during the summer on his occasional business trip to the Windy City. He'd set us loose when we got there, knowing we'd make a predictable pilgrimage to the top floor of the the Board of Trade Building to collect as many train schedules as we could carry and watch activity on the maze of track that spread in all directions from the nearby passenger stations. Grand Central, LaSalle St., CN&W, Dearborn and Union. From there we'd visit each of those stations. On one those forays we hiked from the Loop to an old Victorian brownstone, 2 miles up LaSalle. 1200 LaSalle St. housed a treasure trove of stuff that, pardon the expression, was orgasmic to a young railfan. Just stuffed in and spilling out of big cardboard packing crates ... everywhere you looked in this spooky old place, presided over by a rather spooky looking old lady. Rooting around in one of them is where I found my treasure: the Michigan Railway Guide of 1934. Paid hard earned, for a 13s year old, $1.50 paper-route-loot for it. Many years later, a new member of our family, puppy dog Riley, somehow found it and was in the process of devouring it when I fortunately walked in on him and stopped him. It nearly cost him his life. So over the next week or so it takes to upload and post this treasure .... appreciate that it nearly cost what turned out to be one my of my best friends in life ... my dog Riley ... his life. All's well that ends well, however. Riley lived 14 more years and became a diehard and well traveled railfan, first class.
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