There's an old saying that even a blind dog will find a bone once in a while. Well, this old dog found one today, and a special one. A gentleman from Gosport, who had been an operator on the P&E, brought an extremely rare photo over for me to scan, a photo of Ames tower when it was still a two story tower. It had been an actual tower until about 1950, when a Monon train derailed and a coal hopper went through it and tore it down. Apparently the upper floor was not too badly damaged because the operator working there rode it to the ground unhurt, and after the wreck was cleared, they set it on a new foundation and it served until the end of the Monon, still known as Ames "tower".
Thanks to Mr. Dale Hunt, retired P&E operator, for sharing this rare picture with us. He was not on duty at Ames that shift, but he was later called in to work, and he remembers sitting outside, on a chair, with a telegraph key in his lap, copying train orders on a clipboard, while a another P&E man held a flashlight for him to work by. Great picture, and a great story. / Ron
