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Any photos not otherwise credited are from the personal collection of Frank Passic, Albion Historian.
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Morning Star, July 11, 2021, pg. 6 Albion once had two railroads. The first, the Michigan Central Railroad, came here in 1844. The second, the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad (LSMSRR), arrived here in 1872. The line ran from Jonesville to Lansing, through the communities of Jonesville, Litchfield, Homer, Condit, Albion, Devereaux, Springport, Eaton Rapids, Dimondale, and Lansing. Railroad were once big business, and many factories shipped their goods via rail a hundred years ago. Locally, the Hayes Wheel Company shipped its wheel hubs to the Reo plant in Lansing via the LSMSRR where they were assembled onto new automobiles. The Gale Manufacturing Company on N. Albion St. also utilized the tracks. The Albion LSMSRR depot was located on the site of today’s mobile phone business building, originally the Bank of Albion building at 309 N. Superior St. which was built in the 1950s. The depot was erected in 1872; the east end was used for baggage and passenger waiting. The ticket office was on the western end of the structure. Wooden toilet houses were located south of the building. The New York Central Railroad purchased the LSMSRR in 1914. With the advent of the automobile and trucking, the railroad suffered a sharp decline in the number of passengers and freight service during the 1920s. The two local train depots were consolidated into the Michigan Central depot on N. Eaton St. The LSMSRR depot was closed, and subsequently sold in 1935 to Homer-area farmer Arthur Anderson, who had it cut into several sections and moved to his farm. Passenger service along the LSMSRR line was discontinued in 1928, although a passenger car was attached to the rear of the trains that carried freight service along the line three times a week. The tracks were abandoned from Springport to Lansing in 1940, and the Springport depot was closed. The tracks from Albion to Litchfield were ordered abandoned in 1943. The tracks from Albion to Springport were abandoned in September 1968, and were subsequently removed. The track remaining in Albion now services the Knauf insulation plant at 1000 E. North St. at Clark St. The railroad has made improvements to the line in recent years, insuring its availability to Knauf and any other potential customers along the route. From our Historical Notebook this week we present the classic 1911 postcard photograph of the LSMSRR depot, looking west from N. Superior St. A steam engine is on the right pointed in the direction of its destination, Lansing. The postcard producer was local druggist Homer C. Blair.  1911 Postcard Photograph of the LSMSRR Depot
All text copyright, 2024 © all rights reserved Frank Passic
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