Page 20 - September October 2017

A Santa Fe style Cantilever with a US&S searchlight stands guard at ESS Granada on the BNSF’s La Junta Subdivision
stripped clean by vandals and thieves; a reminder of the glory days of these once busy lines. After turning south toward La Junta, Colotado we came across one of the few remaining Santa Fe Cantilever Searchlight signals on the BNSF La Junta Sub, actively guarding the route still travelled by Amtrak’s Southwest Chief, a fine way to end the first day.
Day two began at the crack of dawn; this day had a purpose, a defined set of plans, the reason the whole trip was planned. We set out from Lamar, Colotado for Delhi, racing at breakneck speed to stay ahead of Amtrak’s #3, the westbound Southwest Chief. Delhi is no more than
a spot on a map with a few abandoned structures. This place on the semi-arid Colorado shortgrass plains is well known to rail fans and was a must see on our trip. The reason it was a must see? It is home to the only remain- ing “Wig-Wag” crossing signal left on a Class 1 railroad in the country. Manufactured by the Magnetic Signal Co. in Minneapolis, the “Magnetic Flagman” has stood guard
The Magnetic Signal Co. of Minneapolis, produced the “Magnetic Flagman,” this model at Delhi is the last “wig- wag” in service on a Class 1 railroad in the country
20 ROUNDHOUSE - October 2017
over this crossing since at least the 1940s. We arrived and waited, suddenly with a sharp click, and the hum of
a motor, the counter weighted arm holding the target and light began to wave back and forth, the monotone sound of a single bell alerting all that the Chief was coming. With the sound of the horn, the rumble of the diesels, and a brief whirl of air, the Southwest Chief raced by; and as quickly as it started, it was over. All was still as the arm returned to a vertical position and the grasslands became silent once again.
The next stop on the journey took us over Raton Pass
and onto the arid expanse of northeast New Mexico to the small towns of Wagon Mound and Chapelle. The Union Switch and Signal Co. T2 Upper Quadrant Semaphores along the former Santa Fe, have stood guard over the blocks on the Raton and Glorietta Subdivisions for nearly a century; when they fall, so will the last example of these types of signals on a Class 1 in the United States. Standing in the hot New Mexico sun, the blades pointed skyward. Knowing the Chief would be along any moment, we watched as one
of the blades began to drop, first to 45 degrees, then min- utes later it was horizontal, giving opposing movements
a stop, the line belonged to #3. After the passage of the Chief, the blade returned to a vertical position, awaiting the next train to enter its block. These signals have stood guard over the movement of trains over Raton Pass, watching as mammoth Northern’s hustled high priority freights and the railroads premiere passenger trains, trains like the Chief and Super Chief. One can almost see a quartet of Santa Fe F units, adorned in the bright War- bonett livery hustling the El Capitan to destinations east and west of these tiny spot’s in the New Mexico dessert. As the day drew to an end, we found a place to stay in Las Vegas, New Mexico. I was already planning for the next day, one last shot of the semaphores at Chapelle.
On day three we awoke around 4am, knowing that we had to navigate to a place in the dessert, on unfamil- iar roads; in the pitch black darkness, not to mention it