1946 Plan To Rehab The Connell Northern And Adrian Cutoff

Courtesy of the MHS.

February 14, 1946

1913 GN-NP Joint Use Of Facilities At Adrian

Courtesy of the MHS.

June 11, 1913

BNSF OCS At Adrian

My photo.

July 30, 2026

Industrial and General Report-1912-4

Courtesy of the PNRA. Thanks to Aaron Schwarz for digging this out.

BNSF EAS At Black Butte

Photo by Steven J. Brown. 

The BNSF Employee Appreciation Special with Southern Pacific 4449 on the Columbia River Subdivision at Pinto Ridge Road in Stratford, Washington - July 17, 2000.

 Dan adds; part of the bluff seen on the left is named "Black Butte" on topo maps.

Meet At Adrian

My photo. 

June 29, 2026

A westbound Z train is doing track speed at Adrian, WA, while passing an empty oil train holding the siding. 

My photo location is part of the filled in Northern Pacific trestle which leapt over the GN main and Crab Creek here. This structure was removed in 1983. There was an actual interchange track here, starting at a point along the oil train marked by the water tank in the distance. There was another bridge over Crab Creek there, and a ramp going up to the NP at a point called Adco. Adco was a conjunction of the names “Adrian” and “Connell.” The line to here had been built between those points in 1910, connecting with the 1903 build NP branch down from Coulee City. 

At one time, this junction had been envisioned to allow the large quantities of wheat coming off the NP, which wanted to go to tidewater at Seattle, from having to be hauled all the way back to Spokane, and then to Seattle. This would save about 200 miles. 

During the mid 1930s, this interchange boomed with carloads of construction material for the abuilding Grand Coulee Dam. While much was handed over to the NP at Spokane, the cement plant along the GN at Grotto, on the west side of Stevens Pass, added it’s share to the other 5 places enlisted to provide product.

In the early days of the newly merged Burlington Northern, there had been a plan floated to build a unit train loader in this area. Unfortunately, the boom of Wyoming coal took the bulk of BN’s money and time, so this project never came to fruition. 

The interchange had a longer life than expected. While the line through to Coulee City was largely unused after 1950, the interchange and line south boomed due to the sugar beet processor built outside of Moses Lake. Nearby Quincy and Winchester, along the GN, became huge beet growing regions. Beets from there were shipped by rail along the GN to Adrian, where they were handed off to the NP for furtherance south to the plant. This continued until the plant was closed in 1979. 

Both bridges were removed in 1983 after BN got permission to abandon the line south. 

Build New Road From Connell To Adrian

From the Spokane "Chronicle."

June 2, 1909

Z Train At Adrian

May 16, 2026

I was waiting at my preferred train watching spot at Adrian, for that late Amtrak #7 I wound up catching at Marlin instead. This Z train came flying through before I left. It met #7 at Gibson. I wound up seeing the Z again at Latah Junction a few hours later.

In the distance in this shot is Beezley Hill, with the town of Ephrata being right below it.

My location is right where the NP used to cross this line.

 

Trains On The Adrian Cutoff

From the "Spokesman Review."

October 24, 1903

1933 Land Ownership Maps Soap Lake To Adrian

1933

Of note, at the Adrian townsite, there is a chunk owned by CF Berlet. He had been instrumental in getting the Adrian Irrigation Company set up back in 1907, and was part of the lawsuits that saw the company's demise.

Was The Siding At Adrian Built By The GN, Or The NP?

Courtesy of the NPRHA.

Adrian School View

USBR photo. Courtesy of the Grant County Historical Society Museum.

May 12, 1950

Check out the GN outfit cars in the background!

GN Cement Hopper View

USBR photo. Courtesy of the Grant County Historical Society Museum. 

June 28, 1950. 

Best guess for a location is south of Adrian/Adco on the line to Wheeler, somewhere north of Gloyd. 

"Columbia Basin Project, Irrigation Division 2nd Section East Low Canal. View showing cement siding and unloading operation. Cement is trucked approximately two miles to Batch Plant."

Raising The Ire Of the NP President

September 1909

1910 Adrian Construction Spur Telegrams

 

The NP Won't Pay For Shipping Over The GN

1910 Timeframe. 

Great Northern Trainorders

 

1982 Wenatchee Trainorders

 

GN Depots Wilson Creek To Vulcan

As prepared for the 2016 GNRHS convention for me by someone else. It's mostly correct.

Great Northern Depot Locations-2