Choo! Choo! What is this? It is a scene from the 1940's? Guess again. Would you believe this picture was taken a bit more recently ... on October 24, 1996? I was fortunate to be able to ride behind Union Pacific Steam Engine #844 on the Union Pacific excursion train. It traveled from St. Louis to Poplar Bluff, Missouri via mainly Illinois tracks. I had the rare opportunity for the only photo run-by on the trip at Gorham in Southern Illinois to be on a section of former Missouri Pacific tracks with the lines and insulators still in use.

As you can see in the photo below, the pole has thirteen porcelain beehives (possibly the M-P type) and four glass insulators that appear to be Hemingray 660's (CD 218) or a similar style. As an individual who collects insulators and enjoys riding trains, this event was a double treat that may never occur for me again.