Vandalia Railroad (1905–1917)
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| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Locale | Indiana |
The Vandalia Railroad was a railroad from Logansport, Indiana, to South Bend, Indiana. It quickly became a property of the Pennsylvania Railroad (PRR), which later became part of Penn Central and then Conrail. The railroad was mostly a freight-carrying route with a hub at Logansport Yard. After Penn Central's assimilation into Conrail, the line was almost completely abandoned.
Route
The route was primarily North-South from Logansport, IN, to South Bend, IN. Logansport was a PRR hub, with six branch lines radiating in many directions. Logansport also featured a yard and engine terminal. From Logansport, the line proceeded northward intersecting every major east-west trunk line including the PRR's main east-west route and PRR's "panhandle" route. Upon reaching South Bend, the line proceeded northward through an industrial corridor toward the Studebaker plant to a depot just short of South Bend Union Station. Because the New York Central (NYC) trackage was elevated, interchange with NYC and tenant Grand Trunk Western (GTW) was indirect via a west-routed branch that reached the Studebaker plant railroad, New Jersey, Indiana, and Illinois (NJI&I) subsidiary of the Wabash Railroad, GTW, and NYC's Kankakee Belt Railroad subsidiary. PRR maintained few facilities other than the depot in town as there were no other connecting PRR lines in South Bend.
Equipment
The Vandalia Railroad was a PRR subsidiary for the entire twentieth century. PRR was known for equipment standardization and as such, all properties and subsidiaries operated with standardized PRR equipment. No known photographs of Vandalia-lettered equipment exist.
Traffic
Freight traffic was the primary use of the Vandalia Railroad. Studebaker loaded trucks for shipment south. Passenger trains were operated, including football specials for the University of Notre Dame. The university is located a few miles north of the station.
Abandonment
Despite the shutdown of most Studebaker operations in South Bend, abandonment was delayed until the Conrail consolidation. At that time, Conrail had three routes to/through South Bend and the Vandalia Railroad was deemed redundant. It has been abandoned piecemeal from the city border northward, with online industries served from trains based on the former NYC territory.
Remnants
The depot in South Bend still stands as a business. The tracks to the South still stand to Ewing Street, but are not in use. The tracks west to the Kankakee Belt connection still stand and are rarely used.